US will send 50 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine. AFP (Representational Image)
The US will send Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFV) to Ukraine, as part of the new weapons package announced last Thursday (5 January).
The over $3 billion military assistance package will include 50 units of Bradley IFV, 500 anti-tank missiles, 2,50,000 rounds of ammunition for the carriers, 55 mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles (MRAPS), self-propelled howitzers, etc., as per Associated Press (AP).
The development came after Germany and France made similar announcements to strengthen Ukraine’s fight against Russia.
While Germany has pledged to provide Marder infantry fighting vehicles, French president Emmanuel Macron has promised Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy – AMX-10 RC armoured fighting vehicles.
What are Bradley armoured vehicles and how useful it would be for Ukraine in the fight against Russia? How are they different from what France and Germany have committed? We explain.
What is Bradley Fighting Vehicle?
The Bradley is a medium-armoured transport vehicle that can carry troops on the battlefield as well as provide protection from artillery and small-arms fire, says Military.com.
Named after an American general who commanded US troops in World War II, the M-2 Bradley fighting vehicle was developed in the 1960s by BAE Systems.
As per the US Army, these vehicles weigh 80,000 pounds and can move about 38 mph (61 kph), reported Reuters.
Known as the ‘tank killer’, the Bradleys – in service since the 1980s – need a crew of three to operate and can carry an additional six or seven infantry soldiers, depending on the vehicle’s version.
Bradleys have a 25-millimetre Bushmaster chain gun. AP File Photo
Its 25-millimetre Bushmaster chain gun or autocannon is “equipped with both armor-piercing and high-explosive incendiary ammunition”, said a report by Voice of America (VOA).
This smaller gun proved “highly effective” against Soviet-made T-72 tanks during the first Gulf War in 1991, reported The New York Times (NYT).
The Bradleys have a turret-mounted gun as well as a tube-launched, optically tracked, wireless-guided (TOW) missile launcher that can destroy tanks, as per Reuters.
The armoured vehicle, which is tracked rather than wheeled, has an operational range of around 300 miles (483 km approximately) and can travel at just over 40 miles (around 64 km) per hour, says Military.com.
How will the Bradleys help Ukraine in war?
Retired US Army Colonel Liam Collins, the founding director of the US Military Academy’s Modern War Institute, told VOA that the Bradley could help Ukraine “significantly” in the war against Russia.
“It’s a big deal — it’s still arguably the best infantry fighting vehicle in the world — but no single weapon system is going to win or lose the war for Ukraine,” Collins explained.
Laura Cooper, a deputy assistant secretary of defence for Russia and Ukraine, told reporters on Thursday that it was the right time to provide the Bradley to Ukraine.
“The Bradley specifically has formidable anti-armour capabilities that will work against, you know, every kind of armoured capability that Russia has fielded in Ukraine,” she was quoted as saying by Forbes.
The Bradley is not a tank itself but offers many similar capabilities and is also much easier to operate and maintain, Michael Akopian, a researcher in the Washington-based think tank — Defense Program at the Center for a New American Security, told VOA.
“A Bradley could be better than a tank, in a way, because of the maintenance,” Akopian said.
Ukraine has repeatedly asked the West for tanks. America’s M1 Abrams tank is three times the size of a Bradley and also has a more powerful gun and better armour, but it is heavier and uses jet fuel, not diesel.
“We’re dealing with diesel motors on these instead of the really complicated, turbine-like engines that the Abrams tank has. It’s easier to maintain and it’s easier to keep it clean,” Akopian was quoted as saying by VOA.
“The last thing that you want is to have a brand-new Abrams tank that gets stuck somewhere and you can’t move it because you don’t have the logistics infrastructure in place right now,” the researcher further stated.
An American officer who has commanded the Bradleys told NYT that if enough of these carriers are dispatched to Ukraine, it could be a “game changer, maybe more than if they got Abrams”.
“It would provide Ukrainian mechanised infantry with far, far greater firepower than they have now”, the officer added.
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How are France’s and Germany’s armoured vehicles different?
France’s AMX-10 RC is a “wheeled high-mobility armoured reconnaissance vehicle” with a large 105-mm gun, as per a Reuters report.
It can carry up to four fighters to the battlefield.
France’s vehicle is “relatively swift” on hard grounds but has thin armour as compared to the German and US models, reported NYT.
German Marder has tracks and can carry five or six soldiers into battle.
Germany will provide Marder infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine. AP File Photo
It has a 20-mm gun and can be operated by a crew of three. Some Marders have Milan anti-tank weapons, according to the Reuters report.
With inputs from agencies
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