Polish WZT-3 ARV in Service with Ukraine

Poland has provided Ukraine with numerous types of heavy military equipment, often numbering in the hundreds. This support was invaluable, particularly in 2022, when many countries hesitated to offer military aid to Kyiv or did so in a very limited manner. Rumors suggested that Poland’s aid package included support vehicles such as the WZT-2 and WZT-3. However, evidence in the form of photos or videos was lacking. An anticipated list of military assistance from Poland’s Ministry of Defense could shed light on the matter, but despite promises, the list has yet to be published.

Only now has the transfer of an unspecified number of WZT-3 vehicles to Ukraine been confirmed. This was made possible through their official commissioning procedure executed by the Ukrainian Armed Forces’, similar to ones adopted for other foreign-supplied military equipment. The exact number of these technical support vehicles transferred by Warsaw to Kyiv remains unknown. In recent years, the Polish Army had around 30 WZT-3 and WZT-3M units. It is possible this donation coincided with the delivery of 60 PT-91 tanks and 280 T-72M1 and T-72M1R units. Support vehicles of this class are particularly valuable, though Poland cannot claim to have a surplus of them.

The WZT-3 is a Polish-made ARV developed in the 1980s by the Ośrodek Badawczo-Rozwojowy Urządzeń Mechanicznych (now OBRUM) in Gliwice, based on the T-72 tank (or the Yugoslavian M-84). It was designed as a successor to the WZT-2 previously used by the Polish Army. The vehicle features a rotating crane with a lifting capacity of 15 tons at a boom length of 5.8 meters or 13 tons when extended to 8 meters. Additional equipment includes a dozer blade, a mechanical winch with a pulling force of 31 tons and a 200-meter cable, as well as welding and cutting tools. The WZT-3 is designed to support vehicles weighing up to 50 tons.

The vehicle is powered by a W-46-6 diesel engine producing 780 horsepower, enabling a maximum speed of 60 km/h with a curb weight of 42 tons. For self-defense, it is equipped with a 12.7 mm WKM-B heavy machine gun with a 200-round ammunition supply. The crew consists of four members. A modernized version, the WZT-3M, was also developed, featuring components from the PT-91 Twardy tank. The main difference lies in its more powerful S-12U engine, producing 850 horsepower. WZT-3 vehicles are currently used by countries including Poland, India, Ukraine, and Kuwait.