Russian forces capture prized American M2A2 Bradley in Ukraine
Not only are observers of the war in Ukraine reporting on it via social media, but Ukrainian media outlets are also reporting the loss of another M2A2 Bradley. This incident is even more painful because this exceptionally valuable American vehicle was not destroyed but captured by the Russians.
According to the Ukrainian portal Defence Express, which specializes in military topics, "enemy forces gain access to a state-of-the-art armored vehicle with advanced targeting systems." It is also noted that the Russians do not intend to destroy this captured equipment. Instead, it has already been handed over to engineers who will be tasked with extracting as much information as possible about the NATO vehicle.
M2A2 Bradley in the hands of Russians
This is not the first such incident. Both sides of the ongoing conflict systematically engage in these activities. The Russians transport the most valuable captured NATO equipment even to their military plants. Such a fate befell, for example, the German Leopard 2A6 tank, which ended up at the Uralvagonzavod plant. The list of Russian spoils also includes the CV90 infantry fighting vehicle from Sweden, which is in the same category as the M2A2 Bradley.
According to Defence Express, "the capture of this vehicle raises questions about its potential use in reverse engineering or intelligence gathering." Analysts and military experts often emphasize, however, that replicating NATO equipment is rather impossible for the Russians. However, they may obtain a lot of valuable information and use it in future encounters when, for example, they identify weaknesses in certain equipment.
Valuable IFV in the Ukrainian army
The M2A2 Bradley is considered one of the most durable infantry fighting vehicles in the world. It has armor made of steel, aluminum, and composite materials, as well as an anti-spall lining and an efficient fire suppression system. Additionally, it can be reinforced with BRAT (Bradley Reactive Armor Tiles) packages, which increase the level of protection against threats such as RPG-7 grenade launchers. Ukrainian soldiers have repeatedly emphasized that the M2A2 Bradley is a vehicle that saves their lives.
Despite its strong armor, large size, and exceptional armament—resulting in a weight of over 55,000 lbs—the M2A2 Bradley maintains adequate mobility and, using tracked traction, can reach speeds of around 37 mph. The designers equipped this IFV with an automatic M242 Bushmaster 25 mm caliber gun with a rate of fire up to 200 rounds per minute, a 7.62 mm caliber machine gun, and a TOW anti-tank missile launcher.
