Russian tank crews improvise field-made reactive armour amidst the shortage
Russian tank operators, facing a shortage of reactive armour tiles, are attempting to create them under field conditions. We explain how they are doing this and whether it could be effective.
Reactive armour tiles are crucial for Russians to protect tanks from handheld anti-tank weapons or FPV drones with single-charge PG-7VL anti-tank grenades. However, it’s worth noting that newer anti-tank solutions with dual-stage warheads can easily overcome older single-layer reactive armour.
As shown in footage from the front line, the Russians are not producing enough reactive armour tiles, and some Russian tank crews are improvising by making them themselves in field conditions using available materials. Below are pictures from the production of these improvised reactive armour tiles.
A Russian is seen spreading plastic explosive material from a UZP-77 mine-clearing charge onto what appears to be a copper plate and then using a hammer to attach another metal plate, creating a type of "explosive sandwich."
DIY reactive armour tiles
The Russians have published schematics of Kontakt-1 tiles online and called for their mass production by any private company. However, their assembly by tank crews at the front line represents a new level of desperation.
Structurally, old-type reactive armour tiles like Kontakt-1 are straightforward since they consist of basic steel plates filled with stable (difficult to detonate) explosive material that only detonates under specific conditions.
The purpose of reactive armour tiles is to cause the premature detonation of a cumulative warhead and disperse the cumulative jet through the shock wave and fragments resulting from the tile's detonation. The term reactive armour comes from how it functions, i.e., explosive reactive armour.
For example, it can stop a PG-7VL grenade warhead capable of penetrating 500 millimetres of steel armour with a combination of 100 millimetres of armour and a reactive armour tile. The main armour must withstand the tile explosion, so it cannot be used on anything like mounting on UAZ "Buchankas."
It’s important to note that production requires suitable raw materials. Not every explosive material is ideal for this (TNT is a poor choice), and the assembly process must be precise. In the case of severe material shortages and production errors, such as gaps between the explosive material and the plate, instead of creating a protective tile, a cumulative warhead might result.
