The T80 And Soviet Experimental Tanks That Never Made It To War The Soviet T-80, entering service in 1976, was a groundbreaking Main Battle Tank, being the first in the world to feature a powerful gas turbine engine. This allowed it to reach blistering speeds of up to 50 mph (80 km/h). Alongside this speedster, Soviet engineers designed radical experimental prototypes like the four-tracked Object 279, built in 1957 to survive nuclear blasts. While the T-80 became a Cold War staple, many high-tec