The war in Ukriane just gets deadlier with each passing day.
How will it end?
Who will win? We know one thing: social media can give us vital clues:
Video footage shared online back in September of last year shows Ukrainian forces destroying a Russian tank using their own T-64BV tank at what could be a record distance.
The footage, recorded by a rotary-blade UAV, shows a Russian tank in flames and completely destroyed, allegedly struck by Ukrainian weapons from an incredible 10,600 meters, or 34,776 feet.
19FortyFive, of course, cannot confirm the accuracy of such a claim.
Military experts we did speak with explained it was a tough shot to make – but possible
The footage was shared on Telegram and Twitter and went viral when posted by the popular English-language Ukraine war tracking account, Ukraine Weapons Tracker.
“What is possibly the longest tank-to-tank kill ever – a Ukrainian T-64BV tank crew reportedly managed to destroy a Russian tank from a distance of 10600 meters in indirect fire mode using 125mm HE-FRAG projectiles. As claimed, it took 20 projectiles to finish the tank,” the account notes.
How Is It Possible?
The idea that a tank can destroy another tank at such a great distance and with such precision might sound farfetched, but an explanation offered by Ukraine Weapons Tracker reveals that Ukrainian forces are using software to improve direct fire.
According to the account, Ukrainian tank crews use specially designed software that calculates the angle and azimuth – an angular measurement within a spherical coordinate system – to increase the precision of howitzer-launched rockets.
In this instance, a drone reportedly helped correct the path of the rockets in conjunction with the use of the software.
Russia Loses Over 60 Military Vehicles In One Day in Ukraine
Ukraine’s forces are becoming increasingly capable of taking out Russian tanks, culminating in the loss of over 60 Russian tanks and armored vehicles sometimes in just one day at times.
In a post from the Ukrainian armed forces on Facebook dated from September of last year, details of losses of 25 Russian tanks and 37 armored vehicles in a single day were revealed.
Russia’s continued loss of military vehicles and tanks has left its military short on both its more modern tanks as well as its remaining stock of Soviet-era vehicles.
The Losses Continue
The shortage has become so problematic for the Russian military, as well as Russia’s inability to quickly manufacture newer and more advanced tanks, that the Kremlin was reportedly mulling restarting production of older tanks and military vehicles to make up for the shortage.
Those vehicles, however, will be just as susceptible to Ukraine’s strikes unless Russia can fit the older-style tanks with more advanced explosive reactive armor.
#Ukraine: What is possibly the longest tank-to-tank kill ever – a Ukrainian T-64BV tank crew reportedly managed to destroy a Russian tank from a distance of 10600 meters in indirect fire mode using 125mm HE-FRAG projectiles. As claimed, it took 20 projectiles to finish the tank. pic.twitter.com/Rv05uTJroC
— ?? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) August 31, 2022
Jack Buckby is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society.