The Russian main battle tank T-80 has become a real Achilles heel of the Russian army. The Ukrainian Defense Forces are successfully turning them into “steel coffins” for the Russian invaders.
Points of attention
- Russian reliance on the T-80 for lightning attacks in Ukraine backfired, with Ukrainian troops using Javelin anti-tank missiles and unmanned munitions to exploit vulnerabilities and disrupt Russian advances.
- Despite Kremlin's initial expectations for the T-80 to secure quick victories, the tank's failures on the battlefield have led to it being mockingly referred to as a 'steel coffin' by its own operators.
What's wrong with the Russian T-80 tank?
According to the latest data, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have managed to destroy about 1,000 T-80s, often using FPV drones. They successfully attack the vulnerable turrets of these tanks.
This was noted by former US Army officer and military analyst Brent Eastwood, writes 19FortyFive .
The Kremlin was counting on the T-80 to carry out lightning attacks on the Ukrainian front, but things did not turn out as expected.
But the Russians were in for a surprise. Javelin anti-tank missiles and unmanned loitering munitions did their job. In addition, the Russians remained vulnerable on the roads, with long columns of tanks and APCs slowly taking up positions. The Ukrainians simply destroyed tanks, such as the T-80, at the front of the columns and in the rear.
What is important to understand is that the armored assault was supposed to take Kyiv in the first days of the war, but the tank failed to cope with its task.
We cannot ignore the fact that the Russian invaders themselves nicknamed the tank a "steel coffin."
