Operation Carbenet
| Operation Carbenet | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Image of the T-72 ATE/IST "Tiger" taken by Bob Adams, 24th September 2006 | |
| Location | |
| Objective | Discover the flaws of enemy T-72 Tanks and try to counter them |
| Date | March to May of 1990 |
| Executed by | South African Defence Force |
| Outcome | Development boost of the TTD, Creation of the T-72/35, T-72 IST "Tiger" and T-72M1-T6. |
Operation Carbenet (sometimes miss referred to as Cabernet) was a Covert Operation in 1990 that involved South Africa acquiring T-72M1 Main Battle Tanks from Poland for testing and development.
History
[edit]During the Angolan Civil War, South Africa played a major role in the conflict, the SADF knew that the MPLA forces in Angola would acquire T-72 tanks eventually and that if the war carried on the Olifant Mk.1A tanks wouldn't stand a chance so they started looking to acquire T-72 tanks to study them and to see what they could do to improve the T-72.[1]
After they signed an agreement to withdraw from Angola and Namibia in 1989, South Africa acquired their first T-72 tanks from Poland in May 1990, as soon as the T-72M1s arrived, South Africa started testing the strengths and weaknesses of the tank to see what they would need to do to counter the T-72 threat and to see if South Africa could improve the T-72 for SADF use.[1]
It is worth mentioning that the research of the T-72 most likely helped develop the Loggim Tank also known as the TTD.
Vehicles
[edit]Operation Carbenet led to the SADF improving the tank and testing it to see what the platform supported, the following list talks about all the vehicles that came out of Operation Carbenet.
T-72 ATE/IST "Tiger"
[edit]The T-72 Tiger was one of the variants that kept its turret but was upgraded significantly, it gained advanced Optics such as its large tracking optic as can be seen on the right side of the main gun, it also gained advanced thermal devices and an ESS system, it also used the same 125mm gun that it usually did.[1]
T-72/35 aka "T-72 (ZA-35)"
[edit]The T-72/35 was one of the variants that had its turret changed to have a ZA-35 turret which is a Rooikat SPAAG variant with its 2 GA-35 Auto cannons designed to act as anti air, and is one of the more popular variants that came out of Operation Carbenet.[2]
T-72M1-T6 aka "T-72 (G6)"
[edit]The T-72-T6 was one of the variants that Operation Carbenet produced that involved testing of a brand new G6 turret that was made to be a lot more compact and compatible with other chassis than the G6, the turret was named the T6 and is known for its incorporation on the T-72 chassis, it had a 155mm howitzer same as the G6 and had a max range of 39 kilometres (24 mi) with its main gun.[3][4]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 "T-72 MI Main Battle Tank". sa-armour-museum. Retrieved 2026-09-19.
- ↑ "T-72M1 (ZA-35)". War Thunder — official forum. 2024-02-05. Retrieved 2026-09-19.
- ↑ "T-72M1 (T6)". War Thunder — official forum. 2024-02-04. Retrieved 2026-09-19.
- ↑ "Artillery | Denel Land Systems". www.denellandsystems.co.za. Retrieved 2026-09-19.