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| This is Sukhoi Su-25T Tankovy, a Special Variant Fighter Jet For Tank Hunters On the Battlefield |
International Military - In order to face the battle against tanks from the air, apart from relying on the Ka-52 and Mi-28NM attack helicopters, the Russian Air Force also has a special anti-tank jet developed based on the Su-25 Grach (Fortress) attack jet. This variant is the Su-25T (Tankovy) which was built based on the Su-25UB tandem variant which was converted into a single seat. The rear seats were removed and replaced with additional avionics devices.
The Su-25T has all-weather and night attack capability. Enlarged nose cone to house Shkval TV optics and Prichal's laser sight and target designation system. For low-light night operations, the Su-25T is equipped with a Mercury TV pod system that can be carried under the fuselage.
As a tank hunter, the Su-25T carries laser-guided Vikhr anti-tank missiles. Other new weapons were added, namely the KAB-500Kr TV-guided bomb and the semi-active laser-guided Kh-25ML. A total of three prototypes of the Su-25T were built in 1983–1986, followed by eight production versions in 1990.
The Russian Air Force had fielded the Su-25T in the First Chechen war in 1994-1996 and was declared to reap perfect results. However, the project for the development of the Su-25 into the Su-25T did not go smoothly, including the advanced variant of the Su-25TM (Su-39) because it was considered too sophisticated and expensive.
In lieu of launching a new program that is more 'affordable', with the birth of the Su-25SM (Stroyevoy Modernizirovannyi) variant which adopts technology from the Su-25T/Su-25TM.
It is known that currently the Russian Air Force still operates around 192 families of attack jets, dubbed by NATO as Frogfoots. This includes 80 Su-25SMs and 25 of the most advanced Su-25SM3 variants.