Russian forces have destroyed another German-made Ukrainian Leopard 2A4 tank, fresh footage that surfaced online on Tuesday shows.
The drone video, reportedly taken near the Ukrainian-controlled Donbass town of Kurakhovo, shows the Leopard 2A4 maneuvering in a wooded strip between two open fields and firing at unseen targets. The tank comes under return fire and tries to evade it, driving further along the wooded area and apparently receiving a hit.
The tank’s crew appears to at least partially abandon the vehicle, but returns, only to drive th vehicle into the open where it sustains several more hits. The ammunition stock in the rear of the tank’s turret is seen catching fire. The blaze spreads into the crew compartment after another hit, with thick white smoke seen billowing from its hatches.
It was not immediately clear whether the crew was present inside the tank when the vehicle caught fire, given their erratic movements before it was destroyed.
The Leopard 2A4 lacked any anti-drone nettings, which are commonly fitted by both sides of the conflict on armored and soft vehicles alike. However, the front and the sides of its turret were apparently kitted with Soviet-era reactive armor bricks, likely Kontakt-1, commonly used by the troops to protect their vehicles.
Over the course of the ongoing conflict, Kiev has received dozens of Leopard 2 tanks from several Western countries that use German-made armor. The Ukrainian military has also been supplied with older Leopard 1A5 tanks, but those have only been seen on the frontline on a handful of occasions.
Leopard 2 tanks saw extensive action last year, when they spearheaded Kiev’s ultimately disastrous counteroffensive push, which resulted in heavy casualties for little gain.