Russia Invites U.S. To A 'Tank Biathlon'

[Ryan Ruck]

Russia Invites U.S. To A 'Tank Biathlon'

August 10, 2013

Russia has invited the U.S. to participate in a tank biathlon so that both nations may learn to play nice — with heavy artillery.

The invitation was apparently extended while Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel met with their Russian counterparts Sergei Lavrov and Sergei Shoigu in Washington on Friday. The "two-on-two" talks were intended to relieve some of the tension between the two countries, so the suggestion of a little friendly competition — under fire — wasn't out of place.

Defense Minister Shoigu repeated the invitation during a Friday press conference, and according to Russia's RIA Novosti news service, Shoigu says the U.S. agreed.

"'We've invited our American colleagues to participate ... and our invitation was accepted by US Secretary of Defense [Chuck] Hagel,' Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Saturday."

NPR can't confirm this — calls to the Department of Defense went unanswered Saturday — but if such an event does take place, Shoigu says it'll be sometime next year.

Russia might have the advantage, however; ITAR-TASS reports Russia has already hosted at least two tank biathlons. Another, the championship, is planned next week.

As to what exactly happens in a tank biathlon, think of a regular biathlon — then forget about it:

"In the tank biathlon, every tank runs almost 20 kilometres at a maximum possible speed, while firing from all weapons the targets, which are rising in different directions and distances. On the course, a tank has to pass repeatedly a ford, fences, a rut bridge, high-speed sections and overtaking passages. At all the times, the crew remains constantly in the firing position."

[American Patriot]

Overt spying... because America is too dumbed down now to "get it".

[vector7]

Yep, they're looking for more intel to integrate in their New Russian Tank 'Armata' to appear in 2013.

[vector7]

Russia invites US to tank biathlon as inaugural competition gets under way

A tank biathlon may sound like an unlikely olive branch, but that has not prevented Russia's defence ministry reportedly extending an invite to their US counterparts despite the current diplomatic tensions between the two countries.



4:00PM BST 12 Aug 2013

A tank biathlon, the first of which is currently taking place in Russia this week, sees powerful T-72 tanks race over a 13-mile track, shooting at five targets along the way. Each target they miss means another 500 metres to travel.

So far, only tanks from four countries have taken part, but the Russian Defence Minister is reported to have sent an invitation to the US armed forces to join in.

The invitation was reportedly handed out when US Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel met their Russian counterparts Sergei Lavrov and Sergei Shoigu in Washington on Friday.


Russia Bests Kazakhstan, Armenia In CSTO Tank Biathlon

August 19, 2013 - 11:45am, by Joshua Kucera


Tanks of the four competitors in the biathlon show their colors. (photo: MoD Kazakhstan)

In a uniquely Russian bid to boost post-Soviet solidarity, the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organization has held a "tank biathlon" competition. The competition is more or less what it sounds like: as in the better-known skiing version, crews compete to race their tanks around a course while shooting at targets. Russia came in first, with Kazakhstan second, Belarus third and Armenia a distant fourth.

All the crews competed in new T-72B tanks, and RIA Novosti described the event as "part sales pitch, part post-Soviet bonding exercise."

Russia remains the world’s biggest exporter of battle tanks, the Moscow-based Center for Analysis of Global Arms Trade says. So this tank biathlon appeared to be an entertaining if unconventional sales pitch, Pukhov said.

“We’ll do our best to ensure that foreign armies buy our tanks in the future,” [Defense Minister] Shoigu said, announcing the event last week.

While Kazakhstan finished second, its media played up the result as a victory. The presidential communications service headlined its story "Kazakhstani tankers showed remarkable results" and Kazinform raved "Kazakhstan stuns at Tank Biathlon contest in Russia... Kazakhstani tankers did astoundingly good at the Tank Biathlon International Competition." Armenia's press, not surprisingly given their country's poor results, downplayed the results and relegated the stories to the sports section.

Russia seemed to take it less seriously; the event inspired the usually staid state news agency into an uncharacteristic display of snark:

[T]he vibe was like that at a pro wrestling match organized by the Soviet Union.

The adrenaline-filled event called for scantily clad cheerleaders, hard rock, beer and an announcer frothing at the mouth with excitement but came up short on all counts.

Instead, there were yawning gaps between events, punctuated only by officials’ sleep-inducing speeches.

Any metal band would surely sell their souls for the chance to play this gig, but the live soundtrack to the event sounded prehistoric. Some of the Soviet tunes played were so old that one explicitly praised Stalin.

The event presented a curious cultural counterpoint to the world track and field championships being held at the same time in Moscow. While one Swedish athlete drew controversy for painting her nails in a rainbow pattern to protest Russia's new anti-gay laws, the CSTO -- with no apparent ironic intent -- chose to paint the competing tanks in bright colors, creating a rainbow effect on a much larger scale.

Russia has invited both the U.S. and Germany to compete in similar events in the future, but the U.S. sounds unenthusiastic. But one wonders: is it too late to add the event to the 2014 Olympics in Sochi?


For the Win – Russia Triumphs in Tank Biathlon


For the Win – Russia Triumphs in Tank Biathlon
© RIA Novosti. Yekaterina Zgirovskaya

21:45 17/08/2013
Tags: T-72B, tank biathlon, Moscow Region, Russia
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ALABINO FIRING RANGE, Moscow Region, August 17 (Alexey Eremenko, RIA Novosti) – Russia’s latest military invention – a tank biathlon pitting ex-Soviet states against each other – is an assault on the senses, especially on hearing.

The racing field dwarfs the 40-ton machines and is clouded by smoke. The announcer’s deep voice struggles to cut through the booming guns and whistling signal rockets, and the engines’ roar is deafening as brightly-painted killing machines thunder past, each leaving a plume of dust in its wake.
The idea is pretty simple – just like a regular biathlon, only with tanks.

The Russian military unleashed this new sport on the world this week, delivering an event that was part sales pitch, part post-Soviet bonding exercise.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, it won, trouncing rivals from three post-Soviet countries – Armenia, Belarus and Kazakhstan – in Saturday’s superfinals.

Surprise Victory

“I don't know how we did it. Just sat there in the machine going all out, thinking, the whole of Russia is watching us,” Pvt. Igor Artemyev, the Russian team’s driver told RIA Novosti after the race. His left control lever stopped working, and he pulled his machine through while maneuvering with a single track, the 19-year-old conscript – a round-faced, sturdy fellow with the wholesome looks of a rustic fairytale hero – said.

To the spectators however, Russia’s crimson T-72B seemed to breeze through the racing ground like it was a Saturday morning trip to a supermarket.
The crew commander in Kazakhstan's blue tank sprained his arm handling the main gun shell. After a replacement was found it bounced back, coming in second, just under a minute after Russia. Belarus finished third, Armenia last.

“It was new to us. We've done all these exercises before, but never at the same training run,” Kazakh gunner Aidyn Kalioldin told RIA Novosti after the race. “The Russians handled it better. But we would have won if the race had taken place in Kazakhstan,” Kalioldin added with a smile.

Pegs & Minefields
All four teams at Alabino training grounds outside Moscow on Saturday competed in T-72Bs, the staple tank of all post-Soviet armies and a close relative of the T-90, Russia’s main export tank.

Like any good show, it started with a warm-up: Out on the field several heavy war machines of the same model – though not the performers – executed elaborate maneuvers. Incongruously, the host talked like he was at a ballroom dance contest, though there was an apocalyptic grace to this “tank ballet,” as he put it.

Each lap was 6,100 meters (3.8 miles) long and included a scarp, ford, minefield and bridge. The tanks must complete the lap without losing speed or overturning.

During the first lap, each fires its main gun at a target from a distance of 2,200 meters (7,200 feet), which is close to their maximum range. Then it is the machine gun that sees action, and then flanking fire at three consecutive targets. Ammo is loaded onto the tank at the firing line each time. There is no slack – no extra shots are allowed and every miss costs the team a 500-meter penalty lap.

Crucially – to keep the event sporting – they are not allowed to fire at each other.

Culture Clash
The military made an effort to entertain. The superfinals came complete with fireworks, music and dance shows, and a display of old Soviet tanks, cars and state-of-the-art military training equipment.

Children and adults jostled to get their picture taken with what looked like a real rocket launcher.

But the vibe was like that at a pro wrestling match organized by the Soviet Union.

The adrenaline-filled event called for scantily clad cheerleaders, hard rock, beer and an announcer frothing at the mouth with excitement but came up short on all counts.

Instead, there were yawning gaps between events, punctuated only by officials’ sleep-inducing speeches.

Any metal band would surely sell their souls for the chance to play this gig, but the live soundtrack to the event sounded prehistoric. Some of the Soviet tunes played were so old that one explicitly praised Stalin.

At times the announcer imitated the booming “this is Moscow calling” style of World War II-era radio host Yury Levitan, but this inevitably fell flat when he had to deliver a running commentary on tanks rolling through obstacles in the haze.

The 3,000 spectators were mostly a hand-picked assortment of former and currently-serving soldiers who were invited along with their entire families. No tickets were on sale to the public.

“Who knows what would happen if we just let anyone in,” army spokesperson Nikolai Dolyushkin told RIA Novosti.

Endangered Species or Export Opportunity?
Not many saw it coming, since tank forces have hardly been a priority in Russia over the past two decades. Plans to scale back the tank force from the current 20,000 to just 2,000 tanks were reported in 2010 by news agencies citing Defense Ministry sources, though never implemented.

Russia’s top brass feel that the tank’s golden age is already over, Voenpens.ru military news website cited military analyst Alexander Khramchikhin as saying last year, shortly before new Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu was appointed.

The development of cheap anti-tank weapons and the tendency toward small-scale conflicts arguably eliminate the need for clashes between massive tank armadas, Ruslan Pukhov of the Center for Analysis of Strategy and Technologies told RIA Novosti on Friday.

However, the experience of actual wars of the two past decades in the post-Soviet space (including two Chechen wars, the clash between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno Karabakh in the early 1990s, and the Russian-Georgian conflict of 2008) all showed that tanks are still relevant, Pukhov said.
Russia remains the world’s biggest exporter of battle tanks, the Moscow-based Center for Analysis of Global Arms Trade says. So this tank biathlon appeared to be an entertaining if unconventional sales pitch, Pukhov said.

“We’ll do our best to ensure that foreign armies buy our tanks in the future,” Shoigu said, announcing the event last week.

Forty-six military attaches from embassies in Moscow were invited, the Defense Ministry said, and most showed up, many with their families in tow.

US, Germany – Bring it On
Shoigu also said that the United States and Germany, Russia’s rivals on the arms exports market, were invited to bring their own tanks to compete against Russia next year.

After Saturday’s race, the US and German military attachés both said that their respective superiors are still deciding whether to accept Shoigu’s invitation, though the German officer sounded excited about it.

Shoigu previously claimed that US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel had approved US participation in 2014, but Colonel R. Taft Blackburn, US Army Attaché in Russia, said this was not the case.

“It is an interesting idea, but there are many issues at stake,” was all that Blackburn said when asked by RIA Novosti whether the Pentagon is considering the risk that Russia could interpret US unwillingness to take part as weakness.

Blackburn then beat a hasty retreat into the VIP stand, as an Armenian tank thundered past.


US, Italy to compete in Russia’s next tank biathlon

August 19, 2013
Alexei Yablokov, Vedomosti

The International Tank Biathlon Competitions finished on Aug. 17 in Alabino. Russia, Armenia, Belarus and Kazakhstan fought for first place. A Vedomosti correspondent visited the test run to find out what this new Russian amusement — the tank biathlon — really is.

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This tank biathlon epidemic struck the army in July: Each military district selected three of their best tank platoons to take part in the finals in Alabino near Moscow. Source: Sergei Micheev

At 10 a.m., I climbed up to the observation deck on the Alabinsky Range. There was already a crowd of 30 soldiers carrying walkie-talkies and wearing armbands with labels like, “Simulation Assistant,” and, “Deputy Chief Supervisor.”

I had an extraordinary view from the observation deck. Four tanks with red, blue, yellow and green colors were lined up in the foreground. A plain with fabricated mounds and potholes stretched in the background.


In Russia, even tanks practice biathlon

There was a warm, light breeze. The plain was enveloped by a mist, which made it impossible to see either the targets or the roadway — two important components of the biathlon.

While the judges were discussing something, I spoke with a member of the competition’s organizing committee — a retired colonel, who, for some reason, requested that his name not be published.

“Why was tank biathlon invented?” I asked.

The colonel explained: “So that the troops can manifest a spirit of competition, to get away from the daily routine of the army. Before this, exercises were simple and boring: The soldiers drove up, shot and went back. But now here they have obstacles, range practice shooting, and, in general, they compete against one another!”


Tank biathlon. Source: YouTube / TVZvezda

On test rides, the crews had to complete a small circuit with an obstacle course, while shooting at targets. The colonel explained that these circuits were made to test the T-72B tanks in action, which the visitors used.

Then the command: “Action Stations!” Test rides began with entertaining numbers. The announcer greeted the audience, stirring music began to play and a group of boys and girls ran to the concrete launching ground in the center of the polygon.

This tank biathlon epidemic struck the army in July: Each military district selected three of their best tank platoons to take part in the finals in Alabino near Moscow. The best Russian crew was a team from the Western Military District, which took part in the international competition and won.

The military officers were awarded the competition’s trophy — a model of a T-34 tank. Crews from Belarus, Armenia and Kazakhstan were awarded medals from the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation, “For Strengthening Military Cooperation.”

“Dancers,” they told me. Then four spotted tanks appeared, forming a shape similar to a flower. The four tanks began to circle around, coyly shaking their guns.

Dancers, who heard only some fragments of the “Sabre Dance,” tried to dance, but it was clear that the roar of the engines blocked all other sounds.

Nevertheless, after five minutes, the audience forgot about the music, as a howitzer drove onto the range and slowly but surely raised its gun barrel.

A gun volley rang out, so powerful that one of the dancers collapsed on the concrete polygon next to the howitzer, clasping her arms around her head.

Finally, it was time for the biathlon. I went back to the observation deck, where the judges took their places at the tables and observers lined up behind them—each with a binocular telescope.

“Armor units to starting positions!” This was heard on the walkie-talkies. Multi-colored tanks came to life, roared and became shrouded in a cloud of smoke.

“Here we go!” the commentator shouted wildly.

Having easily passed the “snake” test, the tanks lined up at the firing line and began to charge their guns with anti-tank ammunition. The first target was a full-size, mock-up tank. It stood at a distance of 1.5 miles from where we were standing, and, in my opinion, it was impossible to see.

Apparently, the crew of the red tank shared my opinion: In three shots, the tank did not hit the target even once, and was sent to the “penalty circle.”

Meanwhile, the other tanks were already overcoming other obstacles: the fording site, the treadway bridge and an escarpment. All was going well and the tanks began attacking the second target—a mock-up helicopter. They shot at it from a distance of 5,250 feet, using anti-aircraft machine guns.

In the third round, the green and blue tanks managed to pass part of the way moving side-by-side, with one almost cutting in front of the other. The commentator was delighted, but the faces of the judges showed disapproval.


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The tanks had shot at the third target (which was in the shape of a hut), passed over the rest of the circuit and lined up in front of the command post.

The leader of the test run became the yellow tank, which passed through all the stages in 5 minutes and 28 seconds.

“Well done, men!” exulted the commentator.

One-by-one, the tank crews came out through the hatches, ran across the parade ground and lined up at the entrance to the command center. From the observation deck, we could see their heads in round helmets, swaying like sunflowers.

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When I came down from the tower, the silhouettes of tank crews were visible on the slope of the mound. After this difficult test, they started returning to their units. Bickering, they went out of sight.

The parade ground became completely deserted; there remained standing only a lonely army tent with a thrown-back canopy. It was dark inside, while, outside, a banner that read, “Welcome to the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation!” was fluttering in the wind.

Gen. Sergei Shoigu, defense minister of the Russian Federation, congratulated the winners of the first All-Army Tank Biathlon Competitions and expressed his hope that such competitions will become a tradition, as well as a powerful factor in strengthening ties of friendship and trust between the states. “Hopefully, more teams will participate next year. In any case, our colleagues from the U.S. and Italy have responded to our invitations, and we are waiting for a response from Germany,” said the minister, noting that, if these countries participate, this would become “quite a different competition.”

Abridged and rewritten. First published in Russian in Vedomosti.