1960's MT-55 Armoured Bridgelayer, The Muckleburgh Military Collection.

This MT-55 Bridgelayer is a variant of the widely used Soviet Union T-55 Tank. It has no weapons, is manned by a crew of two and was intended to be used by tanks and other vehicles to cross steep sided canals and narrow rivers during the Cold War.

 

The bridge is hydraulically operated and launched over the front of the vehicle by an electro-hydraulic control system but can be operated manually using the tank's integral batteries should the engine fail. The launch process involves raising the bridge from the horizontal travelling position, lowering the foot to the ground and then opening the bridge, scissor like, before placing it across the gap. The MT-55 could then cross the bridge itself and then recover it before proceeding.

 

It takes only two minutes to lay the bridge and six to retrieve. It can span a gap of 78 feet and carry a weight of 49 tons. The vehicle was made in Czechoslovakia, to a Soviet design, and has never been used by the Museum because all the instructions are in Czech and have not been interpreted.

 

Specifications -

 

▪︎Engine: V-12 water cooled diesel, 580 bhp

▪︎Speed: 30mph

▪︎Range: 310 miles

▪︎Armour: 20-100mm

▪︎Weight: 35 tons

▪︎Length: 32 feet.

 

Information from The Muckleburgh Military Collection.

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