Tank desant

Tank desant (Russian: танковый десант, tankovyy desant) is a military combined arms tactic, where infantry soldiers, called tankodesantniki, ride into an attack on tanks, then dismount to fight on foot in the final phase of the assault. Desant (from the French: descendre, "to disembark") is a Russian general term for airborne or parachute drops and naval infantry amphibious landing operations.

The tactic was used as an expedient by the Soviet Red Army during World War II. Tank desant troops (tankodesantniki) were infantry trained in the tactic in order to offer small-arms support in suppression of enemy anti-tank weapons or enemy infantry using anti-tank grenades. After the war, T-55 and T-62 tanks were built with hand-holds for this purpose. In northern areas during winter, similar tactics were used by Soviet infantry riding the skids of aerosani or towed behind them on skis. Nowadays, this tactic is very rare (outside of dire emergencies) in well-equipped armed forces, with front-line troops usually riding in armored personnel carriers or infantry fighting vehicles.

The tank desant tactic, like more conventional airborne and amphibious operations, was used to achieve fundamental goals of maneuver theory - "surprise, leverage, simultaneity and interchangeability."

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