Scores of American M113 tanks are sighted on the frontlines of the Ukraine war. An indication that Kiev and the US are ruthlessly calculating high losses.
Bachmut – They were all expected in the Ukraine war in the counter-offensive: massive British Challenger 2 battle tanks, German Marder armored personnel carriers, American wheeled armored vehicles Stryker and French AMX-10RC.
Ukraine’s counteroffensive: the army apparently relies on dozens of M113 tanks
However, none of these types of tanks have made an appearance so far, while the Russian army appears to have eliminated several Ukrainian Leopard 2 tanks. Instead, rows and rows of Ukrainian soldiers can be seen in videos distributed on Telegram and shared on Twitter, sitting on comparatively simple, almost rectangular tanks that look comparatively unspectacular and are armed only with a large, manually operated machine gun.
We’re talking about US M113 personnel carriers. The fact that Ukraine is relying on this vehicle at this early stage is shown by a ruthless calculation that Kiev and the USA have taken into account: high human and material losses at the beginning of the counter-offensive.
Because: The M113 has several flaws that are difficult to compensate for on the battlefield. First of all, the old age of the vehicles should be mentioned. The Americans developed the M113 back in the 1960s. Although it was repeatedly modernized, the body, for example, is based on the standards of the time.
M113 in Ukraine counter-offensive: Kiev apparently protects modern Western armored personnel carriers
Means: The side pans are steep. And thus an easy target for shoulder-launched anti-tank weapons and tank shells that simply cannot ricochet. Modern tanks such as the Leopard 2 or the American Abrams M1, on the other hand, often have sloping armor on their turrets and front, so that an anti-tank shell is deflected at best and cannot penetrate the interior of the hull.
This is probably much easier with the M113, because the armor in some models is no more than 12 millimeters and is made of aluminum instead of different layers of steel. The Ukrainian soldiers are therefore trying to protect the deployed M113, apparently with bars mounted on the outer shell (see Twitter video below). The German Wehrmacht did this in the Second World War, and the Americans later used it in Afghanistan. Anti-tank shells should detonate on the grid and not hit the crew compartment.
Nevertheless, videos of blazing M113 armored vehicles are circulating on Telegram and Twitter, which according to the signs painted on them are very likely to be assigned to the Ukrainian army, which according to the magazine for European security & technology Should have 300 copies. In addition, the M113s are also relatively easy to take out for another reason. If, for example, one of the ten wheels around which the two chains are mounted breaks, the vehicle is simply unable to manoeuvre. Then nothing works. Symptomatic: Videos can also be found on Twitter of Ukrainians towing away M113s with T-72 tanks after they apparently stopped working.
M113 for Ukrainian Army: US armored personnel carrier has many disadvantages
And something else indicates that Kiev and Washington adamantly expect losses from these units. Because: An M113 is easy to drive and operate. It is steered with two parallel levers. The driver has a speedometer in front of him, like in a car. An automatic transmission is installed, including gas and brake pedals. The M113 thus follows the tradition of American Sherman tanks from the Second World War, which could be operated like cars.
To put it bluntly, if a driver is injured or even killed, another soldier can simply take over the wheel without having to be sent through half of Europe for a multi-week training course. As for example in the case of the Marder, the Leopard 2 or the Challenger 2.
Ukraine counter-offensive: Does Kiev calculate high losses against the Russian army?
There are said to be up to 80,000 M113s worldwide. So they can be replaced. Appropriately, the Belgian government announced last week that it would be delivering more M113s to the Ukraine. Perhaps also so that no more modern Western armored personnel carriers are lost on the battlefields of the battered country. Losses to M113 included. (pm)
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