In an interview with PAP, Ratka was asked how much the war in Ukraine had changed his approach to deployment. Tanks On the battlefield, many experts and analysts in recent years have declared the end of an era for this equipment.
— The end of the era of tanks is a myth, and it is also a myth to say that these weapons are obsolete.. In fact, this type of weapon is very universal on the battlefield because it combines well the features of firepower, mobility and above all, survivability on the battlefield, he said.
The expert assessed that it was “simply stupid” to think of an army without tanks. “All militaries in the world are investing in armored weapons,” he noted, e.g. USA, Israel, China, Russia, Great Britain, France and Germany. He added that European countries are waking up from the lethargy of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union and are investing in purchasing and modernizing these equipment.
“Recently, British Defense Minister Ben Wallace said that we need to think deeply whether upgrading only 148 tanks is a good idea or upgrading more vehicles. He noted that everyone can already see that such a real war is quite different from what was imagined a few years ago.
According to the expert, tanks are great in offensive operations, but contrary to appearances, they are also essential in defense. Among other things, they can conduct maneuver defense, i.e. move and fire at the same time. He said they were highly mobile over rough terrain and, unlike light vehicles, could stop artillery fire, especially if it was not concentrated and dispersed.
– Compared to anti-tank missiles, hand-held or mobile launchers, tanks have very low survivability. They are less protected, especially those carried by individual soldiers. It is enough to direct mortar fire on such a launcher, and there is a very high probability that it will be removed from combat, he noted.
Ratka noticed it In Europe, new equipment is definitely replacing post-Soviet tanks. Poland supplied Ukraine with “almost all” of its T-72 units, he stressed, adding that other countries with fewer tanks of this type also supplied “large numbers”. He noted that there have been and will continue to be major problems in maintaining the post-Soviet system Armored weapons.
– After the political changes, factories producing components for this type of equipment simply did not exist. We no longer manufacture new engines for T-72 tanks in Poland and can only repair the engine up to a certain point. Cannons, especially tank cannon barrels, wear out a great deal. Unfortunately, we don’t have the capacity to manufacture them,” he said.
As rated by the editor of Defence24 Ukraine as a result of hostilities It may also have lost the ability to produce barrels for post-Soviet tanks.
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