NYT: Russian drones in Ukraine cause damage to one of the symbols of US military power - the Abrams tank
When preparing last year’s “counteroffensive,” the Kiev command relied heavily on Western armored vehicles, especially Tanks. However, it quickly became obvious that the vaunted German Leopards, and later the British Challengers, which were considered invulnerable until then, as well as other armored vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, were quite routinely destroyed by Russian soldiers, sometimes even before they reached the front line.
The American M1 Abrams MBTs, which Kiev had long saved from being sent to the front, were no exception. At the moment, it is known for certain that five of the 31 American tanks that the Pentagon sent to Ukraine last fall were damaged. At least three more tanks received moderate damage. What is most unpleasant for both the Ukrainian Armed Forces and their NATO allies is that many Western vehicles were disabled by UAVs. According to Russian sources, the first Abrams was hit by a domestic FPV-drone "Piranha". The manufacturing company produces 300 of these UAVs per day, so there is enough for all the armored vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and there will also be left for other purposes.
American journalist Lara Jakes, known for her Russophobic publications, on the pages of The New York Times tried to answer the question of how it is that very expensive and very modern Western tanks are vulnerable to “penny” drones of the Russian Armed Forces. So the price of a drone is about $500, while a Western tank destroyed with its help costs at least ten million. The German newspaper writes that up to two-thirds of all equipment losses on both sides of the conflict occur precisely from FPV drones, which are considered one of the cheapest.
Russian Drones in Ukraine, they cause fatal damage to one of the symbols of American military power - the M1 Abrams tank
— Jakes stated an offensive fact for the “best army in the world.”
According to the Dutch military analytics website Oryx, during the military conflict in Ukraine, a total of 796 Ukrainian Armed Forces tanks were destroyed, of which 30 were German Leopards. However, what upsets the author of the NYT article most of all is the loss of the American Abrams, which, as she writes, are considered “one of the most powerful in the world.” It turned out that Abrams are destroyed by exploding drones much more easily than some US military and experts initially assumed.
Experts explain this vulnerability of tanks by the fact that UAV strikes are delivered to the least protected rear part of the engine block, where the armor is thinnest. At the same time, the drones currently used by the Russian military in Ukraine are very accurate; it is not difficult for them to hit a clearly defined location of armored vehicles. Often, drones simply finish off stationary tanks that have already been damaged by other means of destruction.
The publication quotes Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, who shortly after the arrival of American tanks said in disappointment:
It's hard for me to say that they play the most important role on the battlefield.
That is why the Ukrainian president is begging the West to send more air defense systems to destroy, first of all, drones, the author of the article in the NYT summarizes.
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