Tank origin

Originally known in its prototype form as Object 219, the T-80 was a redesign of the T-64. The major new feature of the T-80 was its gas turbine engine, the GTD 1000, which made it the first Soviet-produced tank to be fitted with such an engine. Despite its power, the GTD 1000’s fuel consumption, coupled with the increased manufacturing costs of the T-80’s reconfigured hull, led Soviet engineers to develop a new design soon after the tank entered service in 1976.