2A46 125 mm gun

The 2A46 (also called D-81TM) is a 125 mm/L48 smoothbore cannon of Soviet origin used in several main battle tanks. It was designed by OKB-9 (Artillery Plant No. 9) in Yekaterinburg.

Description
It was developed by the Spetstekhnika Design Bureau in Ekaterinburg in the 1960s originally for the T-64 tank. They were subsequently manufactured at Artillery Plant No. 9 in Ekaterinburg and Motovilikha in Perm. Other variations include 2A46M, 2A46M-1, 2A46M-2, 2A46M-4, 2A46M-5, and Ukrainian KBA-3 and Chinese ZPT-98.

The 2A46 can fire armour-piercing fin-stabilised discarding sabot (APFSDS), high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) and high-explosive fragmentation (HEF) projectiles. The ammunition for the 2A46 gun is in two pieces: the projectile is loaded first, followed by a separate propellant charge.

The early versions of the 2A46 suffered from a relatively short barrel life, but this was rectified on the 2A46M-1 version. Depending on the version it offers 510.0 MPa or from the 2A46M-1 650.0 MPa Pmax chamber pressure.

The Ukrainian KBA-3 guns are based on the 2A46 gun. In addition, the Chinese ZPT-98 is based on 2A46M imported from Russia's T-72 or T-80.

Soviet Union and Russia

 * 2A46-1 / DT-81TM (1970): Used on T-64A and T-72A.
 * 2A46-2 / DT-81K (1976): Used on T-64B and T-80B.
 * 2A46M (1981): Used on T-72AV, and T-72B.
 * 2A46M-1 (1981): Used on T-64BV, T-72B, T-80BV and T-80U.
 * 2A46M-2 (1992): Used on T-72S, T-90, T-90A, and T-90S tanks.
 * 2A46M-4: Used on Object 640 (aka, Black Eagle)
 * 2A46M-5: Used on T-90M, T-80BVM, and T72B3 Obr2017.
 * 2A82-1M: Used on T-14 Armata.

Source:

China

 * ZPT98: Used on ZTZ96 and ZTZ99.

Ukraine

 * KBA-3: Used on T-84.

Tanks using the 2A46
The 2A46 has been used in numerous tanks, almost exclusively Soviet/Russian designs or foreign derivatives:
 * Bangladesh
 * Type 59G(BD) Durjoy
 * Type 96B
 * Type 99
 * M-95 Degman
 * M-84D
 * T-80U
 * T-80UK
 * T-72M4CZ
 * T-72M1
 * T-72SIM1
 * 🇮🇷 Iran
 * Zulfiqar
 * Karrar
 * Iraq
 * Asad Babil tank
 * T-80U
 * T-80UK
 * Chonma-ho V (Ma)
 * Pokpung-Ho II & III
 * PT-91M Pendekar
 * PT-91 Twardy
 * 🇷🇴 Socialist Republic of Romania
 * TR-125
 * T-90
 * T-80
 * T-72
 * T-67 (125mm gun-armed T-62)
 * T-64 (after T-64A variant)
 * T-55M6
 * Obyekt 640/Black Eagle
 * M-84AS
 * T-90
 * T-72
 * T-84
 * VT-4
 * T-84
 * T-64
 * T-80
 * T-72
 * T-90S
 * T-90SK
 * M-84
 * T-90
 * T-72
 * T-84
 * VT-4
 * T-84
 * T-64
 * T-80
 * T-72
 * T-90S
 * T-90SK
 * M-84
 * T-90S
 * T-90SK
 * M-84
 * M-84
 * M-84

Weapons of comparable role, performance and era

 * L11A5 120 mm rifled gun: British rifled equivalent, developed by Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment (RARDE) in 1957.
 * Rheinmetall 120 mm gun: German equivalent, developed by Rheinmetall in 1974.
 * CN120-25 120 mm gun: French equivalent, developed by Établissement d'Études et de Fabrication d'Armements de Bourges (EFAB) in 1979.
 * EXP-28M1 120 mm rifled tank gun: Experimental British weapon of the late 1970s/early 1980s. Was to have equipped the MBT-80.
 * CN120-26 120 mm gun: French equivalent, developed by EFAB in 1980s.
 * IMI 120 mm gun: Israeli equivalent, developed by Israeli Military Industries in 1988.
 * OTO Breda 120 mm gun: Italian equivalent, developed by OTO Melara in 1988.
 * L30A1 120 mm rifled gun: British rifled equivalent, developed by ROF Nottingham in 1989.
 * JSW 120 mm gun: Japanese equivalent, developed by Japan Steel Works in 2008.
 * CN08 120 mm gun: South Korean equivalent, developed by Agency for Defense Development (ADD) and WIA in 2008.
 * MKE 120 mm tank gun: Turkish equivalent, developed by Otokar and Hyundai WIA in 2016.