T-72B

T-72B

T-72A

T-72B (1989)

T-72B

T-72A

T-72B (1989)

USSR

VII Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
10.3	10.3	10.3

Class:

Medium tank

Research:260 000

Purchase:710 000

Description

The T-72B is a rank VII Soviet medium tank with a battle rating of 10.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.97 "Viking Fury".

General info

Survivability and armour

The T-72B is an up-armored and up-gunned version of the T-72A. Although this does not protect the "weak spots" that most Soviet tanks have (weak lower front plate, driver optics ect). The T-72B has more armour on the upper plate of the hull, that provides around 500mm to 900mm of armour protection.

Mobility

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	67	5	44.5	1302	1,603	29.26	36.02
Realistic	60	5		743	840	16.7	18.88

Armaments

Main armament

The T-72B is armed with the same 125 mm cannon found in the T-80B, with its 3BM42 "Mango" round proving competitive against other Rank VII offerings. As with previous Russian MBTs, the main gun is auto-loaded, so the loss of a crew member does not affect the loading times and the 7.1-second loading speed is competitive when compared to the 120 mm guns on the Leopard 2A5 and M1A2 Abrams. One notable perk of the auto-loader mechanism is that the gun will be reloaded even if the gunner is knocked out, if you're fighting a fire, or repairing. It does however also come with the drawbacks of a reload time that cannot be improved, the large ammo carousel concentric with the turret, and the chance of a single penetrating shot detonating the ammo racks. Another thing to note, since update 1.97 if the tanks battery runs out of power, the auto loader will not function and the cannon will need to be manually loaded, which is a much slower process.

As with the T-80B and T-64B, the T-72B can launch missiles out of its gun. Unlike the previous two vehicles though, it gets the upgraded 9M119 which has 700 mm of penetration compared to the previous ATGM's 650 mm penetration. These ATGM's can prove useful for shooting over hills to hit a hiding enemy or to engage helicopters or low-flying aircraft.

125 mm 2A46M-1
Capacity			Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance	Stabilizer
45			-6°/+13°	±180°	Two-plane

Turret rotation speed (°/s)
Mode	Stock	Upgraded	Prior + Full crew	Prior + Expert qualif.	Prior + Ace qualif.
Arcade	22.8	26.9	__.__	__.__	__.__
Realistic	14.3	16.8	__.__	__.__	__.__

Reloading rate (seconds)
Stock	Prior + Full crew	Prior + Expert qualif.	Prior + Ace qualif.
7.1	7.1	7.1	7.1

Additional armament

Some tanks are armed with several guns in one or more turrets. Evaluate the additional weaponry and give advice on its use. Describe the ammunition available for additional weaponry. Give advice on about how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage. If there is no additional weaponry remove this subsection.

Machine guns

The T-72B has access to a coaxial PKT 7.76 machine gun and a 12.7mm NSVT anti aircraft machine gun, which is mounted above the commanders hatch. The PKT is rarely useful in top tier matches, but the NSVT can be quite useful. The NSVT has 29mm of penetration, allowing it to damage some light vehicles like IFVs and enemy SPAA. Additionally it is useful to engage enemy helicopters when they come close. Machine guns can also be used to try and shoot down enemy ATGMs, but this is unreliable. They can also be used to shoot the ground in front of the tank for a quick smoke screen of sorts, confusing the enemy and blocking their view for a clean shot.

7.62 mm PKT
Coaxial mount
Capacity (Belt capacity)				Fire rate (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
1,250 (250)				700	N/A	N/A

12.7 mm NSVT
Pintle mount
Capacity (Belt capacity)				Fire rate (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
300 (150)				700	-10°/+60°	±180°

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection		Firepower
I	Tracks		Parts		Horizontal Drive	3BK18M
II	Suspension	Brake System	FPE	NVD	Adjustment of Fire	Laser rangefinder
III	Filters		Crew Replenishment	Smoke grenade	Elevation Mechanism	9M119
IV	Transmission	Engine	ESS		Artillery Support	3BM42

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Front is covered in "CONTACT-1" ERA blocks making it basically immune to HEAT munitions from the front
• Armed with the powerful 2A46M-1 cannon from the T-72B
• Guided shells easily deal with long-range fast moving targets and helicopters

Cons:

• Terrible reverse speed that plagues top tier Soviet diesel engines
• No thermal optics makes spotting difficult
• Cramped fighting compartment with shells all over the center of the tank

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

The Shooting Range #192 - Metal Beasts section at 00:32 discusses the T-72B.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Devblog] T-72B: Necessary Improvements