Ukraine war raises tough questions on the future of tanks

#TankWarfare
As Ukraine War brings out many Military lessons for the world, Shekhar Gupta analyses the changing role of main battle tanks, how are soviet tanks structured and why have they failed in the modern war. In Episode 1007 of Cut The Clutter, we also tell you why Pakistani Patton tanks moved from petrol to diesel fuel.

Brought to you by @KiaInd

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[realhumphreyappleby]

Honestly, the main topic was not interesting to me but the 1965 story near the end was worth it! Super interesting.

[ati]

Drones are a real game changer for warfare. Cheap, Very hard to detect but can provide reconnaissance & also destroy Tanks & other military assets that are far more costly. So we're back to a WWI kind of situation.

[AyushKumar-senn]

If Tanks have really lost its significance, i do not think Americans and Britishers would have invested so much in NLAWs and Javelins. Tanks are still a tough task taker.

[sunilrana]

I expected this episode about tanks because since from the starting of war you were sceptical about heavy Russian armoury and tanks.
Nice explained sir, but the best and most exciting fact to know was about the story about 1965 pakistani tanks..
Your each episode is like a history lesson..
Love you Sir...keep enlightening!!

[louisgiokas]

I remember when the US M1 Abrahms tank was introduced. I was working on military tactics and systems then. One of the unique things about the M1 was that the shells were in an armored compartment behind the loader. The door operated automatically and was very quick. The M1 uses four crew. My understanding is the newest Russian tank designs take this type of thing into account. Of course, they are far away from having these in production. I understand that they only have a handful. They may even all be prototypes. In fact, they have only sent T-90s in battle very recently, and they have not done well.

In WWII and Korea, the US put their latest tanks into the field, even though there were only a handful. This is the best way to gain knowledge. That the Russians have not done so leads me to believe that their machines are not ready.

[karansingh-idng]

India with Arjun mk2 has steered away from the Russian doctrine of small silhouette fast tank to a more robust tank with emphasis on crew safety as with 3 gen anti tank weapons being small doesn’t save you from enemy eyes when eyes are everywhere. To avoid such a cook situation Arjun is equipped with blast doors that direct ammunition cook off outside the tank making it safer for the crew inside.

[amanshukla]

I don't think tanks are going away anytime soon. Let's not forget that tanks are, at the end of the day, an armoured version of cavalry. Previously it was horses, then chariots, then armoured personnel carrier, then infantry fighting vehicle, then main battle tank. Cavalry has remained in militaries, in one form or the other. It's just that now the cavalry will take a new form, maybe unmanned tanks or smaller faster tanks with better anti-drone systems. But tanks themselves won't completely fade out of existence. They'll take a new form most probably

[uddipandutta]

Before Russians could detect the flaw in their tanks, Sekhar Sir understood it from his vast experience of covering wars. Salute Sir!

[sankalp]

Thought-provoking and critical. Many would argue that such discussion should be best left to Generals and defense experts but when you are so close to something you miss out on the depth of the problem and there is also the self-reference bias that takes a heavy toll on honest assessment. I do not know how far today's CTC actually holds but it's worth pondering. Let's not forget that this is the first major war since the Iraq invasion (About TWO decades ago). We also saw glimpses of modern warfare during the Azerbaijan-Armenia war but Russia-Ukraine has played at a much more sophisticated level. I also think that it would be UNWISE to underestimate Russia.

[drawingwithsuhana]

I am not a tank expert, but I know a couple of things about tanks. So the poins are -
1. The anti tank weapons used in 1990s or before can't be compared with today's anti tank weapons. So it's not tested upon the western tanks yet.
2. Turret is a moveable part of tank which can be removed to fit new armament ( 125 mm Gun), repair of other electrical and electronic components. So the joint between body and turret is vulnerable in any tank.
3. Every tank stores ammunition inside tank and extra fuel at rear. So if a tank hit by a missile, then they are bound to explode.
4. The western propaganda to show Russian weapons as weak and backdated.
The point is that the quality and penetration capabilities of modern anti tank weapons are much greater than they are 20 years ago.
Further it can be said that intensive use of heavy vehicles like tanks in a war should be re calculated.

[dhirajusa]

Before you Sir we were missing so much about India!! 🙏🏽🙏🏽 amazing facts and superb story telling 😍

[toothlessseer]

Nice video! A few points...
1 - Battleships proved obsolete in WWII (they were taken apart by carrier-base aircraft)
2 - Aircraft carriers are close to obsolete (because of satellites and hypersonic missiles)
3 - Warships (of various types) are also vulnerable (missiles and drones)
4 - Armenian tanks were completely destroyed by Azerbaijani drones (manufactured in Turkey)
5 - And we all see what's happening with Russian tanks in Ukraine (missiles and drones)
_My point is, if one looks at the list above... _*_missiles and drones are changing the landscape of war._*_ And armed forces better move in that direction quickly (unless they want to end up losing...badly)_

[deeell]

The concepts of heavy armoured tanks, large infantry, long duration battles will surely going to be outdated.... What will be in vogue -- software oriented battles, economic warfare, satelite/space war and applying pressure, "due to the deaths of near and dear ones" on the public emotions of opponent country

[snickerbars]

Passion with which this gentleman speaks is really infectious.

[nicpirate]

The prudent thing for India ( with large inventory) would be to convert T-72 and T-90 into unmanned versions with the crew housed in a separate vehicle to control the tank. Artillery also need to be highly mechanised so that the gun can be operated remotely by the crew. This is the only way to protect tank and artillery crew from UAV and guided munition attack. Important elements of the formation can be protected with jammers to jam uav and guided missile but not all. Not sure how good the DRDO ATGM is, mass producing Spikes in India was an option forgone. We miss ISTAR planes that can provide a real time picture of the enemy's ground formation. Navy's P8I were used to recce the Chinese last time.

[jayantjolly]

The India Pakistan tank story was amazing!!

[deveshyadav]

humans chocking on their own blood... darkness is spilling... this man has seen things...

[ininjad]

Very apt coverage of the Russian main battle tank, thank you The Print team!

[DonnieHb]

War is never fought with weapons.It's the heart, will and the deepest truth that makes you victorious, not weapons.

[karansingh-idng]

Russians noticed this problem hence while designing their newest generation mbt t 14 armata they made the turret crew less and put all three members in a blast proof cabin in front of the chassis which is considered to be the most armoured part of the tank. Now in case of a hit like this the turret may still blast due to the ammunition cook off in the confined space however the crew will remain relatively unharmed.