Russia has suffered another military embarrassment after Ukrainian forces reportedly destroyed its most advanced tank — days after it was deployed.
Illia Ponomarenko, The Kyiv Independent’s defense reporter, tweeted an image on Wednesday of himself standing before what he identified as the smoldering wreck of one of the T-90M tanks.
“I mean, who could guess that the first Russian T-90M would be hunted down within days after their much-advertised deployment to Ukraine’s Kharkiv Oblast,” he wrote.
Ukrainian forces for the first time reportedly destroyed Russia’s most advanced tank, the T-90M. Twitter / @IAPonomarenkoUkraine’s Defense Ministry tweeted a cropped version of the photo Thursday and boasted of having “turned the T-90M into scrap metal.”
The main battle vehicle is part of to Russia’s T-90 series, successor to the venerable T-72, according to The Drive.
Rising smoke after a possible shelling of the Azovstal complex, in Mariupol, Ukraine. Ministry of Internal Affairs Donetsk People's Republic/Handout via REUTERS
A dog walks along a street in the town of Bucha, outside Kyiv, Ukraine, April 4, 2022. REUTERS/Marko Djurica/File Photo
A possible shelling of the Azovstal complex, in Mariupol, Ukraine. Ministry of Internal Affairs Donetsk People's Republic/Handout via REUTERSThe tank, which features an advanced 125mm gun in a modernized turret, is encased with advanced armor protection and countermeasures systems.
The explosive-reactive armor is designed to protect against shaped charges and minimizes the impact of armor-piercing munitions, according to The Drive.
Only about 100 of the tanks are estimated to be in service.
A T-90M Proryv tank is seen in Tverskaya Street as military hardware heads to Red Square for a rehearsal for the forthcoming May 9 Victory Day Parade. © Valery Sharifulin/TASS via ZUMA Press
A statement on Ukraine’s Defense Ministry website confirmed that the tank had been struck. © Sergei Bobylev/TASS via ZUMA Press
The tank is encased with advanced armor protection and countermeasures systems. © Sergei Bobylev/TASS via ZUMA Press‘Jack in the box’
Experts have noted that older Russian tanks — including the T-72 and T-80 now in use in the invasion of Ukraine — are plagued by a “jack-in-the-box” design flaw that puts them at risk of losing their tops in an attack due to the storage of ammunition directly below their turrets.
Western militaries have been aware of the defect for decades. And photos have emerged from battlefields in Ukraine showing destroyed Russian tanks with their turrets blown off.
Many of the tanks fielded by the Russian army keep large stores of ammunition. AP Photo/Alexei Alexandrov
A destroyed Russian tank’s turret is seen stuck in the ground in Zalissia, Kyiv region, Ukraine, May 3, 2022 REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra
Experts have previously noted that older Russian tanks are plagued by the so-called “jack-in-the-box” effect. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra“What we are witnessing with Russian tanks is a design flaw,” Sam Bendett, an adviser with the defense research group Center for Naval Analyses, told CNN.
“Any successful hit . . . quickly ignites the ammo causing a massive explosion, and the turret is literally blown off,” he said.
The destruction of the T-90M comes as Russia’s military has faced fierce resistance and steep losses since its invasion began in February — including the deaths of top generals and last month’s sinking of its Black Sea Fleet flagship, the cruiser Moskva.
