Russia had previously shelved the T80s due to their higher operating and maintenance costs, as well as poor performance in the Chechen wars. However, the start of the Ukraine war in 2022 brought the T80Bs back into the fray. Unfortunately, the numbers are stark: six storage bases had thousands of T80Bs sitting in storage, but by mid-2023, only a fraction remained.

The decline of the T80Bs accelerated, with some bases losing over 90% of their inventory. By 2023, the total number of visible T80B variants had dropped to less than 300, a decrease of nearly 1,000 units. While some garages may still hold tanks, estimates suggest that by mid-2026, Russia may run out of T80Bs, with the rate of decline slowing down due to the decreasing availability of tanks in storage. This could be accelerated by the removal of the best tanks from storage, making them available for frontline duty.

In the short term, Russia may not run out of tanks immediately, but as the numbers dwindle, Russia will rely increasingly on older T72s and T55s, with a few new T9s being produced. The result will be a reduced number of tanks available for action, making it increasingly challenging for Russia to maintain its presence on the battlefield. The end of the T80 era may be imminent, but it will not mark the end of Russian tank production or deployment.