In 1959, at the height of the cold war era, Soviet Union built this experimental nuclear explosion proof heavy tank called Object 279. It was one of the last Soviet prototypes of heavy tanks before Kruschev banned any tank heavier than 37 tons.
The hull of Object 279 had 182-319mm thick armor with CBRN or chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear protection. It was also covered by a thin, elliptical shaped shield protecting it against Armor piercing projectiles and shaped charge ammunition. The elliptical shield also protected it from overturning due to shockwaves of possible nuclear explosions.
One of the reasons that this tank project was abandoned, as with other heavy tank projects, was the fact that the Soviet military stopped operating with heavy fighting vehicles of that type, tanks and similar, as of 1960.
Since then, the heaviest ones are kept at about 50 metric tons of weight; that is without counting in any extra equipment such as additional reactive armor, mine clearing devices (mine plows, mine rollers), etc.
Source: World of Tanks forum
Adding to this decision was the fact that Nikita Khrushchev himself was a supporter of an alternative – guided missile tanks, the most prominent of which was IT-1.
Furthermore, the Soviet military wanted tanks with a suitable weight for crossing their own bridges, in case of homeland defense situations similar to those that occurred during World War II, which at that time seemed to be unreliable for heavy vehicle crossings.
Another reason was the fact that a number of serious deficiencies of the running gear appeared during the trials. These deficiencies included low nimbleness, efficiency loss during swampy area crossings, complex and expensive production, maintenance and repair, and impossibility of reduction in the overall height of the tank.
Object 279 during tests
Object 279 In Kubinka Tank Museum (Moscow)
Source: EnglishrussiaSource: World of Tanks forum
Source: World of Tanks forum
Source: World of Tanks forum
Source Imgur
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