Take that!
Heart-pounding new drone footage shows the moment Ukrainian forces at the wheel of a US-built Bradley fighting vehicle blast a high-tech Russian tank to smithereens.
Video released by Kyiv’s 47th Mechanized Brigade shows the US-supplied vehicle hammering a Russian T-90 armored tank at close range in the town of Stepove in Donetsk — with the salvo disabling the target, according to a report from the UK’s Telegraph newspaper on Thursday.
After the Bradley’s guns disabled the tank, an armed drone moved in for the kill, the report said.
The crew of the heavy-duty Russian tank survived the initial barrage, but two were killed after fleeing the wreckage and a third was captured, the outlet reported.
“That T-90M took 20-plus [25] mm rounds to its frontal armor, and an [first-person view drone] and the entire crew survived,” Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, told the Telegraph.
Drone footage shows a Russian T-90 tank coming under fire by a US-built Bradley fighting vehicle in Ukraine. OSINTtechnical via X
The Russian T-90 tank is hit several times as it attempts to maneuver away. OSINTtechnical via X
The Russian tank is disabled and a military drone moves in to finish it off. OSINTtechnical via X“An [infantry fighting vehicle] or [armored personnel carrier] would not have been as lucky,” Lee added.
The T-90, one of Russia’s most effective tanks, has struggled during the Ukraine war, with at least 27 of the armored vehicles knocked out of action or captured to date.
That’s largely because the Kremlin has favored military vehicles with more ammunition and maneuverability — and less protective armor, said Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a former British Army tank commander.
“It shows just how vulnerable Russian tanks are, because protection comes a distant third to firepower and mobility,” de Bretton-Gordon told the Telegraph.
Ukrainian forces operate a US-supplied Bradley fighting vehicle on a patrol during the Ukraine-Russia war. Anadolu via Getty Images
The Russian T-90 tank is left a charred wreck. The crew initially survived, but two were killed and a third was captured. REUTERS“They might be getting enough tanks back on track, but they just can’t come up with the trained crews, which is proving a real problem for Russia,” he added.
In all, Russia has lost 6,147 tanks since the start of the war, according to Ukrainian authorities.
The US has sent 190 Bradley fighting vehicles to Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February 2022, and they have won rave reviews from Kyiv’s forces in the field.
“It scares them,” Ukrainian Serhiy Gavryliuk told CBS News’ “60 Minutes” in September. “When we hear their radio and they hear that Bradley coming, they start to run away.”
On Monday, CNN reported that the US-supplied vehicles had helped Ukrainian forces hold off Russian attacks near the town of Avdiivka, also in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region.
“I doubt that we’d be talking with you doing this interview if we didn’t have the Bradleys,” a Ukrainian crew member said. “Most likely, the northern flank would’ve been already lost without the Bradleys.”
Additional US aid to Ukraine is stalled while DC lawmakers negotiate a supplemental spending package, which the Biden administration wants to include $61.4 billion in new assistance for Kyiv.
Additional reporting by Caitlin Doornbos and Samuel Chamberlain
