Bradley armored gunner said facing the T-90M tank was "very scary", but his gaming experience helped this soldier take down Russia's most modern tank model.
"It was a very scary battle, but I think we did well," Serhiy, commander and gunner of Ukraine's M2 Bradley armored vehicle, said on January 20 about a recent confrontation with Russia's most modern T-90M main battle tank in the village of Stepovoye, near the city of Avdeevka in Donetsk province.
In a video released by the Ukrainian military on January 13, Serhiy’s armored vehicle and a fellow Bradley fighting vehicle coordinated their operations, continuously firing 25mm cannon shells at the Russian T-90M tank, causing it to lose its combat capability and crash into a tree. The most modern tank in Russian service was then destroyed by a suicide drone (UAV).
Ukrainian M2 Bradley armored vehicles fire at Russian T-90M tanks near Avdeevka in video released on January 18 and January 13. Video: Ukrainian Ministry of Defense
Serhiy said he returned to his country in December 2023, after training with Bradley armored vehicles in Germany. Serhiy and his driver Oleksandr were assigned by the Ukrainian 47th Mechanized Brigade to protect soldiers in trenches under attack by Russian tanks.
The engagement with Russia's most modern T-90M tank was Serhiy's second time on duty. The soldier admitted that driving a Bradley equipped with a 25mm cannon against a T-90M with thick armor and a 125mm cannon was "very risky" and not part of the training curriculum.
As the battle broke out, another Bradley arrived first and engaged the T-90 but could not find a viable way to suppress it, so Serhiy decided to "pull up all his courage" and command his own tank to charge.
“We fired with everything we could,” the Ukrainian soldier said, adding that he used 25mm armor-piercing rounds from the Bushmaster M242 gun mounted on the vehicle. However, Serhiy noted that these rounds were “ineffective,” but did not elaborate. It appears that the Bradley armor-piercing rounds were not powerful enough to penetrate the T-90’s armor.
Ukrainian soldier Serhiy next to an M2 Bradley armored vehicle near Avdeevka, Donetsk province on January 20. Photo: TCH
The T-90 has the thickest armor at the front, but is thinner at the rear, and has several other weak points, such as the joint between the turret and the hull. The tank is also equipped with modern sensors on the turret for the commander and gunner to observe and aim. Destroying these systems can completely disable the T-90.
Serhiy decided to switch to a different type of ammunition and aimed at the Russian tank's optical system. "Since we couldn't penetrate the armor, we 'blinded' the tank," Serhiy said. After a barrage of bullets from the Bradley armored vehicle, the Russian T-90M lost control and crashed into a nearby tree.
Features of Bradley armored vehicles transferred to Ukraine by the US. Click on the image to see details
The M2 Bradley was developed by the US in the 1960s with the aim of creating an armored vehicle fast enough to keep up with the M1 Abrams main battle tank. The US Army began deploying the M2 Bradley in 1981 and has been using it ever since.
The US has pledged to provide nearly 190 M2 tanks to Ukraine. According to Oryx, Ukraine has lost at least 65 M2 tanks, of which 30 were destroyed, 23 were damaged, 11 were abandoned, and one was captured by Russian forces.
Nguyen Tien (According to Drive, Reuters, AFP )
Source link
Comment (0)