Dangerous tanks are coming to Ukraine: a complete list of armored vehicles promised by the West

So, Great Britain promised Kyiv to start with a company of Challenger-2 tanks. These are 14 cars. In addition, the British will transfer to Ukraine a batch of Mastiff PPV protected patrol cars to transport seven fighters in full gear.

Germany has allocated 40 old infantry fighting vehicles (IFV) Marder. Berlin has not yet decided on the supply of German Leopard tanks. But it is possible that Ukraine will receive these tanks through Poland.

The President of France announced the delivery of a batch of “wheeled tanks” AMX-10RCR to Ukraine in the amount of 30 pieces.

The United States, too, has not yet decided on the Abrams tanks for Ukraine. But they supply Stryker armored personnel carriers (APCs) and M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles (50 units).

Canada will supply Kyiv with 39 armored personnel carriers in the Canadian version of the ACSV Super Bison.

Along with Western equipment, Kyiv was promised the remnants of the Soviet tank industry collected from all over the world, including T-72 tanks.

Assessing the supply of armored vehicles to Kyiv, Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov promised on January 16 that they would be destroyed, like previous Western weapons. It’s like that. Only it will not be easy to do this, says Mikhail Barabanov, deputy director of the CAST. Here is how he described samples of Western armored vehicles:

Challenger 2 main tank.

This is a typical western “third generation” tank. It combines a good round-the-clock surveillance and fire control system, powerful weapons, good protection and fairly high mobility.

The disadvantage, as with other Western tanks of this generation, is the heavy weight (62.5 tons), which impairs maneuverability and requires special technical support, especially powerful means of evacuation.

In addition, the age of tanks and the use of fairly unique systems and units (including those that have not been produced for a long time) can create serious maintenance problems.

A feature of the Challenger 2 is the use of a 120-mm rifled gun on it, which is considered obsolete by the British themselves. At the same time, the accuracy of a rifled gun is considered to be higher than that of smoothbore guns, especially at long distances. In view of this, with the current main tactics of the Ukrainian side of using tanks in small groups or single tanks in the style of a “long-range sniper rifle”, the Challenger 2 rifled gun can be its advantage.

In general, it must be pointed out that, with proper use, Western tanks of the “third generation” will be a very dangerous enemy, since their advantage in surveillance and fire control systems and the presence of powerful weapons with modern sub-caliber projectiles over the main Soviet and Russian tanks of the T-64, T- 72, T-80, T-90, including modernized ones, are also recognized by domestic specialists.

Leopard 2 main tank

In many ways, this also applies to the Leopard 2 tank. It is a well-balanced machine with a powerful 1500-horsepower engine. Equipped with what is considered the best German 120 mm smoothbore gun.

Apparently, Ukraine will mainly receive tanks of the already outdated Leopard 2A4 modification, which still remain very powerful vehicles on the battlefield.

The wide distribution of Leopard 2 tanks in the world, the presence of a large number of decommissioned vehicles for “cannibalization” (the use of parts from one vehicle to complete another) and its ongoing mass production greatly facilitate the issue of spare parts.

The disadvantage of the Leopard 2 (especially in the Leopard 2A4 version) can be considered the level of protection, as well as such a major defect as the placement of a significant part of the ammunition in the front of the hull, which is poorly covered from the sides there. The experience of the very first combat use (Turkish Leopard 2 in Syria) showed that this has the same fatal consequences as the placement of ammunition in the hull of our T-64, T-72, T-80, T-90 tanks.

Mastiff armored fighting vehicle

A rather ordinary heavy three-axle armored vehicle with enhanced mine protection (MRAP type). In the English version, it has good all-round protection due to additional armor and gratings, which, however, further increases its mass. Like almost all MRAP vehicles, it can essentially only be used on paved roads.

BMP Marder

This is an old German infantry fighting vehicle. It has a very significant mass (up to 33.5 tons) with mediocre protection, but at the same time good mobility.

Ukraine, apparently, will receive the main upgraded version of the Marder 1A3, with good thermal imaging devices. Armament in the form of a very powerful 20-mm gun.

“Wheeled tank” AMX-10RCR

A modernized version of the already obsolete French wheeled armored fighting vehicle with a 105-mm cannon.

The passability of the car in Ukrainian realities raises questions. Defense is also low, but the 105mm smoothbore gun with 24/7 fire control makes the AMX-10RCR a reasonably acceptable anti-tank weapon capable of generally taking out mainstream Russian tanks.

APC Stryker

A good “typical” modern wheeled armored personnel carrier (8×8), with good capacity and a convenient rear exit for landing, with moderate protection. The regular Protector combat module with a 12.7-mm machine gun and a 40-mm grenade launcher, due to a good thermal imager and optical systems, provides valuable opportunities for surveillance and reconnaissance. In general, the universal equipment of Western technology with thermal imaging devices is its important advantage.

BTR ACSV Super Bison

A new Canadian upgraded version of the same Stryker (manufactured at the same Canadian plant), with enhanced armor and armament. Because of this, the ACSV is obviously overweight.

BMP M2 Bradley

The main American BMP. In the M2A2 ODS variant provided to Ukraine, it combines good protection, powerful weapons and a very good surveillance and fire control system, including the implementation of the so-called “hunter-killer” mode for the commander to quickly search for and destroy targets.

Bradley, due to the presence of this fire control system and the long-range anti-tank missile system TOW (in modern versions, striking a tank from above) is primarily a very serious anti-tank weapon. According to American data, even during Operation Desert Storm in Iraq in 1991, Bradley infantry fighting vehicles destroyed more Iraqi tanks than M1 Abrams tanks.

Army vehicle HUMWV

Typical American military truck. Produced since 1984. Apparently, it will be “eternal” in the service of the United States and its allies.

Tank T-72

Presumably, the new batch of armored vehicles will include the former Moroccan T-72B tanks being modernized in the Czech Republic at the expense of the United States and the Netherlands (at one time bought by Morocco in Belarus). Apparently, as a result of the modernization, there will be a kind of equivalent to the T-72B3 of early samples …

“In short, the supply of Western armored vehicles to Ukraine creates serious challenges for the Russian Armed Forces,” Mikhail Barabanov concluded. – It will not work to fight by pulling out your junk from storage. The growth in the quality of the enemy’s military equipment will have to be countered by its own quality.

And most importantly, the current beginning limited deliveries of various Western equipment can only be a warm-up before the start of deliveries to Ukraine of really significant amounts of modern American military equipment, including M1 Abrams tanks.