Ukraine will resume production of Soviet era armored vehicles
During his visit to the Kharkiv Plant of Transport Machinery, President Petro Poroshenko stated that Ukraine would resume production of Soviet-era armored vehicles, specifically the multi-purpose, light-armored towing vehicle or MT-LB.
"Recently the state defense order for 2017 was approved. There is work for the Malyshev [plant], as well as the Lviv, Mykolaiv, Kyiv and Zhytomyr armored machinery plants. The good news is that there is also an order for the Kharkiv Plant of Transport Machinery. We will begin restoring our specialized production because our MT-LBs proved to be very good during the defense of the country. No one but you, people with the memory of big industrial institutions, will be able to quickly restart this production," he said.
The production of MT-LB initially began in 1964. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, an industrial base remained in the Ukraine at the Kharkiv Plant of Transport Machinery.
The multi-purpose towing vehicle (MT-LB) weighs 9.7 tons, is equipped with rolled steel armor and is capable of speeds up to 61 kilometers per hour. The vehicle is able to travel for 500 kilometers without refueling. The MT-LB is intended for transporting people and cargoes and could be used as an artillery tractor.