Leopard, Challenger or Abrams: which tanks are better for Ukraine?
The United States may announce the provision of Abrams M1 tanks to Ukraine as early as this week, and Germany will agree to provide Leopard 2 tanks. This was reported by The Wall Street Journal on January 24, citing a high-ranking American official. The German publication Spiegel also wrote about Germany's positive decision .
Last week, Great Britain announced that it would provide Ukraine with at least 14 British-made Challenger 2 tanks in the near future.
Which tank Ukraine needs most depends on what they want to use it for, writes British military expert Daniel Rendell.
"The design must correspond to the engineering triangle: mobility - firepower - protection. By improving one aspect, you lose others (for example, more armor will mean more weight, which means less mobility, or a big gun will mean either less armor... and less protection, or less mobility (increased armor weight)), - says the expert.
The British Challenger 2 was developed in 1986-1993 "to repel Soviet forces should they invade West Germany."
“Basically, they were consumables,” says Rendell, “intended to protect and destroy as many Warsaw Pact tanks as possible before they were destroyed themselves. Their engineering triangle emphasizes firepower and protection over mobility."
Indeed, the British tank has a speed of 40-59 kilometers per hour, while the Leopard 2 is 70 kilometers per hour. It is believed that the stabilization system, which allows you to shoot accurately while driving over rough terrain, is much better in the German tank.
The Leopard 2 is a much more mobile tank, but at the same time less protected, Randell concludes: “German doctrine during the Cold War was more aimed at counterattack. Do you want a fast tank to counter attack, or a slow tank that can take a hit and defend? It depends on the doctrine. The Challenger 2 was the best tank, as it was more in line with the doctrine of the time (to slow down the Russians as much as possible until enough American forces are deployed to provide a counterattack." It is obvious that the Ukrainian armed forces have other tasks today. The stage of deterring the enemy has been passed.
His colleague Becky Sullivan , the author of the article "What is the Leopard 2 tank and why does Ukraine need it?", published on January 21 on the American media resource GPB (Georgia Public Broadcasting), agrees with the assessment of the British expert.
“The Leopard 2 was originally developed in the 1970s for the West German Army in response to Soviet threats during the Cold War. It is designed to move quickly over a variety of terrain and to withstand enemy armored vehicles," Sullivan wrote.
Both experts agree that the German tank's gun, which has the same 120mm caliber, is the Leopard2's advantage.
"Leopard 2 uses a smoothbore gun that allows effective firing of APFSDS projectiles," Rendell notes. - Want your tank to be good against other tanks, but willing to put up with the fact that it will be worse against targets like reinforcements and light vehicles (which can carry anti-tank missiles)? This is again a matter of military doctrine."
In addition, the Leopard 2 gun is generally similar to the gun of the American M1 Abrams, which opens up wider logistical possibilities for the supply of ammunition and spare parts. The Challenger 2 with its unique equipment is doomed to special logistics adapted to its ammunition.
As for the AbramsM1 , it is significantly more expensive and more complex than the other two options. It takes longer to master. In particular, it is equipped with a gas turbine, not a diesel engine. And although it is able to work on different types of fuel, the logistics of supply and maintenance will be complicated.
"Due to the complex maintenance and high costs that would be required to maintain the Abrams M1, it simply does not make sense to provide it to Ukraine at this time," Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said at a January 19 briefing.
Meanwhile, British expert Rendell made an important remark about the Challenger 2 tanks, which will arrive in Ukraine first.
More than 10,000 Abrams, 3,600 Leopard2 and only 447 Challenger2 have been released in the world: “Given the prevalence of Leopard and Abrams, a potential adversary has spent a lot of time developing ways to destroy them, trying to find their weak points. Enemy doctrine is based on fighting Leopard and Abrams. Challenger may have a decisive advantage here because it is less known and less likely to result in targeted research into how to destroy it."
It is worth adding that all three tanks have a rich history of combat use. Their potential Russian competitor (except for the outdated T-72, etc.) - the T-14 "Armata" has no experience of combat use. And although there have been reports of its possible use in Ukraine, experts agree that Russia will not throw it into battle due to fear of losing export prospects in the event of a defeat. As of the end of 2019, open sources estimated the number of cars produced by Russia at 16 copies with attempts to increase production to 28-44 per year.
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