Following months of hypothesis concerning the doable involvement of British Challenger 2 tanks in frontline fight operations in Ukraine, Ukrainian footage has confirmed that a minimum of one of many autos has been destroyed. Fireplace and appreciable portions of black smoke coming from the turret point out burning from contained in the tank and destruction past restoration probably by way of a missile strike. The footage has emerged as Russian Vikhr-1 air launched anti tank missiles deployed by Ka-52 helicopters proceed to be a number one thorn within the facet of Ukraine’s makes an attempt to launch armoured offensives, which have been ongoing for 3 months. The place footage beforehand confirmed the destruction of enormous numbers of German equipped Leopard 1 and Leopard 2 tanks, and over 60 American equipped Bradley infantry combating autos, sightings of Challenger 2 tanks have been comparatively few and much between with solely 14 of the autos having been delivered . The tanks are thought-about to have superior armour safety to every other autos in Ukrainian service, though their rifled weapons, low speeds and ageing fireplace controls put them at a drawback towards tanks such because the newer Leopard 2A6s donated by Germany or greater finish Russian autos such because the T-90M and T-80BVM.
The destruction of a Challenger 2 tank follows studies in August that the autos had been modified with cage armour to supply a level of safety towards drones and ‘prime assault’ missiles reminiscent of American Javelins – that are in service on each side with important numbers having been captured by Russian forces. The tanks have been first sighted close to the frontlines the earlier month in July. As provision of additional tanks to Ukraine is being debated within the Western world, losses amongst what was the one main class of armoured automobile to not have been destroyed to date, and a category which was thought-about by far essentially the most survivable, is prone to have an affect on the talk. The power to destroy Challenger 2s taken instantly from British Army stockpiles will ship a regarding message to the USA, which is ready to imminently start deliveries of downgraded M1A1 Abrams tanks to the Ukrainian Army which are considerably much less survivable than both the Abrams tanks within the U.S. Army itself or than the Challenger 2s. It stays to be seen whether or not Britain will transfer to rapidly replenish Ukraine’s losses, or whether or not the most recent victory in Russia’s marketing campaign of strikes on Ukrainian armoured models will press its Western adversaries to reevaluate their positions within the battle.
