PT-91 Twardy

A Polish-developed main battle tank derived from the Soviet T-72M1, upgraded with a domestic fire-control system, explosive reactive armor and a more powerful engine. It remained the backbone of Polish armored forces until being progressively replaced by the K2 and Abrams.

In service since 1995 · 2 operator countries

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02

km/h

650

km range

18.4

hp/t

125

mm gun

45,300

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

National export licensing

Subject to Poland export-control approval; verify eligibility with the manufacturer.

Channel: Direct commercial / G2G

Fielded & proven

Limited · 2 operators

In service since 1995. Status: active · ~233 built.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from.

Interoperability

No standardised NATO calibre / datalink detected in public specs.

Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.

Full specifications

Performance

Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.

Max speed Maximum level speed. For aircraft this is at optimal altitude; for ground vehicles, top road speed. Higher means faster response and better kinematic performance.: 60 km/h

Stronger than 24% of main battle tanks
Range Maximum distance: ferry range for aircraft, operational range for vehicles, maximum engagement distance for missiles. Higher means more standoff or persistence.: 650 km

Top 5% of main battle tanks
Power-to-weight Engine power per tonne of vehicle weight. Higher means better acceleration and cross-country mobility.: 18.4 hp/t

Stronger than 15% of main battle tanks

Firepower

Armament, payload and guidance.

Main armament Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.: 125 mm 2A46MS smoothbore with autoloader
Secondary armament Additional weapons: coaxial MG, remote weapon station, gun pods.: 7.62 mm coaxial + 12.7 mm AA machine gun
Caliber Bore diameter of the main gun or rifle. Larger throws heavier projectiles; not simply better — ammunition commonality matters.: 125 mm
Ammunition Rounds carried (main gun) or standard magazine capacity.: 42

Stronger than 70% of main battle tanks

Protection

Armor, countermeasures and survivability.

Armor Armor technology: composite, modular, ERA-fitted, uranium-ceramic. Exact compositions are classified.: Composite armor with ERAWA explosive reactive armor
Reactive armor Explosive reactive armor (ERA) blocks that disrupt shaped-charge jets.: Yes
Countermeasures Self-protection: chaff, flares, DIRCM, towed decoys, smoke dischargers, jammers.: smoke grenade launchers
NBC protection Sealed crew compartment with overpressure filtration for nuclear/biological/chemical environments.: Yes

Physical

Dimensions, weight and crew.

Length Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.: 9.53 m
Width Overall width — matters for rail/road transport of vehicles.: 3.59 m
Height Overall height. Lower profile is harder to spot and hit for ground vehicles.: 2.19 m
Combat weight Fully loaded weight. Lighter eases transport and bridging limits; heavier often means more armor.: 45,300 kg
Crew Personnel required to operate. Fewer reduces exposure; autoloaders trade a loader for mechanical complexity.: 3

Propulsion

Engine, power and fuel.

Engine Powerplant model and type.: S-12U diesel
Engine power Engine output power. Higher moves more weight faster.: 850 hp

Stronger than 22% of main battle tanks
Propulsion type Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…: Diesel

Sensors & avionics

Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.

Sensors IRST, EO/IR turrets, laser designators, sniper pods, thermal sights.: Drawa-T fire control system
Thermal imaging Thermal sights for night and obscured-visibility operations.: Yes

Program

Cost, production scale and operators.

Units built Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability.: 233

Stronger than 30% of main battle tanks
Operator countries Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.: 2

Stronger than 57% of main battle tanks

Specifications compiled from public Huta Stalowa Wola and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.

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