According to the manufacturer, the first batch of modified T-72M1 MBTs, consisting eight vehicles, should be delivered to the Polish Army by the end of December. The scope of upgrade works includes the installation of more efficient observation sets for the commander, driver and gunner, which will enhance situational awareness of the crew, especially in low visibility conditions, as well as new digital internal/external communication systems, such as radios and FONET system from WB Group.
ZM Bumar-Labedy will deliver the first batch of modified T-72M1 MBTs to the Polish Army / Picture: Polish MoD
The contract for modification of an unspecified number of T-72M1 MBTs was signed in July between the Polish Ministry of Defence (MoD) and a consortium, composed of the Polish Armaments Group (Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa, PGZ), ZM Bumar-Labedy and Wojskowe Zaklady Motoryzacyjne (WZM). The agreement is worth 1.75 billion Polish Zloty. Deliveries should run through to 2025.
‘We are modernizing the equipment, which is in the inventory of the Polish Army. Thanks to this upgrade, main battle tanks will be equipped with modern targeting, navigation and observation systems, as well as new digital comms’, said Mariusz Blaszczak, the Minister of Defence, during the signing ceremony.
The modification of T-72 MBTs is considered to be an interim solution before the MoD moves forward with the long awaited procurement of several hundred next generation tanks under the ‘Wilk’ programme. New MBTs will supplement and eventually replace currently operated T-72s and PT-91s, which no longer meet the requirements of the modern battlefield.