- A Ukrainian tank crew was filmed lauding the Abrams tank as straightforward to drive and function.
- One gunner mentioned he realized to make use of the tank’s weapons in every week, whereas one other mentioned the tank drove “like a scooter.”
- The report comes as Ukrainian state-backed outlet Military TV pushed again on an evaluation that Kyiv withdrew its Abrams.
A Ukrainian tank gunner and driver had been filmed heaping reward on US-supplied Abrams tanks in a state-backed media report, boasting that they have been straightforward to be taught to function.
“The primary time I noticed what was inside after the T-64, I assumed it might take a month to get the hold of it,” mentioned the gunner, recognized as Koka of Ukraine’s forty seventh Separate Mechanized Brigade, in a video uploaded on Tuesday by Military TV.
“But it surely’s actually very quick. You possibly can grasp it in every week,” Koka mentioned.
Contained in the Abrams M1A1 utilized by his crew, Koka gave the cameras a tour of the inner techniques. “There’s nothing so difficult right here,” he advised Military TV.
The navy information outlet is run by Ukraine’s Ministry of Protection. The report comes after Pentagon officers advised the Related Press that Kyiv had withdrawn its Abrams tanks from the entrance traces over issues they had been susceptible to drones.
Military TV pushed again on the evaluation, writing in a caption that “regardless of rumors, nobody took these automobiles away from the entrance line.”
In contrast to most of Military TV’s YouTube movies, the report was notably titled and captioned in English, and never Ukrainian.
The video featured crew members from the forty seventh lauding the Abrams tank and alleging that the heavy-duty armor continues to be current on the entrance traces.
The Pentagon’s press workplace didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark despatched outdoors common enterprise hours by Enterprise Insider.
Tank driver Alexey mentioned the Abrams’ pedals and management equipment made it “like a scooter.”
“Is it straightforward to drive like a scooter?” Military TV’s reporter Yevhen Nazarenko requested.
“Sure,” mentioned Alexey, smiling.
Clips confirmed the crew members driving Nazarenko round within the Abrams, nevertheless it’s unclear when or the place the video was shot.
Alexey and Koka’s commander, Dmytro, advised Military TV that the Abrams’ armor was efficient in opposition to Russian anti-tank missiles just like the Kornet.
However they wished for dynamic plating to guard its flanks and turret, with Alexey saying the turret may very well be breached.
“It’s mentioned that it’s the strongest,” he mentioned of the turret’s armor. “That the ‘Hand of Zeus’ is not going to pierce it, however it isn’t so. Sadly, it isn’t so.”
Ukraine was promised 31 Abrams tanks by the US in January 2023, with the primary batch arriving in September after crews educated for months in Germany to function them. US support to Kyiv later stalled as a consequence of political resistance on Capitol Hill from Republican lawmakers, till a $61 billion support package deal was voted by way of final month.
Weapons, ammunition, and navy {hardware} from US stockpiles are anticipated to make up no less than $25 billion of the funding.
The Abrams has defeated Soviet armor earlier than, however a number of deployed in Ukraine have suffered setbacks. At the very least 5 of the tanks had been misplaced in fight, and one other three had been broken, The New York Occasions reported.
In late April, the Russian navy displayed an deserted Abrams M1A1 at an exhibition referred to as the “Trophies of the Russian Military,” which showcased NATO gear seized in the course of the warfare.
