Why tanks on both sides are being sidelined on Ukraine’s battlefields

Ukraine’s decision to withdraw US tanks from the battlefield because of fears they are being targeted by Russian drones shows how the conflict is changing and both sides have been forced to adapt, say analysts.

Ukraine is reported to have sidelined the US-provided Abrams M1A1 battle tanks for now in its fight against Russia – in part, US military officials say, because drone warfare has made it too difficult for them to operate without detection and attack.

Admiral Christopher Grady, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Associated Press: “When you think about the way the fight has evolved, massed armour in an environment where unmanned aerial systems are ubiquitous can be at risk.”

The US agreed to send 31 Abrams, which cost $10m (£8m) a piece, to Ukraine in January 2023 to help breach Russian lines. Five have been lost to Russian attacks and the rest have been moved from the front line for the moment.

Dr Matthew Ford, associate professor at the Swedish Defence University in Stockholm, said: “Watching US tanks getting destroyed on the battlefields of Ukraine doesn’t sit well politically with congressional leaders in the US.”

He thinks the last thing Congress would want to see is US tanks being destroyed on the battlefield because “it implies they are not fit for purpose.”

Drone warfare is changing the way the conflict in Russia and Ukraine is fought, say analysts (Photo: Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

This means the tanks are obsolete, he adds, rather that they may not be engaged in the correct Combined Arms Manoeuvre to gain ground on the battlefield.

“I think drones have been useful in bringing the war to our smartphones,” he said. “We can see what is going on.”

But he added: “There’s tendency to focus on drones and forget everything else is going on. We can see drones are effective in some circumstances, but not all of them.

“There’s a lot of firepower about on the battlefield and that can be even more effective than drones.”

Dr Ford said it remains unclear which type of weapon was responsible for the destruction of the five tanks but the use of first-person view (FPV) drones, which can be manoeuvred remotely, has changed the battlefield.

“Drones can strike from above and they can try to pinpoint where to attack but they are very vulnerable to electronic warfare systems where the frequency is jammed,” he said. “We are definitely seeing electronic warfare devices strapped to the back of tanks.”

The devices jam the signal so the drone loses contact with its user.

He said there was anecdotal evidence of an increased use of smoke to mask the movement of armoured vehicles, so drone cameras no longer had a clear view. Other changes include the use of “cope cages”, wire mesh that interferes with the movement of a drone above an armoured vehicle, and “turtle tanks”, which are also used to protect vehicles.

Keir Giles, expert in Russian military affairs at Chatham House think-tank and author of Who Will Defend Europe?, said: “The biggest impact of ubiquitous drones in Russia and Ukraine is the fact you can’t move unobserved.

“That’s why Russians are adapting to new battlefield involvement in the form of ‘shed tanks’. They look ridiculous but are a response to the need for protection against attack drones.”

The “shed tanks”, or turtle tanks, are experimental vehicles deployed by the Russian military with a makeshift steel structure over them like a shed or turtle’s shell.

It was reported to have been observed in use near Krasnohorivka in eastern Ukraine in April.

He said both sides were “swamping the battlefields with drones” and continually making technological advances. However, he added that the report that the US-supplied tanks were being taken out of use in Ukraine “shouldn’t be tied significantly to their being visible to Russia drones”.

“Ukraine temporarily stopping use of US armoured tanks is a phase in the conflict,” he said. “They are not the most useful at the moment. They will reappear in the future.

“At the moment, Russia is conducting a major offensive operation. Russia stepped up offensive after the aid bill passed. They need to make gains now.”

He believes Russia’s aim is to do this before the aid takes effect on the front line, while Ukraine is focusing on trying to prevent that.

But he noted that “countries around the world are observing Russia and Ukraine tactics constantly because this is a testbed for new technology”.

“Many previous assumptions about how 21st-century warfare would be fought is being tested,” he said.

He said both the US and British military were learning lessons and changing their training, which in turn will change future conflict.

Dr Rod Thornton, lecturer at King’s College defence department, said: “The use of drones on the battlefield is causing concern in Nato circles. Very small, cheap Russian drones can spot Ukrainian tanks and drop some form of ordnance on them. By dropping even a very small bomblet on the engine ‘louvres’ (like a radiator grill), which are a weak point on the top of any tank behind the turret, then the tank can be immobilised.

“Troops are also subject to attacks by drones because the small ones are very quiet and can surprise exposed troops or in trench lines. Both sides are adapting by just getting more and more small off-the-shelf drones for both reconnaissance and as weapons.

“The Abrams is not obsolete. It just needs to have better protection than the ill-trained and ill-equipped Ukrainian forces can supply.

“Overall, the Ukrainian forces need to learn better how to engage in modern warfare. They also need to right equipment. But Nato does not really want to supply its top-end stuff in case it is captured by the Russians.

“Future battlefields will try and use more drones but will also see more electronic warfare systems designed to combat them – as well as the drones being fitted with their own anti-jamming equipment.”