They are simply called the “turtle tanks”.
The new donnings join the ongoing arms race between Ukraine and Russia, where the fight is to be one step ahead of the other side.
- This has become a robot war, Ukrainian drone operators told VG’s reporting team in Ukraine this week.
Because on the battlefield, small are deadly and cheap kamikaze drones Drones that are designed to self-destruct when attacking a target. The term kamikaze originates from World War II when Japanese fighter pilots attacked targets in suicide attacks. has become vital in Ukraine’s defense war against the military superpower Russia.
And the drones have really changed the rules of the game in modern warfare, because both sides have suffered heavy losses as a result of the drones.
At the same time, both parties desperately try to protect themselves from the flying weapons.
A drone can cost around NOK 5,000, while a modern Russian tank can cost up to NOK 50 million.
The organization Oryx has documented Russian and Ukrainian material losses. In their overview, it appears that Ukraine has lost 5,603 military vehicles and other material, of which 797 tanks.
Russia has lost a total of 15,513 military vehicles, of which 2,936 tanks have been destroyed.
The heavy losses have meant that Putin’s men have begun to roll out a new method to protect their valuable military vehicles:
The last few weeks More and more videos have appeared on social media of Russian tanks wrapped in layers upon layers of metal.
«That makes it much harder to hit.»
Oleksandr, drone builder
This is what the Ukrainian drone builder Oleksandr says in a voice message to VG.
He and his company build large-scale drones that are sent to the front. It’s only been a few weeks since he saw the new Russian donnings for the first time.
– Now they are making more and more of them, so it might give them protection.
In addition, he says that the Russian soldiers use anti-jamming systemsTechnology used to prevent the signals of electronic equipment, such as drones, from being disrupted or blocked. The systems attempt to disrupt the frequencies used by the other party. which will interfere with the signals of the Ukrainian drones.
– This protection may help somewhat, but it also means that the vehicle can hardly be used as a tank, says lieutenant colonel at the War College, Palle Ydstebø.
But he is not impressed.
– The Russians have installed such corrugated tin plates and also netting around tanks and other armored vehicles so that the drones explode so far away from the hood that they do not break through and damage the vehicle, he tells VG.
But at the same time, Ydstebø points out that it goes way beyond how functional the tank will be.
– Such adaptations indicate that the Russians are struggling to find effective solutions to the problems the drones pose to the materiel at the front.
Lieutenant Colonel Joakim Paasiki at the Swedish Armed Forces Academy is not impressed either.
– An extreme example of finding a method to survive, he has previously told VG about the “turtle” wagons.
The Russian state government the media Sputnik, praises the new donnings.
“Russian forces successfully use T-72 tanks equipped with a metal shed on top to protect against drone attacks”.
They refer to it as an innovation, rather than showing a lack of material.
The last few months Ukraine has struggled on the battlefield, increasingly using attack drones because they have lacked artillery shells.
Russia is on the march and is constantly taking new villages. The Ukrainian authorities justify this with the West’s delay in not sending them enough weapons and grenades.
This is how Ydstebø summarizes Ukraine’s status just over two years after Russia attacked Ukraine.
– They have been under pressure on the defensive in recent months and have had great difficulty in resisting the Russian pressure without taking too many losses themselves, mainly because they have lacked artillery and artillery ammunition.
Ydstebø points also on the fact that the Russians have largely managed to bypass Ukrainian air defences, so several power plants and power stations have been damaged or destroyed.
But now the Americans have decided to send more weapons.
– When the American weapons aid arrives, it will ease the pressure, but it is questionable whether it is enough for them to mount a major offensive right away.
Read also: VG at the front in Ukraine
