T-54
In service 1948 - 1970s in Soviet service, later abroad
Also known asT-54-1, T-54-2, T-54A, T-54B, Object 137
The first true Soviet main battle tank: a compact hull, a cast hemispherical turret and a 100 mm gun that set the pattern for every Soviet tank that followed.
Built byFactory No. 183, Omsk, Kharkiv
Development history
The T-54 distilled Soviet wartime lessons into a compact hull with a hemispherical cast turret that deflected shot remarkably well for its weight. Early series vehicles had teething trouble with the turret shape and gun mount, resolved through the T-54-2, T-54-3 and finally the stabilised T-54B of 1957. Licence production in Czechoslovakia, Poland and China spread the design worldwide, and it formed the basis of the T-55 that succeeded it in 1958.
Variants
One canonical record, 2 recorded variants.
T-54-1 / T-54-2
1948Early turrets with shot traps; limited production.
T-54B
1955Two-plane gun stabiliser and infrared night fighting equipment.
Related vehicles
Separate records that derive from this vehicle, grouped by how they relate to it.
Successor to this vehicle
Licensed production of this vehicle
Notable actions
- Hungarian Revolution (1956)
- Sino-Indian War (1962)
- Vietnam War
- Six-Day War (1967)