File image
The Russian military has destroyed yet another American-made M1A1 SA Abrams main battle tank of Kiev forces while advancing to the northwest of the city of Avdeevka in the Donetsk direction.
Video footage posted to social networks on July 25 showed the tank, which was already disabled, being targeted with a Krasnopol guided artillery shell close to the settlement of Volchye. The tank received a direct top hit.
Ukraine received 31 Abrams from the United States over the past year. Russian media sources claim that more than a third of the tanks have already been destroyed or damaged. All the losses were near Avdeevka.
The total cost of the Abrams can vary, and can be over $10 million per a single tank when including training and sustainment.
Krasnopol shells were used to target several Abrams tanks. The laser-guided shell hits its target from top, the weakest point in the armor of any main battle tank. It is armed with a high-explosive warhead that weights between 6.50 and 11 kilograms, depending on the version. A laser designator, which can be carried by infantry, mounted on ground vehicles or installed on aerial drones, is used to illuminate targets for Krasnopol shells.
Ukraine withdrew all Abrams tanks from the front earlier this year as the result of the excessive use of drones by the Russian military, which made it too difficult for the tanks to operate without detection or coming under attack, according to The Associated Press. However, the rapid advance of the Russian military near Avdeevka forced Kiev forces to redeploy the tanks.
A recent report by CNN acknowledged that the tank performed poorly in Ukraine and revealed that Kiev forces have been struggling just to keep their remaining Abrams operational.
The failure of the Abrams in Ukraine was not surprising as the tank suffered serious losses in Iraq and Yemen before. Yet, it was without a doubt embarrassing for both the U.S. and the Kiev regime.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence
NOW hosted at southfront.press
Previously, SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence was at southfront.org.
The .org domain name had been blocked by the US (NATO) (https://southfront.press/southfront-org-blocked-by-u-s-controlled-global-internet-supervisor/) globally, outlawed and without any explanation
Back before that, from 2013 to 2015, SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence was at southfront.com
