Ti-67 (Tiran)
In service 1970s - 1990s
Based onT-55 (national designation of)
Captured Egyptian and Syrian T-54s, T-55s and T-62s rebuilt with Israeli guns, radios and stowage and turned against their former owners.
Built byIsraeli Ordnance Corps rebuild of captured Soviet tanks
Photograph pending. No clearly licensed photograph of this vehicle was found.
Development history
Israel captured Soviet-built tanks in quantity in 1967 and again in 1973 - so many that refurbishing them was cheaper than buying new. The Tiran programme standardised them on Israeli terms: the Soviet guns were replaced with the 105 mm M68 so ammunition matched the rest of the fleet, Western radios and stowage were fitted, an Urdan cupola and machine gun mounts were added, and later vehicles received appliqué and then reactive armour. Tiran 4 and 5 came from T-54 and T-55 hulls, the Ti-67 designation covering the reworked vehicles generally, and Tiran 6 from captured T-62s. They served in Lebanon in 1982, and many were later stripped down into Achzarit heavy armoured personnel carriers.
Variants
One canonical record, 4 recorded variants.
Tiran 4
1970sCaptured T-54 rebuilt with the 105 mm M68 and Western equipment.
Tiran 5
1970sCaptured T-55 to the same standard; the most numerous version.
Tiran 6
1970sCaptured T-62, retaining the 115 mm gun in most vehicles.
Achzarit
1988Hull rebuilt as a heavily protected infantry carrier with rear crew door.
Notable actions
- 1982 Lebanon War