How the American Abrams tanks are dealt a ‘deadly blow’ on the battlefield in Ukraine

The United States decided in January 2023 to send 31 heavy Abrams battle tanks to Ukraine to help the country with its counter-offensive expected later that year. For months, Kiev had begged for the tanks – which cost $10 million each – as they were necessary to break through Russian lines in the east and south of the country. At the same time, European countries decided to send some of their Leopard tanks.

Ultimately, the Abrams tanks only arrived in Ukraine in September, too late for the counter-offensive. At that moment it was clear that a quick breakthrough through the Russian lines was not possible, especially due to the extensive Russian minefields on which the Ukrainians were stranded. The lack of air superiority also made the tanks and armored vehicles that were delivered on time particularly vulnerable to attacks by Russian fighter planes, helicopters, and drones.

Five tanks lost

This is still the case today, and even to such an extent that the Abrams tanks have been almost completely pushed aside for the time being, the AP news agency writes on the basis of a confidential press briefing by the Pentagon.

The continuous presence of Russian drones makes it impossible for the Ukrainians to use the tanks without being seen or attacked. Five of the 31 tanks have already been lost in this way. At the beginning of this year, the Abrams were deployed in the defense of the front city of Avdiivka, which fell into Russian hands in February.

Since the beginning of the fighting in Ukraine, military analysts have been eyeing how drones have, and continue to, transform warfare. Thousands of unmanned aircraft continuously monitor every square meter of the battlefield, while an attack drone can appear behind every tree or building.

Surprise attacks have therefore become virtually impossible, especially when it comes to large mechanized attacks with multiple tanks and armored vehicles. According to one of the American officers who gave the briefing, “it is no longer possible to drive across open terrain without fear of being spotted and attacked.”

The Russian Lancet kamikaze drones filled with explosives and flying into tanks and vehicles are certainly feared on the Ukrainian side.

New tactic

Christopher Grady, vice chairman of the American general staff, also confirmed this to AP. “When it comes to how combat has evolved, it is clear that heavy armored vehicles are at significant risk in an environment where unmanned aerial systems (drones, TT) very common.”

According to The New York Times, which was the first to report last week about five lost Abrams tanks, is in this way gradually “dealing a fatal blow” to “one of the most powerful symbols of American military power” by the many drones. “The drone fight in Ukraine is changing modern warfare and threatens to completely rewrite the way Abrams tanks will be used in future conflicts.”

According to Grady, the US military is now working with Ukraine to devise a new tactic to be able to deploy the tanks at a later stage. “There is a way to do it, and we are going to help them find that way in that changed environment where everything is seen immediately.”

‘Combined arms warfare’

According to the Americans, another reason why the Abrams tanks have not produced the desired results for the time being is the fact that the Ukrainians have not deployed the vehicles correctly. American troops are masters of the so-called combined arms warfarein which tanks and armored vehicles are deployed in a complex interaction with other military assets, such as infantry, artillery and air support.

However, that tactic requires a lot of experience, while Ukrainian recruits received only limited training abroad last year. Another crucial condition is air superiority over the front, something the Ukrainians do not have due to a lack of anti-aircraft defenses and fighter planes. Moreover, the US military leadership would have preferred that the Ukrainian offensive be concentrated at one point with more resources, rather than spread over three more limited axes of attack.