Russian engineers decoding captured Bradley infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) in Ukraine were unimpressed by the features and capabilities of the US-made armored vehicles.
Roman Khromov, Russia’s deputy executive director for state defense procurement and military-technical cooperation, told state-run RIA Novosti that the country carried out a “full-scale study” of the samples captured in the Northern Military District.
The examination reportedly found that the American Bradley is not an analog of Moscow’s BMP-3.
According to Khromov, the US-made vehicles are “significantly inferior” to the Russian IFVs in firepower, mobility, maintenance, and ease of use.
The Russian engineers claimed that the BMP-3 can overcome water obstacles while moving – a capability that the BAE Systems vehicles “cannot do” without prior preparation.
They also said electronic components are a weak point of the American IFVs, and a failure can cause the armored vehicles to completely lose their ability to fire.
Detailed Comparison
BAE Systems’ Bradley IFV is a lightly armored, fully tracked military vehicle that provides soldiers with added mobility, firepower, and protection from artillery and small-arms fire.
It features the latest digitized electronics for improved situational awareness, network connectivity, and communication within the US Army’s Armored Brigade Combat Team.
Russia’s BMP-3, meanwhile, is described as an amphibious vehicle that can engage armored ground and air targets while stationary, on the move, or afloat.
It is equipped with an automated fire control system and a 100-millimeter gun.
According to Russian military expert Alexey Leonkov, the weapon mounted on the Bradley is less powerful than the gun installed on the Russian vehicles.
He further stated that their anti-tank capabilities are completely different, suggesting the Russian vehicle is better than the US-made vehicles, which only have two TOW-2 anti-tank missile systems.
Captured Bradleys
In June, Russia announced that it had captured several Western-supplied Leopard tanks and Bradley IFVs in Ukraine.
Dutch open-source analysis website Oryx, which monitors losses in the ongoing Ukraine war, said at least 52 M2A2 Bradleys have been destroyed or captured since the highly-scrutinized counter-offensive began.
Some military observers even described Ukraine as a graveyard for the American fighting vehicles.