An M2 Bradley destroys a Russian T-80BV tank using a missile fired from the TOW system. Photo Source: Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.
The only Ukrainian army unit using M2 Bradley armour, the 47th Mechanized Brigade, was in a desperate defensive action against a much larger Russian force attacking west of the ruins of Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine.
On Wednesday evening, an operator of an M2 Bradley IFV spotted a Russian T-80 tank a mile away in a field east of the village of Novopokrovske. The crew of the armored M2 Bradley fired a single TOW anti-tank guided missile, which pierced the armor of the T-80 tank. “Bradley-the tank destroyer”, stated the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense in the description of the video material that captures the fight between the M2 Bradley IFV and the Russian T-80 tank.
It was one of the most impressive confrontations that took place between two armored vehicles, in the context of the war between Russia and Ukraine.
A Forbes article states that this incident did not come as a surprise to supporters of the iconic Bradley IFV, which has been the US military’s main combat vehicle since the 1980s. “Brad… he’s not a tank, but he can be a tank killer”explained Mark Hertling, a retired US Army general who operated an M3, a reconnaissance version of the M2 Bradley, in Operation Desert Storm in 1991.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade was engaged in non-stop combat for a year. This took its toll on the brigade’s M2 battalions. The Oryx Platform OSINT Analyst Group counted 37 Bradleys destroyed and dozens more damaged. While fighting the Russian offensive west of Avdiivka last month, the Ukrainian brigade ran out of many of its M2 tanks. However, this is changing as new Bradley vehicles arrive in Ukraine as part of US military aid.
In a close encounter with a Russian tank, an M2 Bradley might not last long. In a long-range fight, the M2’s precision sighting and TOW missiles could give it an advantage—especially at night, when the Bradley’s optical infrared sighting system helps its crew spot the tank before it tank crew to see the Bradley.
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Tags: Ukrainian military destroyed Russian T80 tank TOW missiles fired Bradley IFV PhotoVideo
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