Tank usage on both sides of the war in Ukraine is way down due to the plethora of drones available to front-line troops, which have taken an enormous toll on armored columns.
Russia lost so many of its main battle tanks that it was bringing antiquated T-62s and T-55s out of mothballs to serve its units in Ukraine.
Russian T-90 Tank. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
T-90M from Russia. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
The remaining tanks are mostly relegated to reserve roles.
However, the Russians have become more adept at jamming drones, with jamming systems mounted on the cages of their tanks, including the T-90M (Russia’s best tank), T-80BVM, and the T-72B3.
But the T-90M reportedly had two significant flaws that put the crews’ lives in danger. One is a flaw in all Russian tank designs, but the other was an issue that the Russians hadn’t experienced before.
Those two flaws were the “jack-in-the-box” explosion, where a hit to the turret caused the ammunition stored inside the turret to explode, launching the turret high into the air, killing the crew.
The other, first reported more than two years ago, however, was the so-called “spinning turret syndrome,” where even a minor hit caused the turret to spin continuously and uncontrollably, rendering it combat-ineffective and the crew unable to control the gun or engage enemy targets.
Is this a real issue with the T-90M or just a few isolated incidents? First, some background on the T-90M tank.
The T-90M, “The Best Tank In the World,” According To Putin
The T-90 main battle tank is Moscow’s most advanced tank in Russian frontline service. Russian President Vladimir Putin has hailed it as “the best tank in the world.”
“T-90 is the best tank in the world without any exaggeration. Our tankmen and the adversary recognize it as the best in the world,” Putin added. “We have to think about new generations of hardware. The designers know what to make and are working already.”
Troopers with 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division firing the 25mm canon on a Bradley fighting vehicle in order to zero the vehicles weapons systems at a range in Poland. Ranges such as these familiarize troopers with the vehicles systems in order to ensure combat readiness.
However, as with many Russian claims about the performance of their equipment, it has proven that while it is an excellent tank, it falls short of their claims.
The latest iteration of the T-90 tank, the “M” model, is being produced in record numbers, but Russia was losing tanks faster than they could be manufactured until they began pulling them off the line.
The T-90M “Proryv” represents the most modernized iteration of the T-90 series, offering substantial upgrades over its predecessors.
Designed for high-intensity engagements, it features a newly designed turret with multilayer armor, Relikt explosive reactive armor (ERA), anti-drone screens, and a diesel engine generating 1,130 horsepower.
The tank retains the advanced Sosna-U gunner sight, despite sanctions-induced limitations affecting other Russian models.
The T-90M also integrates a digital fire-control system and enhanced situational-awareness tools, positioning it as Russia’s most capable armored platform currently in serial production.
What Is The “Spinning Turret Syndrome” And Is It Real?
“Spinning turret syndrome” (sometimes called the “disco head” glitch) is a combat malfunction reported in Russia’s T-90 main battle tanks.
When the tank takes even minor damage or suffers a fire-control short circuit, the turret loses directional control and spins continuously in a wild circle, leaving the vehicle completely defenseless.
Possible electrical system damage from hits by drones, anti-tank missiles, or shrapnel could short-circuit the electronic turret-traversing and stabilization mechanisms.
Damage to external optics, laser warning receivers, or automated response systems could send erratic signals to the turret drive.
These issues were seen in a couple of different engagements; the most popularly shared one on social media was when a T-90M was engaged with two US-made M3 Bradley IFVs.
The Bradleys engaged at close range and peppered the T-90M with its 25mm Bushmaster chain gun. While the rounds didn’t penetrate the armor, they ignited the Russian reactive armor, which may have affected the electrical systems.
The T-90M’s turret spun uncontrollably before the tank smashed into a tree, forcing the crew to abandon it. It was destroyed shortly after this by a first-person-view (FPV) attack drone.
“It’ll likely be a combination of inexperienced crews and poor electronics,” Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a former British Army tank commander, said.
He added: “It’s very easy for inexperienced people to become very disoriented in a tank, because a tank’s hull can move in one direction, the turret could be in another direction and the commander’s sight could be in a completely other direction, which is why we get the term ‘disco head’ because people can easily become disoriented and the tank spins out of control.
“It could also be an electronics failure. Western tanks have a quite sophisticated fire control system, and the Russians don’t appear to have got it right.
T-90s Also Suffer From An Old Design Flaw
Another design flaw in Russian tank design, something the US and other Western nations have been aware of since the first Gulf War, is proving deadly for Russian forces since the invasion of Ukraine began.
The design flaw of Russian armored vehicles is causing a “jack-in-the-box” type of scenario where the turrets blow off after a tank suffers even an indirect hit, killing the crew.
Photos and videos from Ukraine are chock-full of images of burnt-out Russian vehicles with their turrets blown off littering the landscape.
Sam Bendett, who works as an adviser with the Russia Studies Program at CNA, said to CNN that “Any successful hit quickly ignites the ammo, causing a massive explosion, and the turret is literally blown off.”
It is an issue that also affects Russian armored fighting vehicles such as the BMD-4. Many defense officials and analysts say that Moscow should have seen this issue coming decades ago.
Why Russian Tanks Had Been “Blowing Their Top”?
The flaw in Russia’s armor comes from the way they designed the internal workings of the turret and where the ammunition is stored. And back in 1991, the US-led coalition was having similar success destroying Russian-built Iraqi T-72s in the desert.
Western tanks store their ammunition in a sealed compartment with additional ballistic protection, and the loader opens and closes a door through which the ammunition is loaded. He then transfers the tank round into the main gun for firing.
That loader is the fourth member of the crew, and if the turret were hit, there would be only one round inside the turret, which is inside the gun.
Russian tanks, however, have an autoloader, cutting the crew down to three. However, the ammunition in Russian tank design is stored in a carousel located at the base of the turret.
While the design gives the tank a lower profile, making it harder to hit, it also means that up to 40 rounds of main-gun ammunition are stored within the turret. Any hit, even an indirect one, will cause the ammunition to explode.
The results have been deadly. When the turret and its ammunition explode, the turret can be launched to a height of up to two stories.
One Russian tank exploded in Mariupol, and the turret landed on the roof of a five-story apartment building.
The flaws aren’t limited to the older T-72 tanks; the newer T-80 and T-90 series of tanks have a similar autoloading system where the ammunition is stored inside the turret.
While the armor surrounding the tanks has been improved, this flaw persists, and Western analysts point to the Russian military’s refusal to learn from the hard lessons of the Gulf War.
Rostec UVZ was actually working on a radically altered T-90 tank that did away with a rotating turret, eliminating the spinning turret and the exploding turret problems associated with it.
“An expert associated with UVZ, Alexey Ustyantsev, noted that the turret’s placement effectively created a major vulnerability within the T-90’s structure,” Defense IN posted last year.
About the Author: Steve Balestrieri
Steve Balestrieri is a National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing on defense, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications
