American M1 Abrams shown in service with the Ukrainian 47th Mechanized Brigade, made headlines in late February 2024 because it was the first time Abrams faced the russian army but it lacked a crucial piece of information: how it actually performs. But now we can start to put the pieces together.
Defense Express' Chief Editor and Director Serhii Zghurets asked the question to the warrior of the 47th Brigade, during an interview hosted by Espresso TV channel. Oleh, call sign Azimuth, said that both M1 Abrams tanks and M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles continue to contribute to combat operations in this brigade's area of responsibility, namely the Avdiivka operational axis in eastern Ukraine.
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However, frontal engagements became a less viable option ever since the russian forces occupied the Avdiivka Coke Plant. Having installed anti-tank weapons at high points of this vast industrial facility, russians gained an open all-around field of view of surrounding territories, so Ukrainians had to become more careful in their use of equipment, including American combat vehicles. Particularly, use them from a larger distance than before.
The issue of Abrams' application by Ukrainian forces was also analyzed by a Polish author writing for the Defence24 website, Marcin Gaweda. According to his observations, Ukrainians gather Abrams and Bradley alongside other armored vehicles into "tactical groups" tasked with providing fire support to the infantry, both in defense and counteroffensive. Moreover, Gaweda states that quite often Abrams tanks deploy alone.
Defense Express does not possess evidence that either supports or refutes those claims but they should be noted down for the future.
Update: two months past the publication of this article, Ministry of Defense of Ukraine released the following video, labeled "The archive footage of the combat mission of an American-made M1A1 Abrams tank near Avdiivka," showcasing the tactic of near-artillery indirect fire support.
The archive footage of the combat mission of an American-made M1A1 Abrams tank near Avdiivka.: 47th Mechanized Brigade pic.twitter.com/B1epfj4jIk— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) May 30, 2024
Read more: Two Bradley IFVs Neutralized a russian T-90M Proryv Tank in Combat Near Avdiivka
