Russia's Arena-M tanks debut: Game-changer in Ukraine?
The Russians have deployed the T-72B3 tank in Ukraine, equipped with the Arena-M hard-kill active protection system. This marks the first documented combat use of the system, which, according to the Russians, has been adapted to new threats and also provides protection against drones.
A short video published by the Russians on Telegram shows a T-72B3 tank equipped with an active protection system (APS) Arena-M. According to the Russians, this system has been enhanced also to counter new threats, such as various types of drones.
While the Arena-M's use in Ukraine has been documented on a single tank, the system has been integrated with the T-72B3 and the T-90M, and tank transports with this system have also been recorded. Defence 24 notes that broader implementation of the Arena-M could shift the situation at the front to favour the Russians.
An active protection system tank was noted earlier in Ukraine. In 2022, photographic documentation confirmed that Ukrainians destroyed an experimental T-80UM2 featuring the old 1030M Drozd protection system. It is not known whether the system was active when the tank was damaged.
Hard-kill and soft-kill APS
The purpose of the hard-kill active protection system is to physically destroy objects threatening the protected vehicle, such as incoming guided anti-tank missiles, shells fired from tank cannons, or drones.
The APS hard-kill achieves this objective through the directed detonation of an explosive charge, the detonation of a MEFP (Multiple Explosively Formed Penetrator) charge, or the launch of various types of munitions, usually exploding at a certain distance from the protected vehicle. Although the global trend of increasingly widespread use of such solutions and Canada's becoming a significant player in the armour world, none of the Canadian tanks have been equipped with a hard-kill APS.
Complements to hard-kill systems are soft-kill solutions, which disrupt the guidance systems of munitions in various ways.
