Head of Gabtu Shevchenko biography. Shevchenko a

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Alexander Alexandrovich Shevchenko
since 2009
Predecessor:	Ershov, Nikolai Fedorovich
Birth:	February 20th(1967-02-20 ) (52 years old) Potsdam, German Democratic Republic
Education:	Kiev Higher Tank Engineering School Military Academy of Armored Forces Military Academy of the General Staff
Military service
Years of service:	since 1989
Affiliation:	USSR USSR → Russia Russia
Type of army:	Tank forces
Rank:	lieutenant general
Awards:

Alexander Aleksandrovich Shevchenko(born February 20, 1967) - Russian military leader, lieutenant general. Head of the Main Armored Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation since 2009.

Biography

After completing his studies, he was appointed head of the armored service of a motorized rifle brigade, deputy commander for armaments - head of the technical unit of a motorized rifle regiment, then deputy commander for armaments - head of the technical unit of a motorized rifle division (North Caucasus Military District).

Awards

• Medal of the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, 1st class
• Medal of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" II class
• other awards

Write a review of the article "Shevchenko, Alexander Alexandrovich (general)"

Links

• . Website of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
• (Russian) . Vzglyad.ru (August 14, 2009).
• (Russian) . Lenta.ru (November 15, 2012).

Excerpt characterizing Shevchenko, Alexander Alexandrovich (general)

What fire have you planted in your heart,
What delight flowed through my fingers!
He sang in a passionate voice, shining at the frightened and happy Natasha with his agate, black eyes.
- Wonderful! Great! – Natasha shouted. “Another verse,” she said, not noticing Nikolai.
“They have everything the same,” thought Nikolai, looking into the living room, where he saw Vera and his mother with the old woman.
- A! Here comes Nikolenka! – Natasha ran up to him.
- Is daddy at home? - he asked.
– I’m so glad you came! – Natasha said without answering, “we’re having so much fun.” Vasily Dmitrich remains for me one more day, you know?
“No, dad hasn’t come yet,” said Sonya.
- Coco, you have arrived, come to me, my friend! - said the countess's voice from the living room. Nikolai approached his mother, kissed her hand and, silently sitting down at her table, began to look at her hands, laying out the cards. Laughter and cheerful voices were still heard from the hall, persuading Natasha.
“Well, okay, okay,” Denisov shouted, “now there’s no point in making excuses, barcarolla is behind you, I beg you.”
The Countess looked back at her silent son.
- What happened to you? – Nikolai’s mother asked.
“Oh, nothing,” he said, as if he was already tired of this same question.
- Will daddy arrive soon?
- I think.
“Everything is the same for them. They don't know anything! Where should I go?” thought Nikolai and went back to the hall where the clavichord stood.
Sonya sat at the clavichord and played the prelude of the barcarolle that Denisov especially loved. Natasha was going to sing. Denisov looked at her with delighted eyes.
Nikolai began to walk back and forth around the room.
“And now you want to make her sing? – what can she sing? And there’s nothing fun here,” thought Nikolai.
Sonya struck the first chord of the prelude.
“My God, I am lost, I am a dishonest person. A bullet in the forehead, the only thing left to do is not sing, he thought. Leave? but where? anyway, let them sing!”
Nikolai gloomily, continuing to walk around the room, glanced at Denisov and the girls, avoiding their gaze.
“Nikolenka, what’s wrong with you?” – asked Sonya’s gaze fixed on him. She immediately saw that something had happened to him.
Nikolai turned away from her. Natasha, with her sensitivity, also instantly noticed her brother’s condition. She noticed him, but she herself was so happy at that moment, she was so far from grief, sadness, reproaches, that she (as often happens with young people) deliberately deceived herself. No, I’m having too much fun now to spoil my fun by sympathizing with someone else’s grief, she felt, and said to herself:
“No, I’m rightly mistaken, he should be as cheerful as I am.” Well, Sonya,” she said and went out to the very middle of the hall, where, in her opinion, the resonance was best. Raising her head, lowering her lifelessly hanging hands, as dancers do, Natasha, energetically shifting from heel to tiptoe, walked through the middle of the room and stopped.
"Here I am!" as if she was speaking in response to the enthusiastic gaze of Denisov, who was watching her.
“And why is she happy! - Nikolai thought, looking at his sister. And how isn’t she bored and ashamed!” Natasha hit the first note, her throat expanded, her chest straightened, her eyes took on a serious expression. She was not thinking about anyone or anything at that moment, and sounds flowed from her folded mouth into a smile, those sounds that anyone can make at the same intervals and at the same intervals, but which a thousand times leave you cold, in the thousand and first times they make you shudder and cry.
This winter Natasha began to sing seriously for the first time, especially because Denisov admired her singing. She no longer sang like a child, there was no longer in her singing that comic, childish diligence that was in her before; but she still did not sing well, as all the expert judges who listened to her said. “Not processed, but a wonderful voice, it needs to be processed,” everyone said. But they usually said this long after her voice had fallen silent. At the same time, when this raw voice sounded with irregular aspirations and with efforts of transitions, even the expert judges did not say anything, and only enjoyed this raw voice and only wanted to hear it again. In her voice there was that virginal pristineness, that ignorance of her own strengths and that still unprocessed velvet, which were so combined with the shortcomings of the art of singing that it seemed impossible to change anything in this voice without spoiling it.
“What is this? - Nikolai thought, hearing her voice and opening his eyes wide. -What happened to her? How does she sing these days? - he thought. And suddenly the whole world focused for him, waiting for the next note, the next phrase, and everything in the world became divided into three tempos: “Oh mio crudele affetto... [Oh my cruel love...] One, two, three... one, two... three... one... Oh mio crudele affetto... One, two, three... one. Eh, our life is stupid! - Nikolai thought. All this, and misfortune, and money, and Dolokhov, and anger, and honor - all this is nonsense... but here it is real... Hey, Natasha, well, my dear! Well, mother!... how will she take this si? I took it! God bless!" - and he, without noticing that he was singing, in order to strengthen this si, took the second to the third of a high note. "My God! how good! Did I really take it? how happy!” he thought.

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Material from Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia

Alexander Alexandrovich Shevchenko
Alexander Alexandrovich Shevchenko
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since 2009
Predecessor:	Ershov, Nikolai Fedorovich
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Birth:	February 20th(1967-02-20 ) (52 years old) Potsdam, German Democratic Republic
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Education:	Kiev Higher Tank Engineering School Military Academy of Armored Forces Military Academy of the General Staff
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Military service
Years of service:	since 1989
Affiliation:	USSR 22x20px USSR → Russia 22x20px Russia
Type of army:	Tank troops Tank troops
Rank:	Lieutenant General lieutenant general
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Awards:	40px 40px 40px 40px 40px Medal "For Military Valor" (Ministry of Defense) 1st class 40px 40px Medal "For Distinction in Military Service" (Ministry of Defense) 1st class Medal "For Distinction in Military Service" (Ministry of Defense) II degree Medal "For Distinction in Military Service" (Ministry of Defense) III degree 40px 40px
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Alexander Aleksandrovich Shevchenko(born February 20, 1967) - Russian military leader, lieutenant general. Head of the Main Armored Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation since 2009.

Biography

After completing his studies, he was appointed head of the armored service of a motorized rifle brigade, deputy commander for armaments - head of the technical unit of a motorized rifle regiment, then deputy commander for armaments - head of the technical unit of a motorized rifle division (North Caucasus Military District).

Awards

• Medal of the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, 1st class
• Medal of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" II class
• other awards

Write a review of the article "Shevchenko, Alexander Alexandrovich (general)"

Links

• . Website of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
• (Russian) . Vzglyad.ru (August 14, 2009).
• (Russian) . Lenta.ru (November 15, 2012).

Excerpt characterizing Shevchenko, Alexander Alexandrovich (general)

“Dean carried me,” Maria calmly answered, as a matter of course.
– What so terrible did these poor fellows do that they ended up in such hell? – I asked.
“I think this concerns not so much their misdeeds as the fact that they were very strong and had a lot of energy, and this is exactly what these monsters need, since they “feed” on these unfortunate people,” the little girl explained in a very adult way.
“What?!..” we almost jumped. – It turns out that they just “eat” them?
– Unfortunately, yes... When we went there, I saw... A pure silvery stream flowed out of these poor people and directly filled the monsters sitting on their backs. And they immediately came to life and became very happy. Some human beings, after this, almost couldn’t walk... It’s so scary... And nothing can be done to help... Dean says there are too many of them even for him.
“Yeah... It’s unlikely that we can do anything either...” Stella whispered sadly.
It was very hard to just turn around and leave. But we understood perfectly well that at the moment we were completely powerless, and just watching such a terrible “spectacle” did not give anyone the slightest pleasure. Therefore, having once again looked at this terrifying Hell, we unanimously turned in the other direction... I cannot say that my human pride was not wounded, since I never liked losing. But I also long ago learned to accept reality as it was, and not to complain about my helplessness if I was not yet able to help in some situation.
– Can I ask you where you girls are heading now? – asked the saddened Maria.
“I would like to go upstairs... To be honest, the “lower floor” is enough for me today... It would be advisable to see something easier... - I said, and immediately thought about Maria - poor girl, she’s here remains!..
And, unfortunately, we could not offer her any help, since it was her choice and her own decision, which only she herself could change...
Already well-known vortices of silvery energies flickered in front of us, and as if “wrapped” in them in a dense, fluffy “cocoon”, we smoothly slipped “upwards”...
“Wow, how nice it is here!” Stella exhaled contentedly when she found herself “at home.” – And how can it be that “down there” it’s still creepy... Poor people, how can you become better while being in such a nightmare every day?! There's something wrong with this, don't you think?
I laughed:
- Well, what do you propose to “fix”?
- Don't laugh! We have to come up with something. Only I don’t know what yet... But I’ll think about it... – the little girl said quite seriously.
I really loved about her this non-childish serious attitude towards life, and the “iron” desire to find a positive way out of any problems that arose. With all her sparkling, sunny character, Stella could also be an incredibly strong, never giving up and incredibly brave little person, standing “mountain” for justice or for the friends dear to her heart...
- Well, let's take a little walk? But somehow I just can’t “move away” from the horror we just experienced. It’s hard to even breathe, not to mention the visions... - I asked my wonderful friend.
Once again, with great pleasure, we smoothly “glided” in the silvery “dense” silence, completely relaxed, enjoying the peace and caress of this wonderful “floor”, and I still could not forget the little brave Maria, who we had involuntarily left in that terribly joyless and dangerous world, only with her scary furry friend, and with the hope that maybe her “blind” but beloved mother will finally take it and see how much she loves her and how much she wants to make her happy for that period of time , which remained for them until their new incarnation on Earth...
“Oh, just look how beautiful it is!” Stella’s joyful voice pulled me out of my sad thoughts.
I saw a huge, cheerful golden ball flickering inside, and in it beautiful girl, dressed in a very bright colorful dress, sitting in the same brightly blooming meadow, and completely merging with incredible cups of some absolutely fantastic flowers, wildly flaming with all the colors of the rainbow. Her very long, light hair, like ripe wheat, fell down in heavy waves, enveloping her from head to toe in a golden cloak. Deep blue eyes looked welcomingly straight at us, as if inviting us to speak...
- Hello! We won't bother you? – not knowing where to start and, as always, a little shy, I greeted the stranger.
“Hello to you too, Svetlaya,” the girl smiled.
- Why do you call me that? – I was very surprised.
“I don’t know,” the stranger answered affectionately, “it just suits you!.. I am Isolde.” What is your real name?
“Svetlana,” I answered, a little embarrassed.
- Well, you see - you guessed right! What are you doing here, Svetlana? And who is your sweet friend?
– We’re just walking... This is Stella, she’s my friend. And you, what kind of Isolde is the one who had Tristan? – Having already gained courage, I asked.
The girl's eyes became round in surprise. She apparently never expected that someone in this world knew her...

Head of the Main Armored Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, Lieutenant General Alexander Shevchenko / Photo: vpk-news.ru

The strategic command and staff exercise "Caucasus-2016" showed that Russian army ready to solve the most unforeseen problems in various theaters of military operations. Soldiers and officers are mobilized, morale is high. But how does our military equipment meet the new challenges? What new models of military equipment are in development and are ready to be launched into series? The head of the Main Armored Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, Lieutenant General Alexander Shevchenko, answered these and other questions from VPK.

- Alexander Alexandrovich, as far as we know, new models of armored vehicles have been tested in the Arctic and southern latitudes. What are the results?

For the first time in the last fifteen years, by decision of the Minister of Defense, the Main Armored Directorate of the Russian Defense Ministry (GABTU) prepared and conducted such expeditions. Four similar tests have already passed, the fifth expedition is now completing - the equipment is returning from the south, from the desert. The first two took place in the north, in the Arctic. Mostly, automobile and wheeled armored vehicles were tested. This is a unique experience for us. We have revived everything that was developed by Soviet designers and industry. The USSR was very good at creating equipment for special conditions. And during the expedition to the Arctic Circle, the relevance of these developments in wheeled armored vehicles was confirmed. We have also supplemented the requirements developed in the USSR for new models that are being created and will soon be accepted for supply to troops. The other two expeditions took place in the south, mountains and deserts.

“As soon as the Armata, which was advanced in its technical solutions, was shown, the modernization of Leopards, Abrams, and Leclercs immediately began in the West.”

I can say one thing about the results - next year the Ministry of Defense will accept a batch of trucks designed for particularly cold climates. This will be a large batch of KamAZ and Ural trucks.

Some technical problems have emerged, but our industry is capable of solving them. For example, questions arose regarding rubber products. We want them to withstand temperatures not only minus 50, but also minus 60. The fight is literally for every degree.

The problem of frost resistance of fuels and lubricants, batteries, heating and heating systems is being solved. Industry is working in these directions.

There are results in the creation of means of transportation that were unconventional until recently. For example, all-terrain vehicles or, as they are also called, ATVs have already been accepted for supply. The Ministry of Defense purchases at least 200 such vehicles every year for special forces, Arctic units, Ground Forces, reconnaissance forces and paratroopers.

- Under the previous leadership of the Ministry of Defense, at one time there was a policy of purchasing foreign equipment and weapons, including Iveco armored vehicles. Now, apparently, we are relying on domestic producers. How interesting is the Ministry of Defense’s line of vehicles for common name Tiger, what are the procurement prospects?

The direction of development of such technology is really interesting. The Ministry of Defense has set the task of modernizing Tiger armored vehicles based on the results of trial operation. There are quite a lot of them in the army now, they have shown themselves well and are widely used.

But the requirements are becoming more stringent every day, so we will modernize the Tiger in the areas of ballistic resistance, mobility, firepower, and mine action.

By decision of the General Staff, GABTU is working with industrial enterprises to improve the characteristics of this machine. At the Army 2016 exhibition, the Tiger was presented with 30 mm and other combat modules of various calibers (7.62 mm, 12.7 mm), and a multi-channel installation.

At the round table we discussed an interesting project for modernizing the Tiger, which will make it possible to create the Tiger-2. There are certain developments. An R&D project is being opened for this work, and if the tests are completed successfully, then, undoubtedly, there will be procurement. Everything here is logically interconnected.

“We will modernize the Tiger in the areas of ballistic resistance, mobility, firepower, and mine action.”

As for the “Tiger” shown at the exhibition with a 30-mm cannon and a new unusual combat module, this is the result of work that was carried out in a very short time. This car even shot at the shooting range. It will be put into service after testing is completed. If the industry tries, then perhaps already in 2016. By the way, all components and elements in it are domestic, including the engine.

The recent trend is that the module that we accept for supply can be installed on any carrier at the request of a specific customer, be it a car or an armored personnel carrier. There is, for example, a “Tiger” without a module. This is a definite plus similar design any technology.

If we recall the purchases of foreign-made vehicles, then everything that the Ministry of Defense did, I think, was correct. The Armed Forces today have about 200 Lynx armored vehicles, which have proven themselves well. You see "Typhoons", modernization of "Tigers", "Tornados" - all this was developed taking into account the experience of the global automotive industry. Draw your own conclusions.

- What about the KAMAZ-designed jeep with a 30 mm cannon? At what stage is it created?

A KamAZ-made jeep with a 30 mm cannon is a planned part of the Typhoon development work. Initially, three years ago, it was laid down that the Typhoon 4x4 should be developed theoretically, in working design documentation, but combat experience and the service tasks performed required the production of such a vehicle in metal. Which was done in a very short time. It could also be seen at the Army 2016 exhibition. The vehicle has high performance characteristics and will be used as a base chassis for various weapons for specific tasks and customers. An experimental batch will be purchased in 2017 and sent to the troops, in particular to special forces units for trial operation. This will make it possible to understand what needs to be improved in order to adopt a well-proven machine.

- The General Director of Uralvagonzavod said that today about a thousand T-72 tanks have been modernized to the T-72-B3 level. What's next?

We began this work four years ago under the armored weapons development program. There are actually more than a thousand such tanks in the Armed Forces. It should be noted that with this machine we hit the top ten in terms of quality-cost ratio. It has good prospects and will continue to develop. In the near future, under state defense orders, the Armed Forces will receive more than 300 improved T-72-B3s, modified at the request of the troops. Improvement will concern power plant, protection systems, sighting system.

- In past years, Russia positioned itself more with the T-90 tank. Why does it enter the troops in such small quantities? Problems with financing?

There was a time when funding was not as planned and serious as it is now. The T-90 tank is an expensive pleasure, but we understood: it is a very good machine and, of course, we wanted to have it. Now there are several hundred of them in service, they are in use, have proven themselves well, and the Ministry of Defense is in no way abandoning them. In the near future, T-90 tanks that have reached the end of their service life will be sent to the factory and returned modernized. For this purpose, GABTU has developed a special program “Breakthrough-3”, which we discussed at the forum. After modification, the T-90 will be even better than the existing one.

- On the basis of the T-90, a tank support combat vehicle (BMPT) was developed, deliveries of which began to Kazakhstan. True, our colleagues are perplexed why it has not been adopted by us ourselves. What are the prospects here?

This once again emphasizes the attitude towards our technology. So it’s worth telling our colleagues that we are already adopting it. This, I think, will immediately raise its price and increase the volume of purchases. At the same time, the General Staff still has to say its word on this vehicle, and this is beyond the competence of the Main Armored Directorate. I repeat: the machine has been created and is ready to go out for testing at any moment.

- A special place in this series is occupied by the T-14 “Armata” tank - the latest creation of our defense industry. It was presented at the Army 2016 forum, but little is still known about the final characteristics.

- “Armata” is undergoing preliminary tests, and we plan to complete them this year. After which the tank will receive the appropriate letter in accordance with the established procedure, new prospects will open up for it.

Today the vehicle is entering state testing to be accepted for supply. An experimental batch of T-14 “Armata” was purchased. Experts are studying the machine in relation to troops; it works in field conditions, a collection of, as they say, statistical data is underway. Anything that does not meet the requirements of the military is immediately sent in the form of notices to the design bureau or factory for decision-making. State tests of the Armata will be completed next year.

Let me remind you that one of the distinctive features of the T-14 is its weapons. The gun can fire any 125mm ammunition. This, by the way, is one of the highlights of this car. If more modern ammunition in the same caliber is developed, the tank will be able to use it.

In general, the Armata development work has the task of producing and submitting for testing three samples of military equipment: the tank itself, an infantry fighting vehicle and an armored repair and recovery vehicle (ARV) created for them. The uniqueness of the work is that it is not a single model that is being adopted, but an entire family on a single platform.

The situation is approximately the same with the Kurganets design and development project. In accordance with it, infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers, and armored vehicles are being created. All of them have entered preliminary tests, the contract is being fulfilled. The quality of workmanship is checked in accordance with the design documentation, and control is carried out by military representatives.

Next are state tests, which will be completed next year. In general, 2017 will be a turning point for our tank building; we will witness the adoption of a completely new fleet of armored weapons to supply troops, which, I believe, will make changes to tactics on the battlefield.

I’ll also mention the Boomerang infantry fighting vehicle, which is currently being tested and has already shown itself well, having covered two thousand kilometers. Just a month ago I managed it myself. Completion of testing and adoption into service is also expected in 2017.

- But will the Ministry of Finance disrupt your wonderful plans? It is known that the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Finance differed in their estimates of the allocation of funds for the GPV-2025. The discussion reached the presidential level...

The work mentioned above has been financed and is being carried out, so to speak, according to the full budget, so these items will not be cut. The Ministry of Defense, in turn, transferred everything that was required to science and production. As for GABTU, it primarily finances promising R&D projects.

Therefore, I think that the reduction in funding may affect something else, but not the development of weapons and military equipment. The experimental works "Armata", "Kurganets", "Boomerang", I repeat, are fully funded, we give them priority, because this is a foundation for the future.

- Are there any corresponding research projects in the Ministry of Defense’s plans to create tanks on wheels? They have proven themselves well in a number of Western armies.

Each machine is born from requirements that are set by the forms and methods of using military equipment. If such a vehicle is needed, there is no doubt that our tank builders will make it.

“If a wheeled tank is needed, we already have very good developments”

But so far only two countries have wheeled tanks abroad - the USA and Italy. The Americans have problems with the car, but the Italians have achieved the greatest success. We studied their experience. A wheeled tank is a very high-tech product. It requires solving the issues of combining firepower and suspension capabilities; everything is not that simple. In addition, such machines have a rather narrow scope of application.

In a word, in the near future GABTU does not face such tasks, but if they appear, I can guarantee that we will complete them, since we have very good developments.

- Now our so-called partners are paying great attention robotic technology. The soldier and officer seem to be leaving the line of fire and increasingly becoming operators, which reduces losses in a combat situation.

In 2017, as I already noted, we plan to put into service a whole line of new vehicles. Realizing that they are created using unique technologies, we have now launched a program that will present recommendations and developments on robotization. The unusual nature of such equipment in the presence of digital equipment, which gives them unique capabilities, creates a solid basis for the robotization of armored vehicles. For this purpose, corresponding research work has been started.

The basis for robotization was created by digital technologies laid down at the design stage of the same “Armata”, “Kurganets”, “Boomerang”. The point is to create a system that will independently make decisions on the battlefield, which is quite difficult. To do this, it is necessary to solve the problems of technical vision and response to the situation.

The work is planned for two years, when a robotic “Armata” can be created, in which a digital device independently solves problems based on the objective situation.

When vehicles on the Armata platform are accepted for supply, customers represented by the departments of the branches and branches of the military will be able to set their own special requirements for the creation of weapons to suit their range. Naturally, GABTU, research institutes, and specialists in armored and automotive technology will take an active part in this.

I repeat: in two years a robotic Armata may appear, but I would not create a stir around a robot tank.

- If we talk about foreign manufacturers of equipment, is it possible to compare the Ukrainian Oplot tank with our T-90? In whose favor is this comparison?

Our car is definitely better in all respects. This conclusion follows from the comparative characteristics of firepower, protection, command control, and mobility. But the most important thing is reliability.

- The Soviet school of tank building was always five to ten years ahead of the Western one. What position are we in now? Do we think about the comfort of the crew, for example, about air conditioning in the tank?

The difference in the concepts of tank building, in schools. It persists. For us, the main thing is the fusion of firepower, protection, command control and mobility. In the West, the approach is slightly different. But pay attention: as soon as the Armata, advanced in its technical solutions, was shown, the West immediately began modernizing Leopards, Abrams, Leclercs, and creating joint ventures to develop new types of armored vehicles. In Germany, France, and the United States, the question of their modernization sharply arose. This means that we have hit the target, have developed an advanced machine, and the question is who is catching up with whom.

“Armata” has surpassed Western technology in many respects; it is truly an advanced machine in terms of the design solutions used in it, which even many specialists still don’t know everything about.

In the future, the Armata will become the main battle tank of the Armed Forces. This, believe me, is a serious breakthrough for the Russian school, which has once again become a leader in world tank building and, I hope, will never relinquish its leadership.

Interviewed by Oleg Falichev

On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin, at his Bocharov Ruchey residence, inspected military equipment of the 21st century in the form of UAZs and ATVs stuffed with weapons, and Kommersant special correspondent ANDREY KOLESNIKOV tried to understand how an integral part of these weapons, that is, the door handle of the UAZ, seemed to be an integral part of this weaponry. remained in the hands of the head of the main armored department of the Ministry of Defense, Alexander Shevchenko, at the tragic moment of the weapons demonstration. And I understood.

From early morning before entering the residence Russian President Bocharov Ruchei there were several strange cars parked around which strange people were walking. The vehicles were UAZ pickup trucks loaded with weapons, which were dominated by machine guns and mortars. The equipment could only be seen from afar, but I also noticed an ordinary-looking ATV, to which a Kalashnikov assault rifle was attached, as well as an ordinary-looking grenade launcher.

The residence of the Russian president has never seen anything like it during its entire existence. Of the transport, at least somewhat similar to what I saw this morning, one could perhaps recall Vladimir Putin’s personal “Niva” at the Riviera residence, when he worked so hard, but for such a short time, as chairman of the government. However, it was a completely peaceful Niva, at least according to its external signs. And then I even managed to make two laps under the supervision of the owner of this car, because the skills of owning a manual transmission atrophied due to lack of demand much earlier.

I wouldn't have gone far with the equipment I saw this morning. I wouldn't go anywhere at all. But no one would leave me either, if that happens. There were some trunks sticking out from everywhere here, scattered in all directions at once, and also in a couple of other directions. Never before has the main entrance to the building, where the next meeting with the participation of the leadership of the Ministry of Defense was about to begin, been guarded so demonstratively, intelligibly and, I would say, rather rudely.

It was clear, of course, that in fact the equipment was brought to show the president. Three meetings were held here that day with the participation of the military, and it turned out that Vladimir Putin should go out onto the front porch and see her after the first meeting on the state defense order. In the end, it was these gloomy people from the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant who applied for the state defense order, who treated any journalistic issue as a shot in the forehead, or rather in the back of the head. And this shot could have been easily made: they would not have even noticed, being busy preparing for the presentation, and exclusively psychological. They went through all the rest of their training over the past week in anticipation of this day in one of the military units in the area of ​​​​a Kuban village, as I found out from the only person among them who, moreover, turned out to be not from Ulyanovsk, but from Rybinsk, Yaroslavl region, and not with UAZ, of course, but from the Russian Mechanics plant, which makes exactly those same hellish ATVs.

Every day they were ready to be called to Bocharov Ruchey, and many times they burned out psychologically and a couple of times completely burned out, and each time they were reborn from the ashes and began to wait again.

And then the day came when Vladimir Putin walked out onto the front porch, squinting for a moment against the dim May sun, and went down to all these people. His attention was immediately captured not by the UAZ, but by two ATVs. Up close, I noticed that they, each 4x4, were decorated not only with a grenade launcher and a Kalashnikov assault rifle, but also with an SVD.

It seemed that the president, even somehow meticulously inspecting the ATVs (as he chose for himself), was restraining himself from getting behind the wheel (it cannot be ruled out that he did this when the journalists finally disappeared from his sight). He definitely liked these cars.

He looked at the UAZs, in my opinion, with some surprise. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu explained to him that the machines are of fundamental economic importance, or, more simply, civilian, and this is their main value. Such a UAZ is driving along Vinogradnaya Street in Sochi in a stream of, one might say, the same UAZs and Kia Rios, and it is clear that it is carrying tomatoes under a tarpaulin, or rather, if on Vinogradnaya, then grapes, and suddenly it sees something ahead, God forbid. unauthorized... And then in one second the tarpaulins are torn off, an armored hatch opens, behind which stands an operator with a machine gun, and it’s better not to think about what’s next...

Sergei Shoigu did not inform the president of all these details; they were already implied. The Minister of Defense showed the powerful arches on which the weapons are attached, the majestic brackets... He offered to touch them. The President touched... And Sergei Shoigu patted the car on its shining peaceful light gray bumper like a good horse that would be good for a lot, oh, a lot...

What should not have happened happened on the third UAZ. Vladimir Putin decided to open the front passenger door and see what was inside, and then finally get behind the wheel, to the delight of a few photographers, but still photographers. But the handle did not give in. The President tugged at it a few more times and shrugged.

And then the head of the Main Armored Directorate of the Ministry of Defense entered the game, which turned out to be a fatal game. Russian Federation Lieutenant General Alexander Shevchenko. With a delicate gesture, he made it clear that professionals were taking on the matter and grabbed the handle. But she didn't give in. He tugged it a couple more times and then tugged for real. The pen remained in his hands. The technique in the hands of Alexander Shevchenko resisted to the last, but gave in to brutal physical force. Or maybe she was so fragile from the very beginning. They make car bumpers fragile just for head-on collisions, so that it is the bumper that takes the impact and softens the blow. Perhaps this is how this handle was designed: so that if the enemy wanted to grab onto it, it would immediately remain in his hands, and the driver would dust away carefreely.

And the simplest and only for this reason the only correct version was that this was the way they made this car at the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant - because, apparently, they couldn’t do it any other way.

And it’s good, perhaps, that the president did not manage to get into this car - otherwise something even worse would have happened.

But the main problem is that someone from such a UAZ will want, for example, to shoot...

The general looked at the handle in bewilderment, then noticed that the window was open, climbed into the cabin with his hand to feel for the door lock, but achieved nothing and with some kind of disdain finally threw this handle into the cabin, on the passenger side, on - I think it's a seat.

Well done! - Vladimir Putin told him, and the general can now live with this praise.

At first, his situation will seem simply terrible to him and will seem more and more terrible every minute, but years will pass, and Alexander Shevchenko will remember this episode with growing pride, and new details will begin to appear in this episode every year, and it will cease to be an episode , but will become the meaning and example of serving the Fatherland to the end.

At least that’s what it seemed to me when I thought about this action of the general while Vladimir Putin walked back to the porch.

At the very least, the ambitions of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant for the large-scale production of weapons of the 21st century, mastered primarily by Libyan and Syrian rebels, as well as representatives of the Kurdistan Workers' Party and Hollywood directors, not a single action movie with the participation of Middle Eastern or African terrorists is complete without such machines. , I was sure, a cross, at least for the coming years.

And UAZ pickup trucks, which have already been produced by the plant and sold to civilian consumers, most likely in mass quantities, now need to be recalled in an amicable way: the handles of these cars come off, not open.

Having ascended the porch, Vladimir Putin nodded again, calling Sergei Shoigu to join him, meanwhile, on the ATVs. He obviously liked them.

Perhaps simply because they didn't have pens.

The second meeting began with the participation of the military, and representatives of the Ulyanovsk plant did not leave. And where could they go now? Standing right there was the hero of the occasion, the handle separate from the car, Alexander Shevchenko.

All of them still did not want to share anything with us, including, for example, plans for life (and it would be interesting to listen), but, as it turned out, they could not remain silent either.

I still asked Alexander Shevchenko why he tore off the handle.

So this is a civilian car... - he said with regret. - The engine turns off - and that’s it, automatic locking of the cabin...

It wasn't very clear, however, why he couldn't unlock the cabin from the inside when he reached into the open window with his hand.

And why should civilian cars have such a blocking (not a single car that passed through me, or rather drove through me, for example, had such a blocking).

But there was no need to think about that. We had to accept life as it was here.

However, it turned out that Alexander Shevchenko has not yet told everything.

Well, I pulled it,” he continued, by the way, surprisingly calmly and even good-naturedly. “And I’m a tanker!.. That’s a lot of strength...”

And I realized that all my assumptions about the fact that the general’s life would now turn into an eternal thought about History on the Front Porch turned out to be completely wrong. All this will not happen. It was and is past. Tankers do not live by the events of the past, as Carlos Castaneda said.

Well, okay, this cannot be returned... - Alexander Shevchenko suddenly confirmed these thoughts out loud.

Why not return it? - one of the UAZ representatives was surprised. “We have already put her in her place.”

Wow! - the general was delighted. - Here you go!

Was it covered with duct tape? - Bloomberg correspondent Ilya Arkhipov asked cautiously.

Why duct tape? - the representative was offended. - They installed it and it’s standing.

Well, yes, they put it back in, and it’s still standing! - the general happily supported.

“So the whole car can be assembled and disassembled at once,” I hesitantly suggested.

Certainly! - confirmed a representative of the plant.

Here the Bloomberg correspondent began to wonder what kind of car this is against Toyota, which is still driven by fans of this type of weapon.

Probably not very much against her?

Why? - the factory general was offended. - Why can’t she?

Well I do not know…

If I, as a professional, were to talk to a professional,” the general said generously, whom, frankly, I liked more and more, “then I would say that on the roads in Africa they don’t drive more than a hundred kilometers per hour. And to shoot, you have to stop. Well, what advantage does Toyota have over the UAZ?!

But still, such a car probably still needs to be developed for African roads? - I asked.

How to bring it about? - the same UAZ representative intervened mockingly. - Write the instructions in an African language, or what? Let's write!

I wanted to say that to begin with, the fine-tuning should at least consist of door handle to strengthen it, but I thought that why use a pen to hit these people like a grenade launcher... He remained silent.

And what do people say, people call such cars “technicians”? - asked a Bloomberg correspondent.

Among the people,” said Alexander Shevchenko, having first thought whether it was worth responding to such illiteracy, “they are called carts.”

Now only one person was silent here, a representative of the Rybinsk Russian Mechanics plant. But when I talked to him, it turned out that he really had something to tell. And that not so long ago, employees of one special unit approached them at the plant, which made and makes primarily Buran snowmobiles, and asked them to help them in one matter. This is exactly the kind of technology that was needed. But it wasn’t. And all self-respecting colleagues abroad have had it for a long time.

They gave us their wishes, and we tried to comply... We worked for a year.

Just a year? - I was surprised.

“They had to come up with too many solutions that never existed,” this young guy admitted. “In the end, everything worked out for them.” Now 250 of our vehicles are in service with the armed forces...

“On supplies,” a jealous UAZ representative sharply corrected him from behind my shoulder.

To supply the armed forces,” this guy from Rybinsk easily agreed.

He was dressed in traveling overalls, and he was the only one in the residence.

Did you come here to the residence on such an ATV yourself? - I joked.

Of course,” he confirmed. “We all came together.” These are ordinary cars, after all. The quad can easily accelerate up to 60–70 km (per hour - Kommersant) on the highway...

I later found out that before entering Bocharov Ruchey they did stop, waited for a KamAZ truck full of weapons, and then spent another couple of hours hanging up all this, as they say, paraphernalia in order to solemnly cross the border of the residence.

Yes, with her you can cross any border.

Unless, of course, no one clings to the handle.

A.ERMOLIN: Good afternoon to everyone who is listening to us. The “Military Council” program is on air, the presenter in the studio today is Anatoly Ermolin, your humble servant. And our guest today is Alexander Alexandrovich Shevchenko, Major General, Head of the Main Armored Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. We have a good reason for today’s conversation, Alexander Alexandrovich. Happy 100th anniversary of the automobile service. What has happened in the last 100 years in your department?

A. SHEVCHENKO: First of all, good afternoon, I want to thank you for the invitation to visit you. What happened in the last 100 years? First of all, I would like to say that on May 29, 1910, by decree of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces, the first units of automobile troops were formed, that is, the first training automobile company was formed, which structurally represented a unit intended for training specialist mechanics, officer classes for training motor vehicle officers and car repair shops. That is, organizationally, a division of the automobile troops was formed by decree of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. And from this - the organizational beginning of the automobile troops of the Russian army.

A.ERMOLIN: Who was our Supreme Commander-in-Chief then?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Our Supreme Commander-in-Chief then was the Tsar in Russia.

A.ERMOLIN: By the way, what kind of equipment was there?

A. SHEVCHENKO: At that time, most of the equipment was imported, but we must pay tribute, at the time of the formation of the company, half of the vehicles of this company were Russo-Balts, first produced in the Baltic republics, and then in our central regions. We must pay tribute, at that time our designers, engineers and representatives of machine-building plants seized the initiative and Russo-Balts appeared on a full scale from design, from documents to release in metal. Moreover, Russo-Balts appeared in both passenger and truck versions. Even in a half-track, which was not previously available in some countries, the armed forces of European countries.

A.ERMOLIN: So, as I understand it, your department and your subordination include, on the one hand, both automotive equipment and armored vehicles. Here, again, at the dawn of the formation of your service, how was it? How did the creation of tanks develop? Was this also consolidated into one department? Or, as it were, the tank forces were formed along some other line?

A. SHEVCHENKO: The history of our department goes back 80 years. The formation took place in accordance with the tasks that were assigned to the armed forces of the Soviet era, Russian and we have a future. With the formation of the workers' and peasants' Red Army, naturally, mass motorization was required, the motorization of the Armed Forces of the young republic. Therefore, a department for mechanization and motorization of the workers' and peasants' Red Army appears. The famous military leader Comrade Khalevsky becomes the head, and from that moment the origin and development, already organizationally formed origin, development of armored vehicles and automobile equipment begins, and, precisely according to the needs and tasks, the functions of the Armed Forces of the state.

Our department at that time consisted of a combat department, a military scientific committee and a technical department. That is, the task of preparing, developing equipment and putting it into series was directly entrusted. At that moment - you all know perfectly well, I won’t retell the story - based on an analysis of the developments of armored vehicles in Western countries, such vehicles as the T-26, BT-5, BT-7 appeared in our arsenal. Developments of wheeled-tracked vehicles appear, developments of tracked vehicles appear, and the famous T-34 appears. This is all happening under the guidance of our management.

In the future, with the increasing importance of motorization and motorization of the Armed Forces, our management is being formed in a new look. That is, the main armored department, the main automobile department appears. Over the course of, say, the life of our department, we were subordinate to both the general staff and the artillery. Well, during the Great Patriotic War the appearance that exists now, at the present time, has already been formed. The main armored department was formed.

The tasks were assigned to him - this is, firstly, the implementation, first of all, of a unified military-technical policy in the field of design, development, launch into production, operation, repair and disposal. All developments in the field of armored weapons, in the line of automobile weapons - the commander-in-chief directly participated in all of them. That is, the Main Command, based on an analysis of the best foreign developments, based on the requirements of the time, always issued those technical specifications to the industry, according to which the designers worked out their decisions, submitted them for approval, and then, as expected, acceptance into service and acceptance for supply.

A.ERMOLIN: Perhaps the interaction between military and technical thought is of particular interest. Because despite the fact that, as you say, we often took Western models as a basis, in the end, we sometimes received absolutely the new kind military equipment. This is the same T-34. And, by the way, how do you assess the role of Tukhachevsky and others like him, and the military leaders who, together with him, developed the theory and strategy of tank strikes? Because it’s no secret, as often happens, we don’t see prophets in our own country, right? And the same de Gaulle, studying in our courses, wrote a famous book, and Guderian studied this book and came almost to Moscow.

A. SHEVCHENKO: He put it into practice and applied it.

A.ERMOLIN: He put into practice what we ourselves developed, and then shot these developers.

A. SHEVCHENKO: First of all, I want to say that it seems to me that no one would dare to overestimate or underestimate Tukhachevsky’s contribution to military affairs, especially the motorization of the Armed Forces. That theory of deep combat or deep operation developed by him, theoretically, all the requirements for what kind of equipment we need came from it. And the fact that he was a cooper in the creation of the mechanization and motorization department is clear. Secondly, the fact that he was a pitman, what kind of equipment is needed, that’s two. And the fact that he supported motorization, mass motorization of the Armed Forces of the young republic even before the war, when the action plan expanded. Not something that can't be underestimated here. And how much we talk about his role, it seems to me, will not be enough. Definitely. Even the theory of deep combat - it demanded that we have tanks, high-speed wheeled and tracked ones - we had BT-5, BT-7 tanks. We needed breakthrough tanks - we got T-26 and T-35 tanks. Subsequently, when improving the theory of deep combat, we got the revolutionary T-34 tank. That is, it is impossible to underestimate his role here.

A.ERMOLIN: That is, it was precisely the military leader who, in fact, did not allow main mistake– didn’t prepare for those wars that have already passed?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Yes. Gave impetus to development. Accordingly, when a large tank component appears, the automobile component will definitely join it. The auto industry is definitely catching up, and at this time both the Gorky plant and the ZIL plant, as we know, are being created. At the same moment, everything is created; this is what made it possible to serve as the basis for further development.

A.ERMOLIN: Alexander Alexandrovich, what was your military fate?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Military fate is standard for a serviceman. I was born into a military family; my father is a military motorist. Therefore, a double holiday.

A.ERMOLIN: Tradition.

A. SHEVCHENKO: Yes. From time immemorial, our family served the fatherland, that is, as I said, I did not have a choice of profession - I definitely had to be a military man, I aspired to this myself. I graduated from the Kiev Tank Engineering School named after Marshal Yakubovsky. After this, the usual service as a lieutenant in the combat troops. I ended up in the western group of troops, where I really saw how and what the Armed Forces should do. Indeed, the school there was not only good - there was, indeed, a combat training school there. Afterwards he graduated from the Academy of Armored Forces named after Malinovsky within the walls where Comrade Tukhachevsky performed. After the Academy of Armored Forces at his own request North Caucasus. Everything that was there, of course, was captured. After the North Caucasus.

A.ERMOLIN: That is, both the First Chechen and the Second Chechen?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Yes. Yes unfortunately. Therefore, the use of technology and how the technology works, and what equipment is needed, that is, not from hearsay, but in real actions, in real combat operations. Then the Academy of the General Staff, after the Academy of the General Staff the Moscow Military District. Well, later he served in the apparatus.

A.ERMOLIN: By the way, your opinion is interesting, namely the combat experience associated with Chechnya. It is clear that both at the Academy and at the school you were taught mainly based on the experience that was classic from the experience of the same Great Patriotic War and so on. And this, in fact, is a model of a small war, despite the grave consequences that it has for all of us, right? So, have you ever had to learn on the go?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Most likely, yes, because the issues of technical support for combat operations - they directly depend on the forms and methods of conducting combat operations. You correctly noted: if we were preparing, say, for a large-scale war, then the war here was completely different. Fighting. Therefore, of course, it was necessary.

A.ERMOLIN: Moreover, the mountains. So, how does a tank or armored vehicle behave in this situation? Is that tank column in the mountains really such a formidable force?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Of course, everything depends on the correct use of military equipment. This is the first. If the equipment is prepared, if it is in trained hands, then our equipment behaves very honorably - there can be no questions here.

A.ERMOLIN: What is happening now? Well, this is not the first year that we have, in general, been hearing about the new look of the Armed Forces, a lot is being done for this. But, in practice, what changes? What has changed for you? What is the new look of the Armed Forces for you, specifically in your service?

A. SHEVCHENKO: I personally believe that we are now undergoing a real reform of the Armed Forces. And one of the postulates of the reform of the Armed Forces is rearmament with new weapons or modernized weapons. The forms and methods of warfare are changing. Forms and methods of warfare. At the beginning of the program, we remembered Tukhachevsky with his theory, so now new demands are being put forward for his technology. Connections and parts of a new look have been created and formed. Of course, they now need the most advanced equipment, the most technologically advanced equipment. Therefore, at the moment we are engaged, as I say, in directly translating the requirements of our leadership into reality, precisely in metal. At the moment, we have worked out the concept for the development of armored vehicles, the concept for the development of military vehicles until 2020 and until 2025. These concepts were agreed upon and discussed with designers, representatives of the military-industrial complex, and federal executive authorities. They were approved - namely the concepts - by the Minister of Defense. For us, this is a document on the basis of which we work out technical specifications and work out programs for our defense-industrial complex.

Our Commander-in-Chief has already worked out the technical specifications for the equipment that we see, which should be in our new Armed Forces. Issued, as I say, on a competitive basis, issued to our defense-industrial complex. And I must say that we have already had, let’s say, multiple meetings with designers and representatives of manufacturers, where they defended their designs for future cars. Yes, some have passed the project sieve, others have not yet reached it.

A.ERMOLIN: It seems to me that now many listeners are now listening to us with such serious skepticism, because... Well, because we have a special attitude towards the auto industry. (everyone laughs)

A. SHEVCHENKO: Particularly warm attitude.

A.ERMOLIN: Try to somehow instill confidence. In what direction are you thinking? What technology should replace it? So, how will a military vehicle be fundamentally different in 10 years from what we have now?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, the dictates of the time are such that the car, as you say, in 10 years will be a completely different car than what we currently understand. This will be a car mounted on a universal platform. The platform is the basis of the car; on this platform it will be necessary to mount, well, let’s say, a frame on a panel cabin with different levels of security. Because at the tactical level, where the soldier directly operates, the soldier now needs to be covered. Now the front is everywhere, plus the soldiers must be protected. Some functional modules will need to be mounted on this platform. That is, it is either for the transport of protected personnel, or for the transport of goods, or these are modules for communications equipment. That is, the car turns into a multifunctional vehicle.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, you say “universal platform” from the point of view of military needs, right? That is, it will not be a universal platform for both civilians and the military?

A. SHEVCHENKO: No. We are well aware that this is a machine for military needs.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, but... I’m sure they studied it. There were no heads who insisted that we must follow the German path, where you can drive up to any gas station, refuel, go to any auto repair shop and have your car repaired. Well, what does this have to do with? With the fact that the same base as civilian equipment. And then, by the way, it will be easier for you to transition and commercialize.

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, you know, I don’t see anything contradictory here. Because everything technical solutions that will be built into these cars, where will they be born? In the civil, defense-industrial complex. Same engines, same suspension, same armor. That is, it will definitely happen, no one denies it. We, even having studied the experience of advanced foreign countries and an advanced service system, are now moving to a new system of maintenance and repair for new machines. This is also the know-how of the armed forces, it came with the new look.

We have already developed pilot projects; for 2 years now, for example, we have been cooperating very closely in this direction with KAMAZ, with the Urals, with military-industrial companies. That is, we, as a customer, buy services to maintain our military equipment. And you understand, the effect is enormous.

A.ERMOLIN: So you are abandoning your repair base?

A. SHEVCHENKO: No, we do not refuse. We need to approach this very carefully, because there is peacetime where we need guaranteed combat-ready equipment. It is supported by the manufacturer together with our repair departments. At the same time, he trains our repair units. And there is wartime, where you need to be sure to complete a combat mission. This is where our repair departments come first in cooperation with manufacturing plants.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, before the transition to a new look began, as far as I know, the repair base was very clumsy and ineffective. Well, you somehow... That is, in fact, these were very idle workshops or equipment repair plants.

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, you asked a very interesting question, because recently the Ministry of Defense has been working very hard on it, and there are very big changes. We are now very strictly drawing up lines according to which the manufacturer, as the head of his product, plus the chief designer is responsible for his product, everything that should be done on it and how it should be done. And repair departments, repair plants, repair departments work according to unified design documentation. The effect we got is that, as I say, whatever is done in Vladivostok, the same is done in Kaliningrad. That is, no one can simply take it from themselves and do something. At the same time, the warranty on the vehicle is preserved, the warranty on the combat vehicle is preserved, and servicing takes place according to the same laws. In this direction, we have a very strong breakthrough with KAMAZ, a very strong breakthrough, again, with the military-industrial complex in servicing armored personnel carriers. At the same time, the Ministry of Defense is ready to purchase, say, services through the State Defense Order.

A.ERMOLIN: How is it in business? It's called outsourcing, right? That is, you can just use civilian infrastructure, right?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, why not, right? But I don't see anything like that here.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, probably the whole world is moving along almost the same path?

A. SHEVCHENKO: When the movement of military columns is accompanied and ensured, and is helped by the services of manufacturing plants, if someone has it, what’s wrong with that? On the contrary, this is good.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, 6 years ago, in general, people associated with your service said that one of the biggest problems was not in production, but in repairs. That there were not enough qualified personnel in sufficient quantities. People who once knew how to do this have left due to lack of decent wages. What is happening now at the level of qualified specialists, workers, managers, shop managers?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Firstly, what are we doing in this direction? We have strictly understood and are strictly moving towards introducing, after all, a new system of maintenance and repair. For this purpose, the manufacturer, having worked through a set of documents, documentation for Maintenance and repairs. Moreover, the chief designer is working on it. After this, the manufacturer takes over the repair plant. In addition to everything, he must carry out, say, an examination, issue a license, train personnel, issue documentation, prepare technologically, and after that all this work begins to revolve in the interests of the Armed Forces. That is, we, as it were, twist everything into one circle. And to say that there are bad specialists there or that someone there does nothing – well, I wouldn’t say that.

Eat good example. For example, the Arzamas Machine-Building Plant for the production of armored personnel carriers - it works very closely with the Armavir repair plant for the repair of the same armored personnel carriers. They now speak the same design language, they speak in the same system. And it turns out that Arzamas released an armored personnel carrier and is then accompanied by our repair company to the very troops, to the unit itself.

NEWS

A.ERMOLIN: We continue our conversation and our “Military Council”. I would like to remind listeners that our guest is Alexander Alexandrovich Shevchenko, Major General, Head of the Main Armored Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. And, in fact, we are talking about the armored vehicle service. What is the correct name for this now? Now, just moving on to the issue of organizational structure, right? That's what it's called? Previously there were tank troops. What are they now? What is the terminology? In connection with which modern structure exists? How are you wired?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, that’s how it is, and that’s how it remains, the armored service of the Armed Forces. Each formation or association has its own structural units that deal with issues of armored vehicle service. This is the automobile service, the armored service, and the brigades. The same services are available in operational associations. Well, to central control. That is, the main armored department is in charge here.

A.ERMOLIN: That is, you essentially serve, right? Or are you responsible for the use of military equipment that is in the brigade? So, what is your relationship with the tank units there? Or are you not in control of these troops?

A. SHEVCHENKO: The troops are controlled by commanders - we ensure the implementation of commander’s decisions. And at each level there is an automobile or armored service, which, in part of its tasks, ensures the implementation of commander’s decisions. There are governing bodies for this, there are forces and means for this. That is, each level has its own forces and means, has a governing body that deals with a task specifically defined for it. And everyone deals with their tasks at their own level.

If we take the Main Armored Directorate, then we are responsible for a unified technical policy in development, in setting up production, repair, and maintenance. If we take operational command, they will mostly be involved in organizing the operation of armored vehicles, repairs, training of personnel, and training of repair and restoration units. If we take the tactical element in a brigade, they are directly involved in the operation of automobile and armored vehicles. And all this, so to speak, in a single closed cycle, according to a single plan.

A.ERMOLIN: That is, engineering support and politics are behind you, right? Well, by the way...

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, you can put it this way. (everyone laughs)

A.ERMOLIN: Engineering policy, I mean. By the way, very often you hear, sometimes hidden, sometimes open, a complaint that, in general, our equipment is still approximately the same with which we entered Afghanistan, the same with which you fought in Chechnya. And it seems to me that the issue of personnel protection is especially acute now. Well, it’s no secret that our armored personnel carriers and their armor protection do not stand up to criticism. Any modern small arms, not to mention the SVD, can penetrate two sides. Conditional protection, right? Now another topic is mine protection. It is clear that terrorists are now very actively using the tactic of powerful charges, where up to 50 kilograms of explosives are detonated. So what does engineering do in this sense? What world experience exists? What is our experience? So, in what direction are we moving, taking into account the threats that are now emerging?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Thank you for the question. This question comes up often and is often discussed. I think the scope of our program is not enough to somehow reach some...

A.ERMOLIN: Let's start. (laughs)

A. SHEVCHENKO: Look. We conquered Afghanistan, we went through conflicts in the Caucasus, right? There were some developments, there were some conclusions. Well, we haven't progressed beyond just putting armor on the cars. Further. Now we see very well what is happening in Afghanistan, how coalition forces are fighting there, what kind of equipment is there. And I think it is right that this issue has been raised and for the first time we have begun to deeply and thoroughly understand this issue. This issue must be approached, first of all, of course, comprehensively.

First things first. Our base, scientific base. We have now begun to figure out whether we have methods, or whether we have programs? We are now working very hard in this direction. Second. Is our industry now capable of supplying us with such equipment? Time is running out. The armed forces must be in constant combat readiness. After all, they won’t ask later. And the question itself, as they say, is extremely technical - are they capable of producing this equipment?

I have already mentioned the concept of military automotive technology, the development of this concept based on the analysis of foreign ones, on the basis of the developments that we have (and we have them). The Main Armored Directorate has developed the concept of military protected vehicles, which specifically defines what needs to be done. Based on these concepts, we conducted competitive hearing procedures technical projects what our industry can give us. That is, we, as they say, really listened to the designers. There are some very positive conclusions.

A.ERMOLIN: That is, not from desire, but from possibilities, in many ways?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Yes. There are some very depressing conclusions, I would say so. Therefore, we are extremely placed, well, extremely placed in a situation where we urgently need to study foreign experience. When we create military vehicles, especially protected class ones, which would protect not only personnel, but also equipment, and at the same time preserve, most importantly, the lives of soldiers. You yourself said about armored personnel carriers. Well, of course, a technological breakthrough is needed in the development of the aggregate base of military vehicles. After all, if there is no aggregate automobile base, no matter what the designer draws and beautifully reports to us, we will unfortunately encounter this. It is not possible to create a car in metal. Well, the aggregate base is, first of all, of course, engines are needed. Moreover, engines are needed specifically for these tasks, and these are power-powered engines. We need combined protection for these machines. We need suspension for these cars. Well, tires are also a problem, it turns out. But we are working very hard in this direction and working hard with our design ideas.

A.ERMOLIN: Previously, when I remember my military cadet years, it was clear that, in many respects, the outcome of the battle was determined by statistics, that is, the number of bullets per linear meter, right? There were calculations about how long one tank, one crew would live - it worked out to less than a minute. (laughs)

A. SHEVCHENKO: Let me disagree with you. I always say, the higher the training, the easier...

A.ERMOLIN: (laughs) Well, it’s clear how lucky you are. But you must always fight to the end. But what am I talking about? What I mean is that, perhaps, with those approaches, the task of humane treatment of the crew may, with those calculations and those justifications, not be a priority. Now it’s clear, especially in small wars, that the crew gains protection and security huge role, a huge political sound for politicians who are sent to hot spots.

A. SHEVCHENKO: Yes. Definitely, definitely.

A.ERMOLIN: What can you tell us about capsule technology? About the Italian experience, about the fact that, again, how the allied troops fight there. Evil tongues say that, well, they are there, even if a charge of up to 10 kilograms is detonated, people remain alive, while this, as it were, is not a tank, but an analogue, probably, of our armored personnel carrier, most likely.

A. SHEVCHENKO: Compare these vehicles with armored personnel carriers, as they say...

A.ERMOLIN: My tongue won’t turn.

A. SHEVCHENKO: I would be careful. Because every machine is designed to perform some specific tasks. The vehicles you just talked about are patrol vehicles, reconnaissance vehicles, search vehicles, ambulances. That is, they perform a certain range of their tasks. An armored personnel carrier is, after all, a vehicle that transports personnel to the battlefield and, possibly, supports them with fire on the battlefield. That is, a slightly different level of car.

Yes, we are indeed studying very deeply and will continue to study the experience of foreign armies, especially in the use of these machines. It is design solutions and technologies for implementing these solutions that haunt us. Now, capsule armor, what you are talking about - yes, this is now an advanced idea, which is now in the German Armed Forces, in the Italian Armed Forces, and throughout Europe. Look what Germany is doing, for example. They also created the excellent Boxer capsule armored vehicle. In Europe, vehicles are also being created in the wheeled class, also with capsule armor. In Italy, cars were created - also capsule armored. Everything is aimed at what? To protect personnel, to save the life of a soldier. Yes, there are facts. Moreover, we have reliable facts, we are carrying out this work, that the vehicles used in combat operations in Afghanistan by coalition forces, well, if we take the famous Veko, then out of 16 explosions, on average, mines from 6 to 12 kilograms, at the moment there were deaths only 2 soldiers. This, I think, is very high rate. Until now, no one has ever been able to achieve this.

A.ERMOLIN: Let's buy a dozen of these machines, take them apart, and see what's inside. Shall we buy production licenses?

A. SHEVCHENKO: If with such an approach, or licenses, technologies, design solutions - why not?

A.ERMOLIN: Will they sell it?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, here the question is, let’s say, of a political nature.

A.ERMOLIN: We didn’t ask before in Soviet times. Previously, we had strong military-technical intelligence, and then we already had our own designs and developments. Now, as it were, is a new time, the time of business. We need to come to an agreement.

A. SHEVCHENKO: I think our designers are capable of creating the best examples of equipment.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, by the way, for some reason they don’t talk about this, after all. The same ZILs, government ZILs I mean - after all, it was almost the first time in the world that the idea of ​​capsule reservation was embodied. So, it turns out that again we are ahead of the rest at the level of creativity, but again we are lagging behind at the level of industrial implementation?

A. SHEVCHENKO: This is probably how it works out for us. We have breakthroughs in targeted applications, but somehow we fail in mass applications. I think that we are capable of creating technology that will truly be at the level of foreign models. To do this, you really need to thoroughly, without hesitation, study foreign experience. We need to take the best from there. Take technological solutions, design solutions. Well, I don’t see anything terrible here if some technological and design solutions can be applied. But all this should, as I say, take place in a competitive environment. We do not hide it, we issue technical specifications to both one automobile manufacturing plant and another plant. Well, as they say, the Armed Forces must obtain the highest characteristics of machines that will satisfy us in their tasks. The time is different now.

A.ERMOLIN: The main thing is that it shouldn’t be like that joke when, there, one seller in the market stands and says, “Walk around the market, haggle,” right?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, this is how it was, maybe, before, when they ordered what they ordered, and one brought what he did. And now the market. Now we have given the task to several, say, design bureaus, several factories. And they defend their projects. And there are, indeed, very excellent solutions, breakthrough solutions. Well, we as users would like to already have the end result. Time, of course, is pressing on us - we need to do it as quickly as possible. We have a lot of problems.

A.ERMOLIN: Where are these bright heads? So, in principle, what does a development engineer look like today? That is, this is such an elderly, experienced engineer? Or is it, like, our computer scientists?

A. SHEVCHENKO: It’s an interesting question, and you can’t answer it unequivocally, because, after all, we also have the old school, and we can’t brush it aside either. But experience last year and the developments, what we theoretically receive so far, review and put into work, I, nevertheless, am inclined to be somewhere around 30, 35 years - this is based on the real results, which are now being worked out in our main department. Maybe the time has already come to this, which, after all, is the age of electronics. Maybe even the market is already dictating its own conditions. That, after all, it seems to me that the future belongs to boys.

A.ERMOLIN: Oh, by the way. Now, you have already even indirectly talked about this, that they are coming, or, God forbid, that such absolutely new, modern equipment will come, more mobile, more functional, which can not only act as an armored personnel carrier, right? And to be... What was the original name of the Jeep? General Purpose, right? General purpose. (everyone laughs) That is, a universal vehicle for combat use. Well, in our wonderful museum in Kubinka, they talk about the fact that, for example, even 1.5 years before the attack on the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany did not have such very good tanks. And, in general, they did not come to us with Tigers and Panthers. And while they were gone, the crews were running around the field behind these cardboard fools, walking on horseback, as we call it, but at the same time the crew was already united, combat skills were already being practiced under non-existent equipment.

A. SHEVCHENKO: Continuing your monologue, we can say, “And what did all this lead to?” Has it spilled out?..

A.ERMOLIN: This resulted in an attack on Moscow, in the end.

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, here you have the high level of training of command staff, engineers, tank crew training, interaction. It all started with boxes. And it’s already over...

A.ERMOLIN: Well, yes. Thank God, our industry was able to respond to Hitler’s mobilization. Actually, he mobilized the industrial potential of Europe there, but... Well, we already talked about industrial potential today. And, here, about combat training. Are you satisfied with the level of individual training of those who operate military equipment? Here, a fighter comes for a year. What can he do in a year? How do you prepare it? Well, in this case, it’s not you who prepares it, but you, after all, participate in the development of these programs?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Yes, we are involved in the preparation and even in the development of equipment, we are already paying very close attention to this. Naturally, a year of service. Naturally, the technology will be high-tech, the technology will be complex. And it is impossible to fully master it in a year, but a person will be prepared, I think, because a new system of training the same drivers through the DOSAAF school is now being developed. The Ministry of Defense is doing a lot of work in this direction. And I am confident that we will achieve a breakthrough here.

A.ERMOLIN: And on what equipment, mainly?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Drivers, as for, say, us.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, that is, this is KAMAZ, Ural?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Yes, yes. Wheeled and tracked vehicles. That is, in theory, the driver should come...

A.ERMOLIN: Already a driver?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Already a driver in the unit, yes. We were just talking about a new service system - well, it is also aimed at this, to free the driver from the most difficult operations, which should be carried out by specialists who guarantee that this machine will work. That is, here is the next direction.

Well, as we say, the machine must, of course, be high-tech, it will be complex. The aggregate base, whether we like it or not, will indeed still be complex. But the car must be comfortable for the driver, for the driver to operate, maintain, and control. That is, these controls exist. And by design features they are being worked on. After all, it’s not for nothing that we tell designers that yes, we need a car, for example, with a hydromechanical gearbox for certain tasks. Must have independent suspension. All this ensures that the driver must drive the car and not be distracted by other operations. After all, look, when driving in the city, for example... Well, a bus driver - he performs approximately 100 thousand operations per day, per shift. We simply don't notice them. But this is really true. And the driver in a car with an automatic transmission performs an order of magnitude lower.

Here, I'll give you an example. You can have a driver who has training at least in civilian life or who had his own car - so, he joins the army, it’s enough for him, let’s say, to carry out short course, if everything is spoken in the same language, everything is in the same algorithm, here and there. And this also needs to be worked out by the technique.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, you know, from your own experience, right? First, there's a six, then a foreign car, then a foreign car with a gun, right? That is, it all comes down to the fact that you don’t look under the hood. That is, does this mean that the prefix “mechanic” for the driver will eventually die out, right?

A. SHEVCHENKO: I don’t think that, after all, the prefix “mechanic” will die out, because a driver-mechanic for a combat vehicle is a crew member. He will definitely work as a mechanic - the car will still need to be prepared for battle. This is clear. Because there are operations where neither factories nor repair units will help. The crew prepares the car for battle.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, apparently, this should already be an engineer. That means he’s not a conscript, right? Because go to any auto center, they have computer diagnostics, so there are almost no repairs - they just take out the parts, install a ready-made module, and the car moves on. So, do you see such a future?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, why not?

A.ERMOLIN: This is exactly the kind of base that would exist, right?

A. SHEVCHENKO: In this direction, we conduct training and training sessions for officers together with industry. We have a big project with KAMAZ in this direction, already this year 7.5 thousand KAMAZ vehicles pass through civilian service centers - this is what you are talking about, when a driver arrives, takes his car to a service center and it is fully serviced there . Electronic passport, service book. That is, what you just talked about, all this is going on.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, God forbid. I just remember, when a boy is in the cold, a driver mechanic, his hands are black in fuel oil, he does something and starts the car and it still participates in exercises.

A. SHEVCHENKO: We will work to make this a thing of the past.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, from the point of view of training officers and engineers. Where do you get them for your service? Still, are you trying to enroll in military schools? Or do you also invite civilians?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, our specialties are, of course, mainly trained in military schools. Very powerful training schools for automotive engineers and tank engineers have been established. Yes, in appearance, there is a need for such a large quantity - of course, now there is no such great need, this is the time. The second, senior technician level, company technician, will in the future be trained in training centers, which are also created on the basis of schools. There is a very powerful school there. Indeed, I think this will be breakthrough. Because a sergeant, senior technician or company technician will train for 3 years specifically in the automotive field.

A.ERMOLIN: So this is a contract soldier?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Yes.

A.ERMOLIN: This is a professional contract soldier. The head of the workshop, just if you compare it with civilian production.

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, the head of the workshop, yes, over ten drivers. That is, there are levels. We are preparing company level levels. There is a level, say, of a leader - this is definitely an officer. That is, everything is definitely being prepared.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, at the end of the program I would like to talk about social conditions, about material motivation. Do you feel like something is changing? Are your officers assigned? Well, it’s no secret that just recently, there, 3 years later, 90% of lieutenants, as it were, were no longer in the Armed Forces several years ago. Now, do you feel that something is changing in this regard?

A. SHEVCHENKO: I can answer you very simply. I now have several reports on my desk where lieutenants want to serve and continue to serve.

A.ERMOLIN: And I was already scared about dismissal. (laughs)

A. SHEVCHENKO: No, under no circumstances. I think that in reality, after all, there is a shift in social terms, it really does exist. Even on the salary of a lieutenant. When I was a lieutenant and what a lieutenant gets now is incomparable.

A.ERMOLIN: I see. Well? Housing problem in your subdivisions?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, we are trying to stay on schedule.

A.ERMOLIN: Does a mortgage help to secure the same lieutenants?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Well, I would say that, after all, it helps. Helps.

A.ERMOLIN: Well, because, it seems to me, this is a unique thing, because... So that a lieutenant could in the first year of service...

A. SHEVCHENKO: The housing issue is now being resolved very strongly. Moreover, to say that it is not - well, I will even say in my own headquarters that officers should not receive apartments - this cannot be said, because it would be slandering oneself. Because documents are signed per week, for example, from 5 to 10 apartments are signed for officers. Well, throughout, say, Russia, we have them.

A.ERMOLIN: I see. San Sanych, well, we literally have 1.5-2 minutes left. Please tell me what you would most like now for your service in the future? Especially the next one?

A. SHEVCHENKO: Most of all I would like to thank you for the invitation, take advantage of the remaining time, and congratulate the motorist warriors. The 29th is the centenary of military motorists. I would like to especially congratulate veteran motorists, those who went through the crucible of the Great Patriotic War, who went through all our conflicts in which the Armed Forces took part. After all, just think about the burden on their shoulders. It is not for nothing that songs have been composed, it is not for nothing that 11 thousand have been awarded, it is not for nothing that among motorists there are heroes of Russia, heroes of the Soviet Union. Full gentlemen Orders of Glory. Therefore, as they say, as the head of the Automotive and Armored Directorate, I bow to them, veteran motorists. I would also like to thank the military motorists who are now in the ranks for their military work and valor. To thank and congratulate our designers, the scientific complex, and everyone who considers themselves among the holy cohort of warrior-motorists on the holiday, to congratulate them on the upcoming holiday, to wish them health, happiness, and good luck. Well, everything that they have planned for themselves must all come true.

A.ERMOLIN: We wholeheartedly join in the congratulations on the centenary. And I remind you that our guest was Alexander Alexandrovich Shevchenko, major general, head of the armored department of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. Thank you bye.