Russia resorts to Mad Max vehicles as military losses mount

Zvezda, the Russian Ministry of Defence's official channel, proudly reported the formation of motorcycle assault units. They were created so that "soldiers could move faster across open terrain and conduct surprise attacks on Ukrainian units, particularly on the flat, open fields surrounding the city of Vuhledar."

"Motorcycles are almost standard equipment here," Zvezda announced. This is because "it is very hard to hit such a small and highly manoeuvrable target. Soldiers enter Ukrainian trenches at high speed and can immediately start fighting."

The propagandists failed to explain just one thing – why combat infantry vehicles have almost disappeared from many front sectors. The answer was not good. In just the first two years of the war, the invaders lost about 15,000 combat vehicles. Currently, about 600 tanks and armoured personnel carriers are destroyed each month on the Ukrainian steppes. And that is the whole secret behind the creation of Russian Mad Max units.

In the flood of official propaganda, the truth is that the army has always used motorcycles, but they never served for "entering trenches at high speeds." Even if only for propaganda, someone had to be first. It happened to be the Russians.

All conflicts test designers' assumptions and users' requirements. That’s why armies often devise ad hoc "field modifications." Some, the more successful ones, are later introduced systemically. Such was the case with installing naval artillery systems on MT-LB transporters or anti-drone canopies on tank turrets.

The Russians lacked support vehicles and anti-aircraft gun systems that could shoot down drones over the front, so they armed an armoured personnel carrier. Similarly, the Ukrainians are looking for a solution for mobile anti-aircraft teams, armed pick-up trucks and training airplanes from aero clubs.

However, the Russians started creating vehicles straight out of the Mad Max series because they were running low on transportation means, and those sent to the front were unsuitable for war operations.

In July, Chinese light off-road vehicles Desertcross 1000-3 arrived at the front. In theory, they were to replace off-road vehicles used in the rear, which were then to be sent to the front line. However, there were so few of them that the Russians eventually started sending Chinese vehicles.

Turning a cat into a tiger is hard, and the experiment ended tragically for the Russians – the vehicles were being smashed en masse before they could approach Ukrainian lines, and unprotected crews were dying. Therefore, quite quickly, field workshops started "reinforcing" them. This involved welding steel plates from destroyed vehicles. In the low-budget version, soldiers themselves covered the Chinese vehicles with vests.

- It's such a small machine that many might have seen it or even used it in resorts in Egypt. They are also widely used by tourists in the Carpathians. But the Russians are using them to deploy infantry across fields. This happens at high speeds. Their advantage is that they can cross minefields without blowing up – said Dmytro Lyhowa, a press officer of the Operational Group Tawria, on the program "Jedyny Nowyny."

These are not the only vehicles that the Russians modify. Large numbers of quads and motorcycles, sometimes with sidecars mounted with machine guns, are being sent to units, mainly in Zaporizhzhia.

The Russians have partially provided some protection for their crews—instead of plexiglass shields, steel plates began to appear, behind which the driver could hide. However, this is more psychological protection than actual protection. Artillery or drones were enough to stop this equipment.

This, in turn, forced another modification on the Russians. Anti-drone mesh frames started being mounted on motorcycles. So far, videos from the war have not confirmed the effectiveness of this solution.

The Russians stubbornly claim that equipping assault units with motorcycles is not due to a lack of armoured vehicles but a conscious change in tactics. Evidence of this is the use of motorcyclists near Vuhledar, Orikhiv, and Vovchansk.

"Our drone operators underestimated the enemy's creativity," – wrote the 79th Assault Brigade on their social media profile. The post's mocking tone was evidenced by its continuation: "Each rider was fined for speeding long before the finish line." The post included a video of crashed motorcycles and dead “knights” of Putin.

So, while the Russians put on a brave face, their "motorcycle tactics" are failing. The Ukrainians no longer need to waste expensive guided anti-tank missiles, and cheap drones and butterfly mines are enough to stop charging motorcyclists. Even post-apocalyptic style modifications don’t help.