Ukrainian Army 43rd Heavy Artillery Brigade fires the German Panzerhaubitze 2000 howitzer, dubbed Tina by the unit, amid the Russian attack on Ukraine, near Bakhmut, in Donetsk region, Ukraine, 5 February 2023. Portal/Marko Djurica
- Spring conditions have limited the mobility of both Ukrainian and Russian troops.
- The German-made self-propelled howitzers recently acquired in Ukraine are particularly vulnerable to mud.
- Soldiers must be very clean and careful when entering vehicles, the New York Times reported.
Springtime mud plagues the war-torn battlefields of eastern Ukraine, creating mobility problems for Russian and Ukrainian forces and slowing their respective operations. It also affects some weapons.
The state of the terrain is proving to be a hurdle for Kiev’s troops, who are assigned to a specific piece of military equipment acquired from Germany over the winter – German-made 155mm howitzers that are extremely sensitive to the dirty and filthy conditions.
Germany, according to the inventory of its military support to Kiev, sent 14 Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers to Ukraine. These weapons contain electronics that are so vulnerable to dirt and moisture that soldiers are required to wear slippers or booties when entering the vehicles to avoid tracking in the mud, the New York Times reported Monday.
Each howitzer even comes with a vacuum cleaner, and the barrels sometimes need to be cleaned with a long brush. “The tank really loves cleanliness,” an artillery commander named Mykola told the Times, referring to a nickname for the self-propelled howitzer. “If you fire two full loads of ammo, you’ll have to spend a day servicing them.”
Serhii, a lieutenant in the 43rd Separate Artillery Brigade, even decided to recall the howitzers from the field for fear that mud would prevent them from escaping the bombardment should the machines come under Russian fire, the Times reported. In Germany, these vehicles were parked in air-conditioned garages.
However, despite current conditions on the ground, Ukrainian forces using the German-made howitzers have reportedly had some success against Russian armored and infantry units.
Ukrainian soldiers of the 43rd Heavy Artillery Brigade drive the German Panzerhaubitze 2000 howitzer, dubbed Tina by the unit, amid the Russian attack on Ukraine, near Bakhmut, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, February 5, 2023. Portal/ Marco Djurica
It’s not the first time Ukraine’s armed forces have faced the challenge of guns getting stuck in the mud. Units have reported their Soviet-era T-64 tanks becoming trapped in the muddy terrain — one of several problems troops found with the decades-old tanks.
The British Ministry of Defense recently announced this intelligence update This mud likely affected operations on both the Russian and Ukrainian sides after the cold winter months, although surface conditions were expected to improve within weeks as the weather improved.
“With soft ground conditions in most of Ukraine, heavy mud will most likely slow down operations by both parties to the conflict,” the April 21 update reads.
Ukrainian forces have been preparing to launch a much-anticipated counteroffensive against Russia after receiving a massive influx of heavy armor and advanced military hardware from the US and its Western partners. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters last week that nearly all combat vehicles promised to Ukraine had been delivered, and Ukraine’s defense minister said his country was almost ready to strike with an “iron fist.”
“That means over 1,550 armored vehicles, 230 tanks and other equipment, including huge amounts of ammunition,” Stoltenberg said of the deliveries. “In total, we have trained and equipped more than nine new Ukrainian armored brigades, this will put Ukraine in a strong position to continue to retake occupied territory.”
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