Equipment boost: Ukraine bolstered by German armoured delivery
Ukraine received a significant shipment of equipment from Germany, which featured a substantial amount of armoured gear. This included 22 Leopard 1A5 tanks, 22 MRAP vehicles from FFG, 5 Bv206 vehicles, 3 Biber bridge tanks, and 6 WiSENT 1 MC demining tanks. These vehicles provide essential support for Ukraine.
A large transport of armoured equipment has reached Ukraine. Here’s what it included.
Leopard 1A5 tanks - an oldie but still useful
Although Leopard 1 tanks are contemporaries of the T-62 tanks being mocked by the Russians, they surprisingly make a lot of sense. Notably, Ukraine is receiving the Leopard 1A5 version, representing the final evolution of this machine from the 1990s.
This variant is equipped with the EMES-18 fire control system with thermal imaging, borrowed from early versions of the Leopard 2. This allows it to detect and engage Russian machines from the late USSR era without such advanced fire control systems. Ukrainians have mentioned in several interviews that they can fire this Leopard even at a range of 2.5 miles.
Combined with the 105-mm calibre gun, for which modern ammunition is still being developed, the Leopard 1A5 remains a useful weapon. Due to its minimal armour, which is only resistant to artillery shell fragments or fire from automatic cannons, Leopard 1 tanks serve exclusively as support machines. A very popular use is employing the tanks as artillery, corrected by drones, firing high-explosive fragmentation shells up to a distance of 6 miles.
Some Ukrainian crews cover these tanks with reactive armour blocks that can protect FPV drones with PG-7VL grenades.
BATT UMG vehicles from FFG - better than a pick-up
Ukraine received a large number of MRAP vehicles, including from the U.S., which are specialized constructions designed for use in expeditionary missions where the main threats are mines, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and ambushes with handheld firearms and anti-tank weapons like RPG-7 launchers after adding bar armour.
These vehicles were designed as economical substitutes for infantry fighting vehicles or armoured personnel carriers for stabilization missions. Most are based on civilian chassis, adapted to resist explosive charges and attacks with handheld anti-tank weapons.
The BATT UMG vehicle from Flensburger Fahrzeugbau GmbH (FFG) is a 10-tonne construction based on the chassis of the Ford F-550 with 4x4 drive. Depending on the version, it can carry six or eight soldiers, not including the driver and commander.
According to STANAG 4569, its armour is supposed to provide ballistic protection up to level 2 and mine protection up to level 2a/2b. This means, for example, it should withstand fire from a Kalashnikov loaded with armour-piercing ammunition or fragments from a 155-mm shell from 87 yards away. Although it does not reach the level of a transporter such as the KTO Rosomak or an IFV like the Marder 1A3 or the M2A2 Bradley, it is better to move in such an MRAP than in a pick-up.
Specialist vehicles – crucial for advanced operations
The last category consists of specialist vehicles designed for use in specific conditions. For example, the Biber bridge tanks on the Leopard 1 chassis can deploy a 72-foot bridge within minutes, and the Bv206 vehicles are articulated tracked constructions that allow for movement in the notorious Ukrainian mud, which has already stalled many tanks.
Meanwhile, the WiSENT 1 MC vehicles, resembling a mechanical spider, are 45-tonne heavily armoured vehicles (level 5 of the STANAG 4569 standard) equipped with advanced mine-clearing systems capable of detonating not only simple pressure mines like the TM-62 but also more advanced mines that react to disturbances in electric or magnetic fields.
