Weapon tag archive

Soviet Legacy Weapons and Military Equipment

Browse 7 weapon systems and military equipment entries tagged Soviet Legacy, grouped by category with images, specifications, conflict context, and sources.

7 weapon systems

MiG-23, Variable-sweep fighter and fighter-bomber aircraft, Aircraft & UAVs

Aircraft & UAVsMiG-23Variable-sweep fighter and fighter-bomber aircraftSide: IraqSoviet Union and Afghan government forcesIndiaSyrian government and alliesLibyan National ArmyBuilt: Mikoyan-Gurevich / Soviet UnionThe MiG-23, NATO reporting name Flogger, is a Soviet variable-sweep fighter and fighter-bomber family built around high speed, radar-guided interception, and exportable strike variants. More than 5,000 were produced, and documented combat use ranges from Iraqi Floggers in the Iran-Iraq War 1980-1988 and Gulf War 1990-1991 to Indian MiG-23BN strike missions in Kargil and late Libyan and Syrian civil-war sorties.

PM-43, 120 mm towed heavy mortar, Artillery

ArtilleryPM-43120 mm towed heavy mortarSide: Soviet Union and Afghan government forcesRussiaBuilt: Soviet state arsenals / Soviet UnionThe PM-43 is a Soviet 120 mm smoothbore heavy mortar, introduced in 1943 as a wartime development of the PM-38 and kept in service as a legacy system. OSCE monitoring documented a probable PM-43 in a non-government-controlled area of Luhansk oblast during the Russia-Ukraine War 2014-present, showing how old Soviet mortar designs remained present alongside newer 120 mm systems.

AKMS, Folding-stock 7.62x39mm assault rifle, Infantry Weapons

Infantry WeaponsAKMSFolding-stock 7.62x39mm assault rifleSide: RussiaIslamic State and jihadist groupsBuilt: Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant / Various manufacturers / Soviet Union / licensed producersThe AKMS is the under-folding-stock member of the Soviet AKM assault-rifle family, retaining the stamped receiver, long-stroke gas system, select-fire controls, and 7.62x39mm chambering while shortening the rifle for airborne troops, vehicle crews, and compact carry. Conflict Armament Research and ARES documentation places AKMS-family rifles in Islamic State stocks around Kobane and in a 2022 Ukrainian police seizure from an alleged Russian saboteur, showing how older Kalashnikov-pattern rifles remain visible in modern war.

BP-540 HEAT projectile, 152 mm HEAT-T / HEAT-FS projectile, Munitions

MunitionsBP-540 HEAT projectile152 mm HEAT-T / HEAT-FS projectileSide: RussiaUkraineBuilt: Soviet state arsenals / Soviet UnionBP-540 is a Soviet 152 mm spin-stabilized HEAT projectile for direct-fire anti-armor work from legacy gun-howitzers. Public references tie it to the D-1, D-20, and 2S3 Akatsiya ammunition families, and conflict-specific open sources identify it among 152 mm projectiles present or fired during the Russia-Ukraine War 2014-present.

T-62, Main battle tank, Tanks

TanksT-62Main battle tankSide: EgyptSoviet Union and Afghan government forcesIraqRussiaSyrian government and alliesLibyan National ArmyTigray forcesHouthi-aligned forcesBuilt: Uralvagonzavod / Soviet UnionThe T-62 is a Soviet main battle tank built around a 115 mm U-5TS/2A20 smoothbore gun, a four-person crew, and a conventional tracked armor layout inherited from the T-54/T-55 design line. Produced in large numbers by Uralvagonzavod, it moved from Cold War export and Soviet service into long-tail combat use: Egyptian and Iraqi T-62s appear in 1970s and 1991 conflict records, while upgraded or inherited T-62M/T-62MV stocks reappeared in Syria, Libya, Ukraine, Tigray, and Yemen.

T-34/85 Tank, Medium tank, Tanks

TanksT-34/85 TankMedium tankSide: RussiaUkraineYemeni government and coalition forcesHouthi-aligned forcesBuilt: Soviet state tank factories / Polish and Czechoslovak manufacturers / Soviet Union / Poland / CzechoslovakiaThe T-34/85 is the 85 mm-gun version of the Soviet T-34 medium tank, built in large numbers in the Soviet Union and later in Poland and Czechoslovakia. Its modern relevance comes from isolated post-Cold War survival rather than contemporary capability: sources document reactivated Yemeni tanks used as mobile direct-fire support and exceptional Russia-Ukraine War 2014-present appearances involving recovered monument vehicles.

M-55S, Upgraded T-55 main battle tank, Tanks

TanksM-55SUpgraded T-55 main battle tankSide: UkraineBuilt: ST Ravne / SloveniaThe M-55S is Slovenia's modernized T-55 main battle tank, rebuilt by ST Ravne with a 105 mm gun, explosive reactive armor, fire-control upgrades, laser-warning equipment, and NATO-compatible ammunition. During the Russia-Ukraine War 2014-present, Slovenia committed 28 of the scarce upgraded tanks to Ukraine through a ring exchange with Germany, turning a reserve Cold War chassis into a Western-supported Ukrainian fire-support vehicle.