Ukrainian forces thwart Russian attempt to capture advanced Stridsvagn 122 tank
Russians captured a Stridsvagn 122 tank. They aimed to evacuate it from the battlefield to territories they control, but instead, they encountered another setback. We'll remind you of the features of the Stridsvagn 122 and outline what the Russians missed out on.
The damage to the Stridsvagn 122 tank is a significant blow to the Ukrainians. It's one of their best tanks, and moreover, they possess few of them. The prospect of transporting the machine to a secure location to thoroughly examine it, and potentially integrate it into their own forces, was highly appealing to the Russians.
As seen in recordings shared on social media, Ukrainians foiled the adversaries' scheme. They utilised drones to disrupt the transport by destroying Russian technical support vehicles.
The Russians wanted to steal Stridsvagn 122
The Stridsvagn 122 represents a valuable asset within the Ukrainian army's arsenal. The Swedish tank enjoys high esteem among both military personnel and experts. Defense analyst Jarosław Wolski once noted on the X platform that these are "the best and most heavily armored tanks at Ukraine's disposal".
The Stridsvagn 122 wasn't developed from scratch but is based on the Leopard 2A5. Nonetheless, the Swedes implemented several critical modifications, enhancing its capabilities beyond the German original. Features include a reinforced roof and hull sides, more robust fuel tanks, an advanced fire control system akin to the Leopard 2A6, and the Tank Command and Control System (TCCS).
Russians lost two BREM vehicles
The Stridsvagn 122's armament includes a 120 mm caliber smoothbore L/44 gun. Additionally, the crew has access to two 7.62 mm caliber machine guns and an 80.5 mm caliber smoke grenade launcher. The tank's engine produces 1500 horsepower, enabling a top speed of around 70 km/h (rounds to 43 mph).
Regarding Russian losses, two armored recovery vehicles from the BREM family were destroyed. Moscow describes these as "armored repair and recovery vehicles", utilized, among other purposes, to retrieve damaged heavy combat vehicles from the frontlines.
They include several variants, in this instance, the models destroyed were likely BREM-1s based on the T-72 chassis. The BREM-2, based on the BMP-1 chassis, is also well-known. At the Armija 2023 exhibition, the Russians showcased the BREM T-16, which uses the Armata platform.
