M-55S: The Slovenian for Ukraine

This is an old boy for Ukraine: Slovenia is handing over 28 of its M-55S tanks to the country at war. It seems that not too long ago we were mocking the Russian T-62 tanks captured by the Ukrainian forces, and now even older vehicles are arriving, whose production began in 1947. That's true, but there is also another truth: the M-55S is actually an upgrade of the Soviet T-55 tank, the first tank of the Cold War, but it was carried out in the late 1990s, and overall the M-55S is a completely different vehicle than the original T-55.

The M-55S differs significantly from its historical predecessor. The tank has received a new gun - a 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7 with thermal sleeve, one of the most successful tank guns of all time. The turret and hull have been fitted with additional reactive armor, which has even changed the silhouette of the tank and makes it more similar to modern tanks. The M-55S features a digital ballistic computer and gun stabilization, a Fotona SGS-55 sight with laser rangefinder, a Fotona COMTOS-55 commander's sight, an improved engine, new rubber-metal tracks, and even a LIRD-1A laser radiation detector connected to the IS-6 smoke grenade launcher.

Yes, it's not a Leopard 2A7+ or M1A2 Abrams, but such a tank is very useful while some are still waiting for modern Western tanks.