U.S. Considers Sending Bradley Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine – Bloomberg reported on Friday that the White House is considering sending Bradley Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine as part of a new military aid package.
Sources familiar with the discussions said that the negotiations are still ongoing, and a final decision has not yet been made
The prospect of sending the vehicles was not ruled out by a spokesperson for the National Security Council, however, who said that U.S. defense officials “are in constant communication with the Ukrainians as we work to provide them with the capabilities they need to defend themselves.”
What Is the Bradley Fighting Vehicle?
The Bradley Fighting Vehicle is an American-tracked armored infantry fighting vehicle platform that has been in service with the United States Army since 1981.
The vehicle has a range of around 300 miles and can be equipped with most medium and long-range rocket launchers.
Primarily, the vehicle is designed to take out other vehicles on the battlefield and is capable of destroying main battle tanks – even those equipped with modern armor.
The vehicle can carry a crew of three, with 7 infantry dismounts, and is also equipped with advanced sighting and positioning software.
Retired Four Star U.S. Army General Barry McCaffrey responded to news of the possible delivery of Bradley Fighting Vehicles by suggesting that they could help bring the war to an end.
“IMPORTANT. Bradley Fighting Vehicle is the kind of technology edge can can [sic] help Ukraine bring this war to a close,” McCaffrey wrote. “Also need to add M1 Abrams tank. ATACMS 300 km missiles. Armed Reaper drones. Backed up by contractor maintenance in Poland and Rumania.”
Mark Cancian, a former White house defense budget analysts, was similarly optimistic about the rumored proposal.
Speaking to The Hill, Cancian said that the vehicles would “provide a major increase in ground combat capability.”
A Twitter post from the U.S. Army Fort Benning account in July showed video footage of the vehicles in action. The post described the Bradley Fighting Vehicle as a “lightly armored, fully tracked transport vehicle that provides cross-country mobility, mounted firepower and protection from artillery and small-arms fire.”
The vehicle is largely used by U.S. forces in mechanized infantry and armored cavalry combat.
The delivery of Bradley Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine would fulfill a request made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for western countries to supply more heavy armored vehicles, including main battle tanks, to Ukraine.
If the proposal goes ahead, however, it could take months before Ukrainian troops are fully trained on how to operate the vehicles.
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Jack Buckby is 19FortyFive’s Breaking News Editor.
Steve
December 30, 2022 at 8:07 pm
Bradleys did quite well during the Gulf War, reportedly destroying more Iraqi armor than the M1 Abrams tanks did, with far more lost to friendly fire than the Iraqis. Highly-motivated Ukrainians might produce similar results against degraded Russian forces. Should have been done long ago, get it done.
Jacksonian Libertarian
December 30, 2022 at 8:32 pm
This is a 40 year old system armed with outdated TOW missiles, and dumb weapons. Giving them to Ukraine would leave room for the military to update its weapons to modern smart weapons. Troops heading into combat are highly focused and disciplined, accelerated training (1 week) and reference manuals they can read during down times, is all that is necessary before putting them in combat.
Every Western military should be using this opportunity to empty its inventories of old Industrial Age weapons, to be refilled with the newest models of Information Age smart weapons. Any Western Military that a few years from now, is still saddled with decades old weapon systems, is incompetently led for missing this “Target of Opportunity”.
LJG
December 31, 2022 at 12:13 pm
The Bradley needs to be replaced, so sending refurbished ones to Ukraine is a great idea. They did well in combat and they would be useful.