TR-85 [SEP] service entry
TR-85
The TR-85 is a main battle tank designed for the armed forces of Romania. Based on the TR-77-580, the TR-85 tank was developed from 1978 to 1985 and produced from 1986 until 1990. A modernization program was initiated in March 1994 in order to upgrade the TR-85 tanks to NATO standards. The result was the TR-85M1 main battle tank, currently the most modern tank in service with the Romanian Land Forces. Although a further development of the T-55, the TR-85M1 uses a T-block powerpack (similar to
T-55 with an extended chassis and 6 road wheels, originally intended to allow the usage of the same engine as the Leopard 1. The refusal of Krauss-Maffei to deliver technology to a Warsaw Pact member and political desire to reach certain production figures meant that the V-55 engine of the T-55 was used instead. 227 TR-580"s" were in service in 2017.
Romanian TR-85 series tanks are sometimes mistakenly considered as locally produced T-55s; in fact they are related, but different designs.
Models and variants International derivatives Serbia.
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