Last week, several Russian first-person view (FPV) drones struck a U.S.-made M1A1 Abrams tank in the Kursk region, but the crew was able to survive. T

Ukrainian M1 Abrams Commander Talks Tank’s Major Vulnerabilities, Advantages In Combat

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2024-12-22 10:00:04

Last week, several Russian first-person view (FPV) drones struck a U.S.-made M1A1 Abrams tank in the Kursk region, but the crew was able to survive. The vehicle’s commander lauded the American armor for saving their lives, but also highlighted some major vulnerabilities it has on today’s drone-drenched battlefield. In particular he offered important insights on how Ukraine is adapting its M1s to survive — lessons that could prove very valuable for the U.S. Army in future conflicts.

The drone attack was “the first time that the crew survived multiple hits while inside a disabled Abrams,” the tank commander told Rob Lee (@RALee85), a senior fellow with the Foreign Policy Research Institute, and Michael Kofman (@KofmanMichael), a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment. “Actually, there were 4-6 direct hits. The crew survived, and even without injuries. God bless America.”

A video of that attack, by an FPV drone with a fiber optic cable, was posted on Russian telegram channels. It showed the Abrams rumbling down a snow-dusted roadway and then cut to it being struck by an FPV drone, which disabled the tank. The video then shows another FPV drone strike on the left side side just below the turret. All the strikes came within about two minutes, the commander, who is with the 47th Separate Mechanized Brigade, told Lee and Kofman.