Breaking news
Ukraine will deliver its first batch of T-84 Oplot main battle tanks to the Army of Thailand 0701131.
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Defence News - Thailand |
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| Monday, January 7, 2013, 08:42 AM | |||
| Ukraine will deliver its first batch of T-84 Oplot main battle tanks to the Army of Thailand. | |||
Ukraine
will deliver its first batch of T-84
Oplot main battle tanks to the army of Thailand in May, army
chief Prayuth Chan-ocha said, Saturday, January 5, 2012. Under the staggered
delivery schedule, five of the tanks will be delivered in May, with another
50 tanks due by the end of 2015, he said. The army has ordered a total
of 200 of the T-84 Oplot tanks. |
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 Ukrainian T-84 Oplot main battle tank at IDEX 2011 defence exhibition in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. |
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During recent talks with the Ukraine government, Gen Prayuth said he had requested a speedier delivery of the battle tanks. The first round of five tanks T-84 Oplot will be used for training purposes, he said. Gen Prayuth said he had inspected an Oplot tank during a recent trip to Ukraine and believed the army was getting good value for money in terms of firepower and combat capabilities. Most of the army's current armoured vehicles were purchased from Western countries, where prices were comparatively high, he said. The procurement drew criticism from soldiers when the deal was announced in 2011. The Oplot tanks are equipped with an auto-loader that requires the tanks to stop moving when ammunition has been used up and new loading is necessary. An army source told that in a combat situation, tank crews of Royal Thai Army generally prefer the relilability of a manual ammunition-loading system. |
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