Javelin vs. T‑72B3: Advanced weaponry reshapes Ukraine war

The war in Ukraine has become a symbol of the triumph of advanced Western weaponry over post-Soviet solutions. A perfect example is the destruction of modern Russian armoured equipment using the FGM-148 Javelin launcher. We present the behind-the-scenes account of the clash between the American launcher and the T-72B3 tank.

In the video below, you can see soldiers from the Kara-Dag Brigade using the FGM-148 Javelin launcher to eliminate one of the more dangerous Russian tanks, the T-72B3, which is equipped with a fire control system with thermal imaging.

Pay attention to the clearly visible missile drift, followed by its diving flight and hit on the upper turret armour, likely from the cage. After the hit, the propellant charges in the carousel ammunition magazine ignited (intense white smoke) in only a few seconds.

The FGM-148 Javelin is a "fire and forget" anti-tank system developed in the 1990s. It represents a generational leap over older systems like the TOW-2B or RBS-56B BILL 2, which require guiding the launched missile until it hits the target. Such an operation endangers the launcher crew, as the tank has about 10 seconds to respond. Some self-defence systems detect where the missile was launched, allowing the tank crew to fire back with high-explosive fragmentation rounds.

However, with the Javelin, this is not a problem because the crew can hide immediately after firing. This operation is possible due to a guidance head equipped with a fourth-generation infrared sensor that sees the thermal image of the target (so-called IIR). The missile searches for a target with a thermal signature similar to the one recorded by the sighting module before launch.

Upon detecting the proper target, the missile engages in a diving flight, attacking the tank's weakest upper armour. It is important to note that the famous cages on turrets, while effective against FPV drones with a single cumulative head, are helpless against the Javelin. It features a dual-head design, with a precursor (smaller cumulative head) creating a hole in obstacles for the main head capable of penetrating the equivalent of over 700 millimetres of steel armour.

Passive protection is futile against such force, and only active defence systems can deal with it by detonating the incoming missile away from the tank. Another defence method is the maximum reduction of the tank's thermal signature relative to its surroundings. The Russians have developed specific methods, such as fighting only at dawn or some tanks like the T-80BW with a thermal signature, causing Javelin hits to strike the cannon's muzzle or the engine. The crew could survive the attack, while such a hit required significant repairs.

It is worth noting, however, that this flaw has likely been corrected in the software of newer missiles, which also feature more sensitive thermal imaging heads. Meanwhile, Ukraine received mainly older versions of the Javelins, which had a range limited to 2.5 kilometres, not 5 kilometres as in newer versions (of which fewer were delivered). Nevertheless, even these so-called relics proved effective in eliminating Russian armoured weaponry.