Ukrainian tanks get reactive transformation to combat drones
Ukrainians have received many Leopard 1A5 tanks, which undergo a complete transformation before being deployed to the front. They extensively use reactive armour blocks, making the Leopard 1A5 tanks unrecognizable. We explain the reasons for this approach and what it provides.
Ukrainian soldiers from the 5th Armoured Brigade have significantly improved the armour of their Leopard 1A5 tanks before heading to the front line due to threats such as FPV drones or Lancet-3.
The basic armour of the Leopard 1A5 tanks is only a few centimetres of steel supported in some places by Lexan panels, a form of polycarbonate. This might be sufficient to defend only against artillery fragments and fire from automatic cannons up to 30 millimetres from a greater distance.
In turn, defence against even simple PG-7VL warheads from RPG-7 launchers, capable of penetrating 500 millimetres of steel armour, is nonexistent. This presents a major problem, as these warheads are most commonly used on FPV drones.
Reactive armour on Leopard 1A5 tanks - a dangerous but effective solution
In one of the photos, a Leopard 1A5 tank is covered with a mixture of reactive armour blocks. These include Kontakt-1 blocks and the Ukrainian "Knife" used on modernized T-64 tanks.
The reason for their use by the Ukrainians was protection against FPV drones, as the single-warhead solutions they carry are very sensitive to this type of shield. The situation is different with kinetic penetrators, which are much less susceptible to reactive armour.
Reactive armour blocks are cassettes filled with explosive material that detonates upon impact with a shaped charge jet. This explosion disperses the jet through a hail of fragments, nullifying its penetration capabilities. However, the armour on which the blocks are mounted must withstand their explosion to function correctly.
If it is too thin, metal fragments will form on the inner side of the armour, which will literally tear everything inside because the block will act on the armour like a deformable HESH warhead. Therefore, tank blocks cannot be used on vehicles from the BMP family or lighter ones, like even the UAZ Buchanka, without dedicated solutions. It's worth noting, however, that Leopard 1's armour is close to the safety threshold for Kontakt-1 blocks, but crews seem to accept the risk.
