Ukrainian forces face heavy losses in Kursk as Western gear captured
The Ukrainian offensive in the Kursk region is proving to be costly. American media suggest this is evidenced by the higher rate of armoured vehicle losses among the Ukrainians compared to the defending Russians.
Journalists from "Forbes" have drawn such a conclusion. They cite data from an Oryx analyst, which indicates that in the first nine days of the invasion, Ukrainians lost at least four tanks and over 40 different types of armoured vehicles. The losses include not just older Soviet-era designs but also Western equipment. This resulted from deploying some elite Ukrainian brigades with NATO-supplied equipment to the Kursk region.
Significant Ukrainian losses in the Kursk region
Among the Western vehicles hit by the Russians are primarily American Stryker transporters, used by units such as the 80th Air Assault Brigade.
The Strykers are equipped with a transport compartment that can hold up to nine soldiers. The armament includes a Browning M2 machine gun with a calibre of 12.7 mm with a range of about 2 km and an Mk 19 grenade launcher with a calibre of 40 mm. The Stryker is an 8x8 wheeled vehicle with a 350 HP engine, allowing it to reach speeds of up to 90 km/h.
Western equipment falls into Russian hands
As reported by Łukasz Michalik, a journalist for Wirtualna Polska, the Russians have also captured a Stryker vehicle. Their list of equipment destroyed also includes a Polish PT-91 Twardy tank, which was likely destroyed by a Russian Lancet-3 drone.
The PT-91 Twardy is a deep modernisation of the Soviet T-72. Ukraine received dozens of PT-91 Twardy tanks from Poland and highly valued them, noting they are noticeably better and more durable than their Soviet predecessors. The key improvements are the ERAWA reactive armour and a better engine.
Challenger 2 destroyed in Kursk region?
In the clashes in the Kursk region, the Ukrainians also deployed Marder infantry fighting vehicles received from Germany. On 15 August, Sky News reported that the Ukrainian army was also using Challenger 2 tanks supplied by the United Kingdom in their ongoing offensive. Based on these reports, Russian propagandists posted photos on social media allegedly showing the destruction of such a tank in the Kursk region. However, the photos were so narrowly cropped that they do not constitute incontrovertible proof.
Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, only one Challenger 2 has been confirmed destroyed. This happened in September 2023, marking a significant success for the Russians, as no one had previously managed to eliminate this tank during military operations. The British tank is distinguished primarily by its multi-layered Chobham/Dorchester armour and the rifled L30A1 120 mm gun.
