Credit
Source: Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson Unit Derivative: User:MathKnight · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Resized · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source ↗ · Modified
FORCETALLY
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At a glance
Measured figures
excl. gun barrel
Single sourceincl. gun barrel
Single sourceConfiguration
| Specification | Merkava | T-80 |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Main battle tank[source] | Main battle tank[source] |
| Place of origin | Israel[source] | Soviet Union[source] |
| In service | 1979–present[source] | 1976–present[source] |
| Used by | See Operators[source] | See Operators[source] |
9.04 m or 29.7 ft (incl. gun barrel) 7.60 m or 24.9 ft (excl. gun barrel)[source]
Gun forward T-80B
Single sourceLength
Single sourceT-80U
Single sourceT-80U Hull T-80B
Single sourceGun forward: 9.9 m (32 ft 6 in) T-80B, 9.654 m (31 ft 8.1 in) T-80U Hull: 7.4 m (24 ft 3 in) T-80B, 7 m (23 ft 0 in) T-80U[source]
Maximum; Off-road
Single sourceMaximum; On road
Single source64 km/h (40 mph) on road 55 km/h (34 mph) off road[source]
Maximum; Cross-country
Single sourceMaximum; T-80U
Single sourceMTU 12V883 turbocharged diesel engine (4, 5)
Single sourceMTU 12V883 1119 kW (1501 hp) turbocharged diesel engine (4, 5)[source]
SG-1000 gas turbine T-80B, GTD-1250 turbine T-80U, or one of 3 diesel T‑80UD T-80B
Single sourceT‑80U
Single sourceSG-1000 gas turbine T-80B, GTD-1250 turbine T-80U, or one of 3 diesel T‑80UD 1,000 hp T-80B, 1,250 hp T‑80U[source]
Bars compare reported quantities only. A larger figure does not make a system better; configurations and test conditions differ.
| Wars | 1982 Lebanon War South Lebanon conflict First Intifada Second Intifada 2006 Lebanon War Gaza War Operation Pillar of Defense Operation Protective Edge Gaza war[source] | August Coup 1993 Russian constitutional crisis First Chechen War Yemeni Civil War Russo-Ukrainian War 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine Russo-Ukrainian war (2022–present) Wagner Group rebellion[source] |
|---|
| Designer | Mantak[source] | Nikolay Popov , LKZ (T-80) KMDB (T-80UD)[source] |
|---|
| Manufacturer | Mantak, IDF Ordnance Corps (assembly)[source] | LKZ and Omsk Transmash , Russia Malyshev Factory , Ukraine[source] |
|---|
| Unit cost | $3.5 million (Merkava IV for delivery to the IDF, FY2003) (c. $5.85 million, FY2023) $10 million (Merkava IV) (2014 price for sales to other countries)[source] | US$3 million[source] |
|---|
| Produced | 1979–present[source] | 1975–2001 (T-80) 1987–present (T-80UD)[source] |
|---|
| No. built | Mark 1: 250 Mark 2: 580 Mark 3: 780 Mark 4: 360 in service + 300 units being delivered[source] | 5,500+[source] |
|---|
| Armor | Classified composite / sloped armour modular design.[source] | — |
|---|
| Main armament | 120 mm (4.7 in) MG251-LR smoothbore gun, capable of firing LAHAT ATGM[source] | Smoothbore 125 mm 2A46-2 gun , 36 rounds and 4 9M112 Kobra ATGMs (T-80B) 2A46M-1 with 45 rounds and 6 9M119 Refleks ATGMs (T-80U)[source] |
|---|
| Secondary armament | 1 × 12.7 mm (0.50 in) MG 3 × 7.62 mm (0.300 in) MG 1 × Mk 19 grenade launcher 1 × 60 mm (2.4 in) internal mortar 12 × smoke grenades[source] | 7.62 mm PKT coax MG , 12.7 mm NSVT or DShK or PKT antiaircraft MG[source] |
|---|
| Power/weight | 18.8 kW/t[source] | 23.5 hp (17.6 kW) / tonne T-80B 27.2 hp (20.3 kW) / tonne T-80U[source] |
|---|
| Payload capacity | 48 rounds[source] | — |
|---|
| Transmission | Renk RK 325[source] | Manual, 5 forward gears, 1 reverse T-80B, 4 forward, 1 reverse T-80U[source] |
|---|
| Suspension | Helical spring[source] | Torsion bar[source] |
|---|
| Ground clearance | 0.45 m (1.5 ft)[source] | 0.38 m (1.2 ft) T-80B, 0.446 m (1.46 ft) T-80U[source] |
|---|
| Fuel capacity | 1400 litres[source] | 1,100 litres (240 imp gal) (internal) 740 litres (160 imp gal) (external)[source] |
|---|
| Designed | — | 1967–1975[source] |
|---|
| Variants | — | Engineering & recovery, mobile bridge, mine-plough with KMT-6 plough-type system and KMT-7 roller-type system.[source] |
|---|
| Armour | — | T-80B – Hull 440–450 mm vs APFSDS 500–575 mm vs HEAT , Turret 500 mm vs APFSDS 650 mm vs HEAT T-80U – Hull & turret with Kontakt-5 780 mm vs APFSDS 1,320 mm vs HEAT[source] |
|---|
| Reported operators | — |
|
|---|
70 km/h (43 mph) (T-80U) 48 km/h (30 mph) (cross country)[source]