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Tank Museum helps defence firm recreate tank tracks for Ukraine

Bovington Tank Museum Section of tank track with tank in the backgroundBovington Tank Museum
The museum supplied Soviet-era track specimens to help reverse-engineer components

A military museum has revealed it was called upon to help reverse-engineer Soviet-era tank tracks for a defence firm supplying components to Ukraine.

The Tank Museum in Bovington, Dorset, worked with Cook Defence Systems after a request from the Ministry of Defence.

Incomplete Soviet-era drawings and links from Ukraine were used with the museum's own track specimens to help reproduce the replacement tracks.

The components have since been manufactured and shipped.

The tracks and drive sprockets were made by County Durham-based Cook Defence Systems for MT-LB and BMP amphibious infantry fighting vehicles and for T-72 battle tanks.

Ministry of Defence of Ukraine Ukrainian BMP-1 vehicle crossing water during a training exerciseMinistry of Defence of Ukraine
The components are destined for armoured vehicles in Ukraine

Museum curator David Willey said: "The Tank Museum's collections are used for many purposes.

"When we can help industry and our allies, of course we should.

"We are very pleased to hear the reproduced track is now arriving in Ukraine."

The museum said challenges included developing new steel alloys to match the original Russian specifications, and redesigning forged and welded components as castings to suit the new manufacturing process.

Cook Defence Systems has been a manufacturer of tracks for British armoured fighting vehicles since 1941, including the UK's Challenger 2 tank.

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