Throughout its brief but interesting life, the Progvev-T encountered numerous problems that ultimately doomed this gonzo idea to obscurity.
The Cold War was a time of extreme experiments when it came to military technology. If necessity is the mother of all invention, then desperation is undoubtedly its father—at least when it comes to wartime innovation. In the annals of military engineering, few inventions capture the imagination quite like the Soviet Red Army’s proposed Progvev-T tank.
By taking a T-55 main battle tank (MBT) and equipping it with a MiG-15 jet engine—yes, you read that right—the Soviet Army’s engineers envisioned making a “gasdynamic trawler,” or a minesweeper that relied on the intense heat and blast force of jet exhaust to detect, uncover, and detonate landmines on paved roads. At the time the Soviets were interested in this design, the Soviet-Afghan War was ongoing, and the Red Army was being harried by the mujahideen insurgency.
A Jet-Powered Tank to Fight the Mujahideen
A staple of Soviet armored forces, the T-55 MBT featured a Klimov VK-1 turbojet engine. That engine was capable of generating tremendous thrust and heat—and directing it downward to create a sweeping blast zone approximately 10-12 meters wide, while trawling at a speed of less than a mile per hour.
Rather than using mechanical flails or rollers to physically trigger mines as most minesweepers do—methods that risked damaging the vehicle, or missing deeply-buried explosives—the proposed Progvev-T employed thermal and kinetic energy. The jet’s exhaust, reaching extreme temperatures, would either melt the ground surface to expose mines or cause them to detonate from the heat and pressure. The tank’s fuel capacity allowed it to clear up to seven miles of road before refueling, making it theoretically suitable for rapid demining operations in urban or highway environments. Prototypes were tested in the late 1970s and early 1980s, with reports of its use in Afghanistan for clearing improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on roads.
This hybrid design drew from broader Soviet experiments in unconventional weaponry, where repurposing existing hardware was a cost-effective strategy. The T-55 base provided mobility and protection, while the MiG-15 engine—a proven technology from the Korean War era—added the destructive force needed for the task.
Who Knew There’d Be Downsides?
Of course, the integration was far from seamless, as the added weight and modifications strained the tank’s original diesel engine and suspension.
Throughout its brief but interesting life, the Progvev-T encountered numerous problems that ultimately doomed this gonzo idea to obscurity. Chief among these was its lack of stealth: the roaring jet engine produced deafening noise, attracting enemy forces from miles away. It was a cumbersome and impractical vehicle for prolonged field operations of the kind that the Soviet Army faced during the Soviet-Afghan War.
To make matters worse, the intense heat posed risks to the crew and nearby friendly forces, and the vehicle’s size limited its maneuverability in confined spaces. Reports from Afghan deployments indicated partial success in clearing snow and ice—an unintended but practical application. As a minesweeper, however, the Progvev-T was a nightmare. By the 1980s, the project was shelved, with only prototypes produced, reflecting a border pattern in Soviet military research and development where ambitious ideas often clashed with real-world constraints.
Today, the Progvev-T serves as a cautionary tale in military innovation, illustrating how unique ideas must be balanced with feasibility as much as creativity. Modern mine-clearing technologies, such as drone-based systems or electromagnetic detectors, have largely supplanted such brute-force methods. But these are in no way as interesting or fun to think about as a jet-powered minesweeping tank.
About the Author: Brandon J. Weichert
Brandon J. Weichert, a Senior National Security Editor at The National Interest as well as a contributor at Popular Mechanics, who consults regularly with various government institutions and private organizations on geopolitical issues. Weichert’s writings have appeared in multiple publications, including the Washington Times, National Review, The American Spectator, MSN, the Asia Times, and countless others. His books include Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His newest book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine is available for purchase wherever books are sold. He can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.
Image: Shutterstock / Wojciech Wrzesien.
