The T-98 Kombat is a wheeled armoured vehicle built by

Kombat Armouring Kombat Armouring is a Russian armoured vehicle and car manufacturer. The first prototype was called the Laura. The company's slogan is ''Protection without Compromise''. History The Laura was followed by the Ohta minivan in 1987. In 1990, Kombat ...

, a subsidiary of Laura Group, in

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. The name ( rus, комбат, p=kɐmˈba:t, a=Ru-комбат.ogg), is shorthand for "komandir batalyona" (командир батальона - battalion commander). There are two basic versions of the T-98 Kombat based on

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components, including an 8.1 litre

Vortec Vortec is a trademarked name for a line of gasoline engines for General Motors trucks. The name first appeared in an advertisement for the 1985 model year 4.3 L V6 that used "vortex technology" to create a vortex inside the combustion chambe ...

engine, Allison transmission, and General Motors heavy duty suspensions. All running gear and electronics are provided by General Motors. The two versions are: * The “VIP”: has no frame and a

monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...

double steel body. The highest protection level uses a composite armor of ceramic between steel layers. VIP Kombats have many options, including leather and wood interiors. * The “Utility”: designed for special operations missions. The armoured body is based on a "metal-ceramic sandwich with cellular filler" technology. The monocoque body provides protection against mine blasts. Kombat Armouring claims that the most highly armoured T-98 will protect occupants from bullets up to 12.7 mm, shotguns, mines and ramming. A 340 hp V8 gives the lightest T-98 a top speed of 111 mph (180 km/h), making it one of the fastest all-terrain armoured vehicles in the world.

Specifications

Versions

# High mobility armoured vehicle (5-door station wagon) # Armoured troop carrier (3-door panel truck) # Fast attack vehicle (4-door pickup truck) # Infantry vehicle for special operations (2-door pickup truck)

Armament

* Vehicle-mounted 23 mm autocannon * 14.5 mm machine gun (

KPVT The KPV heavy machine gun (, an initialism for ) is a Soviet designed 14.5×114mm-caliber heavy machine gun, which first entered service as an infantry weapon in 1949. In the 1960s, the infantry version was taken out of production because it was ...

) *

12.7mm This is a list of firearm cartridge (weaponry), cartridges which have bullets in the to range. *''Length'' refers to the cartridge casing (ammunition), case length. *''OAL'' refers to the overall length of the cartridge. *''Bullet'' refers to ...

machine gun ( KORD) * 55 mm small-sized remotely controlled smoke grenade launching system

Operators

Most are VIP versions sold to the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

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Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

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, and the US.

In popular culture

* A gold colored version of the T-98 Kombat appears in the 2012 comedy '' The Dictator''. * The T-98 Kombat also appears in the 2014 action film ''

The November Man ''The November Man'' is a 2014 spy action thriller film based on the novel ''There Are No Spies'' by Bill Granger, which is the seventh installment in ''The November Man'' novel series, published in 1987. A British-American production, it stars ...

''. * An armored SUV closely resembling the T-98 Kombat appears in the videogame GTA Online under the name HVY Nightshark.

References

External links

{{Commons category, T-98 Kombat
Manufacturer's page
in Russian
Pictures

GIZMAG article
Off-road vehicles Armoured fighting vehicles of Russia GAZ