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Miracle weapon against Putin? 200 Ukrainians train in Bavaria on the Abrams tank - he can do that

2023-05-29T12:51:31.696Z

Highlights: U.S. M1 Abrams main battle tanks have been rolling through the Upper Palatinate. US military has begun training Ukrainian forces on the modern tank for use in the Ukraine war in eastern Ukraine. A total of 200 Ukrainian forces are being trained on 31 Abrams tanks for emergencies. The focus will also be on the maintenance and servicing of the tanks so that they can be used effectively by the Ukrainian army. However, it is still unclear when the first combat-ready Abrams will arrive in Ukraine.



U.S. Abrams M1A1 tanks arrive in Grafenwoehr, Bavaria. The training of the Ukrainian armed forces is currently taking place there. © Spc. Adrian Greenwood/dpa

Ukrainian armed forces are learning how to use the U.S. main battle tank in Germany. However, it could still take some time before the Abrams are deployed in Ukraine.

Grafenwoehr/Washington – For a few days now, U.S. M1 Abrams main battle tanks have been rolling through the Upper Palatinate. At the Grafenwoehr military training area, the US military has begun training Ukrainian forces on the modern tank for use in the Ukraine war in eastern Ukraine. A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Defense confirmed on Sunday a previous report by the U.S. military magazine "Stars and Stripes".

A total of 200 Ukrainian forces are being trained on 31 Abrams tanks for emergencies. The focus will also be on the maintenance and servicing of the tanks so that they can be used effectively by the Ukrainian army. The costly maintenance was one of the main reasons why the U.S. government had long resisted a delivery of the Abrams tanks.

Ukraine-News: 31 Abrams tanks in Germany – training for Ukrainians has begun

It was not until the end of January that the U.S. government relented – also at the insistence of the German government – and agreed to the delivery in parallel with Germany's commitment to Leopard tanks for Kyiv. However, US President Joe Biden's administration had stressed that it would take a lot of time to provide the main battle tanks. According to the information, the 31 Abrams tanks in Grafenwoehr are also only so-called "training tanks", which are not suitable for combat use.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin recently reiterated at the Ukraine Contact Group meeting in Ramstein that the U.S. had accelerated deliveries in order to be able to provide Ukraine with more armored equipment in the coming months.

M1 Abrams: State-of-the-art main battle tank with weakness in efficiency

M1 Abrams tanks have been used by the U.S. Army since 1990 and now form the core of the armored forces there. The Abrams is one of the most modern main battle tanks in the world and is considered by experts to be comparable to the German Leopard 2 or the British Challenger 2. The colossus, which weighs up to 70 tons, is powered by a gas turbine that could become a problem for Ukraine.

The tanks consume an extremely large amount of fuel and require regular and extensive maintenance. "Once the Abrams is refueled, it moves at a hellish pace. But its reach isn't very good," Piers Wood, a member of the globalsecurity.org think tank, told NBC News in February. Thus, the operation of the tank is not particularly efficient.

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DesignationM1 Abrams
Crewfour people
Weight61.3 tonnes (base weight)
Main armament120mm smoothbore gun
Drive typeGas turbine
Reach129 kilometers (off-road)

Abrams tanks for Ukraine: Rolling fortress to protect soldiers

However, serviced and refueled, the Abrams shows its strength on the battlefield. The tank is designed in such a way that it should guarantee the greatest possible protection for a crew of four. Among other things, the ammunition is stored separately from the crew so as not to trigger a chain reaction in the event of a direct hit. Some variants also have DU armor made of depleted uranium. However, these are not to be delivered to Ukraine, as they could fall into the hands of Russian troops there.

Military expert Gustav Gressel told Merkur.de of IPPEN last year. MEDIA that Soviet-made tanks would often burn out with the crew after a direct hit. Modern tanks, such as the Abrams, should also help to protect the well-trained Ukrainian forces.

The training of the troops in Grafenwoehr will take several weeks. Then the Ukrainian soldiers should be ready for action. However, it is still unclear when the first combat-ready Abrams tanks will arrive in eastern Ukraine. (FD with dpa)

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2023-05-29

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