The Russian military industry enterprise Uralvagonzavod has updated the modernization package for the T-72B3 main battle tanks.

The Conflict Intelligence Team (CIT) reported on this.

The publication recently obtained footage showing an echelon of recently shipped T-72B3M tanks with a new modification. The researchers have tentatively designated it model 2024 (obr. 2024).

The photos show that a new element has been added to the factory upgrade: rubber and fabric shields designed to protect the rear of the turret and engine compartment.

Although there are additional modifications, they are not visible in this video.

“Nevertheless, this distinctive feature – the rubber-fabric screens – will make it easy to identify tanks produced from the summer of 2024 onward,” CIT wrote.

These elements were not in the tanks sent as part of the last public delivery, announced in May 2024.

Identification of the new modernization will allow for a more accurate assessment of Russia’s capabilities in modernizing T-72B3M tanks.

Uralvagonzavod has already modified the T-72B3 tank several times since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In the fall of 2022, the first wartime modification, unofficially known as the T-72B3M model 2022 (mod. 2022), was introduced. It featured additional explosive reactive armor on the lower glacis plate, hull sides, turret, track shoulders, and gun mantlet, as well as a remote-controlled thermal sight shutter.

In addition, the armor was installed to protect the turret race ring, as well as an improvised roof screen aka cope cage. At the same time, the Russian defense industry faced a shortage of necessary components, including electronics. As a result, some tanks received a simpler 1PN96MT-02 thermal imaging sight instead of the Sosna-U multichannel stabilized sight.

The Omsk Plant of Transport Engineering, which is upgrading T-80 tanks to the T-80BVM level, faced similar problems. Some T-72B3M tanks were missing weather sensors, and the Sosna-U sights sometimes lacked a remote-controlled sighting shutter. Some tanks also lacked dynamic armor on the sides of the hull, track, turret, and aft, rear lattice screen, and slat armor around the turret race ring.

This shortage of components persisted until 2023, as new modifications were introduced. The T-72B3M mod. 2023, as we will call it for convenience, had additional dynamic armor in the aft of the tank instead of protective screens. A standard cage was also added. By the fall of 2023, the issue with the Sosna-U sight seemed to have been resolved, although some tanks still had not been fitted with weather sensors, even in the same batch. In addition to the weather sensor, the rest of the new features are present in the model’s 2024 version.