By Leopard @Adobe Stock
Alistair MacDonald, Gordon Lubold, and Ievgeniia Sivorka of The Wall Street Journal report on the vulnerabilities of tanks on the modern battlefield. Drones represent a new threat that is cheaper and more effective than traditional planes and anti-tank missiles. The US Army is looking for ways to equip and transform the army to counter these emerging threats. They write:
Even as tanks help Ukraine push into Russia, armies are rethinking how the powerful vehicles are made and deployed after a recent history of being humbled in combat.
Tanks were once the king of the battlefield. But the proliferation of drones in Ukraine means the large, noisy vehicles can be spotted and targeted within minutes. That has seen dozens of cutting-edge Western tanks used only sparingly in the battle they were meant to shape, while others have been damaged, destroyed or captured.
In response, armies are adding technology to tanks to spot and protect against drones while also exploring design changes to make the heavy, armored vehicles more maneuverable. Battlefield tactics are already changing and lessons from Ukraine are being integrated into training.
“In the near term, we absolutely need to urgently make some adjustments to maintain the survivability of our armored formations,” said Gen. James Rainey, who heads the U.S. Army Futures Command, which looks at ways to equip and transform the army. […]
Among other Western tanks sent to Ukraine, 12 of the 18 newer model German-made Leopards have been destroyed or damaged, according to Oryx. Russia has also suffered heavy tank losses, analysts say.
“As soon as you hit the road a drone sees you and then you’re hit with artillery, mines, antitank missiles, drones, guided air bombs,” said the Ukrainian driver of one Abrams whose call sign is Smilik. […]
Efforts are also under way to make tanks harder to detect, from changing how they are painted to reducing their electronic signatures, said Doug Bush, the U.S. Army’s assistant secretary for acquisitions, logistics and technology.
Sweden’s Saab says it is seeing a lot of interest in a camouflage netting it offers that wraps around all parts of a tank, making them harder to see and partly cloaking the heat emitted from the vehicles.
The U.S. and its allies are also adding new countermeasures to many of their tanks. Those include an Israeli system called Iron Fist, which shoots out small explosive munitions when it detects airborne threats. […]
Despite the tank’s vulnerabilities, armies say they still have a vital role to play.
In conflicts where adversaries have armored vehicles, the U.S. will need tanks to deliver the “shock effect to penetrate and consolidate rapidly,” said Lt. Gen. Kevin Admiral, who commands the Army’s III Armored Corps in Fort Cavazos, Texas.
Last month, a platoon of Ukrainian soldiers entered a village in Russia’s Kursk region before having to retreat under fire, according to a corporal whose call sign is Perchik. That was until support arrived.
Read more here.
Also, read Russian Turtle Tanks Look Like Moving Sheds, UKRAINE-RUSSIA: Are Kamikaze Drones the Future of Warfare?, Russia’s Dangerous New Drone Duo, UKRAINE-RUSSIA: Are Kamikaze Drones the Future of Warfare?, and SWITCHBLADE: Ukraine Sky’s May Soon be Buzzing with Flying Munitions
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