British Husky TSV in a region of Ukraine Armored vehicles in the Zaporozhye region "Husky" for the British Army Technical Features
The UK transferred several types of armored vehicles to Ukraine. It was recently announced that the first batch of Husky TSV machines have been delivered. With their help, the Ukrainian army will be able to partially recover recent losses and improve its capabilities to a certain extent. However, in general, the prospects for such assistance are clear - armored vehicles will not have a noticeable impact on current events, and then add to the list of losses.
Armored Troop Carriers
As early as April, it was known that Britain planned to help Ukraine supply a certain number of armored vehicles. Initial details quickly emerged in the British press. The Kingdom’s Defense Ministry is said to be preparing to provide armored vehicles that were previously in service but are now in reserve or storage. There are also plans to train Ukrainian personnel.
120 category four combat and auxiliary vehicles. It is planned to send three-axle Mastiff armored vehicles, protective wolfdog trucks, and lighter Husky TSV armored vehicles to Ukraine. In addition, dozens of tracked FV103 Spartan armored personnel carriers were allocated. The number of vehicles for each model has not yet been specified. It took several weeks to prepare the equipment and other programs for
, and deliveries did not begin until May. Regarding the question of receiving the army for the development of such vehicles. As a result, from June 10th to 11th, photos and videos of the first batch of Husky armored vehicles in the army appeared on Ukrainian resources.
A few days later, footage from the war zone was released. Husky TSV troops are said to be deployed in the Zaporizhia region, which is still controlled by the Ukrainian army. There are currently no details on the use of this technology.
Furthermore, there are no reports of this armored vehicle being destroyed or being used as a trophy. Obviously, the main reason for this situation is that they have recently arrived at the unit. Practice shows that the loss of new equipment is only a matter of time.
Overseas Development
Like some other modern British Army armored vehicles, the Husky TSV is of foreign origin. This machine is designed and manufactured by American company Navistar International. Its base version, the MXT-MVA (Military Extreme Truck-Military Version Armor), was first introduced at the 2006 Association of the United States Army conference.
multi-purpose machine MXT-MVA and its several improvements passed factory testing. They were then submitted to the Pentagon 's M-ATV competition, which aims to select a promising protected transport for land units. In 2008, the winner of the competition was the armored vehicle of the Oshkosh company, and Navistar International had to find new customers.
During this time, the British Army was looking for a new armored vehicle. It requires an MRAP-type machine with a high level of ballistic and mine protection, which may be available in the near future. The armored vehicles were planned to be sent to Afghanistan, where they would replace a ruggedized Land Rover SUV, but this did not meet all requirements.
The British Ministry of Defense reviewed the existing offers and selected the MXT-MVA armored vehicle. In April 2009, a contract for the manufacture and supply of 262 such vehicles of updated configuration was signed, and a few months later the first armored vehicle of this type was unveiled. At the end of the year, the first units were handed over to customers. The armored vehicle was adopted as the Husky Tactical Support Vehicle (TSV).
In the second year, there were already additional orders for 89 armored vehicles. The execution of these two contracts continued until 2012, with the UK eventually receiving 351 units. Large numbers of armored vehicles were soon deployed in Afghanistan and were actively used. Soon, the new armored vehicles demonstrated their advantages over the armored Land Rovers.
However, a few years later, with British troops withdrawing from Afghanistan, the future of the Husky and other MRAP armored vehicles remained in doubt. Shortly thereafter, the fleet began to shrink. To date, the British Army has a total of 320 such vehicles, 120 of which have been transferred to reserves or storage.
Now the unnecessary device has found a new owner. A certain number of Husky TSVs were transferred to Ukraine. Additionally, at the end of May, it was announced that 70 such vehicles would continue to serve with the Ghana Armed Forces.
Husky TSV and basic MXT-MVA are MRAP-class armored vehicles, using a two-axle four-wheel drive chassis. Depending on the main units and units, the armored vehicles are unified as much as possible with the international MXT commercial trucks. It can carry up to 6 people, including the driver, and can also carry some cargo. The
two-axle armored vehicle is equipped with a 325-horsepower International VT 365 diesel engine. and Allison 2500SP transmission, power is distributed to all wheels. The chassis has independent lever suspension. The maximum speed specified on the highway exceeds 100 km/h. Mileage - 400 kilometers.
Husky adopts an armored hood structure with a double-row cockpit. Behind the cab is a cargo platform. This case has modular booking by Prasang Sasa. Bullet and fragmentation protection and blast protection are reported. However, the exact level of protection is unknown.
There is a circular armored rotating turret on the top of the hull. It can be equipped with ordinary caliber or large-caliber machine guns or automatic grenade launchers personnel are not provided, and there are no obstacles in the body.
Objective restraint
Until February, the Ukrainian army had hundreds of armored vehicles, which can be considered similar to the British Husky. However, in recent months, the park has been forcibly demilitarized and significantly reduced. Foreign countries are working hard to supply their equipment, but are still a long way from returning to previous volumes, and new strikes and losses prevent this.
Britain has handed over dozens of armored vehicles, including one, to Ukraine in recent weeks. Some bi-axle huskies. There is no reason to believe that these supplies will have a positive impact on the situation of the Ukrainian army. The technology is too small to compensate for the losses incurred.
Qualitative indicators also seem to be far from ideal. For example, at that time Husky/MXT-MVA lost the competition to the armored vehicle Oshkosh M-ATV, which indicated some technical problems or limited performance. At the same time, such a machine was arranged for the British Army and did not cause many complaints during its operation.
During their time in Afghanistan, the Huskies performed admirably and handled the work assigned to them. However, under current circumstances, their prospects are doubtful. MRAP-class armored vehicles are designed for low-intensity conflicts and for use against guerrillas. However, Ukraine is trying to resist a full-fledged modern army with all the necessary troops and means of failure. As a result, armored vehicles face serious risks both on the front lines and in the rear – and can be attacked at any time.
generally useless
According to current plans, the UK should transfer 120 armored vehicles to Ukraine for transporting personnel - three types of wheeled armored vehicles and one tracked armored vehicle. Deliveries have begun and some vehicles have already entered the war zone. At the same time, their potential is very limited, and the prospects under the current situation do not give Ukraine any reason for optimism. The reasons why
causes this are well known and understandable. London is trying to help the Kiev regime solve its own political and military problems. However, the scope of this assistance was limited by the quantity and quality of British troops. By helping Ukraine, Britain - not just wanting to harm its own troops. This approach completely excludes any change in the situation in favor of Ukraine and will only prolong the course of hostilities. But even this is perfectly suitable for foreign "partners".
