The T-62 originally was conceived as a companion weapon to the T-55.Being Essentially a T55 up gunned with the2A20 115mm cannon. Both the T-55 and the T-62 Used the same wheels, track, engine, transmission, hatches and other fittings. The primary differences between the two vehicles were the T-62’s lengthened hull and new turret design. The new UT-5 can-non could fire its BR-5 APFSDS steel round through approximately 300mm of armor at a range of 1000 meters. This was adequate to deal with the then perceived threat of such NATO tanks as the American M-48 and later models of the British Centurion. The T-62 was meant to add long range firing capability to Soviet tank regiments being placed alongside T-55s, but in the later years of its deployment it fulfilled much the same role as the T-55. Despite being introduced in 1960, the improved performance of its successors, the T-72, the T-62 still sees service today in many of the world’s army the Arab nations being the largest consumers outside the Warsaw pact. Egypt, Iraq, and Syria have been notable users of the T-62, Israel has acquired a quantity of T-62s in clashes with its neighbors and has rebuilt them to IDF standards.
