The Russian invaders start receiving Т-12 anti-tank guns
3 April, 2023 T-12 anti-tank gun of Russian troops in occupied Crimea, 2023. Photo from social media Transportation of the ?-12 anti-tank gun, which was designed back in the 50s, has been spotted in the occupied Crimea.
Respective photos of the Russian guns were published on social media. It is reported that military trucks towing 100mm anti-tank guns were photographed by local residents. From the appearance of the guns, it may be assumed that they have recently been withdrawn from a storage base and handed over to the Russian occupation troops in Ukraine to continue the unjust war.
Besides, a video of an echelon transporting the same guns throughout the territory of the Russian Federation was posted earlier on social media. However, at the same time, it is visually noticeable that those guns were in much better technical condition.
They have apparently been painted, which may indicate undergoing restoration works to bring the guns to a satisfactory condition for combat operations.
T-12 anti-tank gun of Russian troops in occupied Crimea, 2023. Photo from social media
?-12 anti-tank smoothbore gun were developed in the 50s of the last century and aimed to combat the Western tanks of the time. It uses a carriage from the Soviet D-48 85mm anti-tank.
The supply of such morally outdated weapons among the invaders may indicate attempts to replenish losses in artillery systems. Also, ?-12 can be carried to the battlefield due to the rapid wear of the barrels in more modern guns, which take time to recover.
T-12 anti-tank gun. Photo from open sources
It is worth noting that these guns can fire with high-explosive shells, so the invaders can use ?-12 for other purposes as against tanks.
Guns can also serve as field artillery to defeat ground targets, which is more likely, while they can indirect fire.
MT-12R gun of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. February 2022. Photo credits: Ukrainian military TV
The outdated ?-12 gun was long removed from service.
In 1972, it was replaced by ??-12 Rapira anti-tank gun. The new gun differed only in speed of transportation due to the change of carriage. The towing speed was increased to 60 km/h on dry roads and to 25 km/h on mud.
Ammunition includes several types of APFSDS, HEAT and HE-FRAG rounds, as well as guided projectiles.
D-1 howitzer of the Russian invasion forces in Luhansk region. October 2022. Ukraine.
Photo from social media
As previously reported, in October last year, the D-1 mod.1943 howitzers were spotted in the armament of the Russian artillery units on the territory of the Lugansk region.
Their deployment could enable an increase in firepower amid the exhaustion of ammunition of other artillery.
BTR-50PU of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, March 2023
Also, photos of Soviet BTR-50PU tracked armored personnel carriers of more than 50 years in age have recently been published.
Russia is restoring them to war against Ukraine.