All 31 U.S.-Supplied Abrams Tanks Wiped Out by Russian Kamikaze Drones—Experts Declare Death of Mechanized Warfare
The battlefield in Ukraine has become the ultimate proving ground for new-generation warfare, where even the most sophisticated ground platforms like the Abrams are being neutralized by swarms of loitering drones costing a fraction of their value.
(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) – In a stunning assessment that has rippled across the global defence community, a senior American military strategist has declared that all 31 U.S.-supplied M1A1 Abrams tanks delivered to Ukraine have been destroyed by Russian kamikaze drones, marking what he describes as a pivotal turning point—the demise of mechanized warfare as we know it.
Speaking to CNN, defence expert and strategic analyst Christopher Kirchhoff stated that the obliteration of these tanks highlights the vulnerability of legacy armored systems in the face of modern, asymmetric threats.
“At the beginning of the war, we provided the Ukrainians with 31 Abrams tanks. Almost all of them have now been destroyed by Russian kamikaze drones,” Kirchhoff said.
“This suggests that the era of mechanized warfare, which began during the First World War, is coming to an end.”
Kirchhoff, a former consultant to the U.S. Department of Defense, has been a vocal commentator on the transformation of military doctrine—particularly the rise of unmanned systems and the obsolescence of conventional combat platforms under modern threat environments.
His remarks come at a time when the battlefield in Ukraine has become the ultimate proving ground for new-generation warfare, where even the most sophisticated ground platforms like the Abrams are being neutralized by swarms of loitering drones costing a fraction of their value.
In recent months, kamikaze drones—particularly cheap, expendable First-Person View (FPV) models—have emerged as the decisive force on both sides of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, challenging the battlefield supremacy of traditional armor.
These lightweight, agile unmanned aerial vehicles are capable of evading radar, slipping through gaps in short-range air defences, and striking from above—precisely at the weakest points of even the most heavily armored tanks.
A single drone costing as little as USD $500 has proven capable of destroying or disabling multi-million-dollar combat systems, forcing a reevaluation of military spending, doctrine, and platform survivability.
UAVs now shape movement patterns and tactical postures on the battlefield, with both Russian and Ukrainian forces adopting dispersed operations, night maneuvers, and concealment strategies to reduce exposure to top-attack threats.
“Operation Spider Web,” a recent Ukrainian drone assault on multiple Russian airbases, reportedly knocked out strategic bombers and radar stations—an operation that in earlier eras would have required advanced stealth fighters or long-range precision-guided munitions.
Military analysts now agree: drone warfare has ushered in a revolution in modern combat, with loitering munitions supplanting traditional artillery and armor as the dominant tools of battlefield disruption.
The United States announced the delivery of 31 Abrams tanks to Ukraine in January 2023.
Originally, the Pentagon had planned to send the advanced M1A2 variant, but due to logistical bottlenecks and time constraints, the older yet upgraded M1A1 SA (Situational Awareness) version was selected instead.
The M1A1 SA features enhanced thermal sights, advanced threat detection sensors, and improved battlefield communications to give crews an edge in all-weather, day-night operations.
However, the export version sent to Ukraine lacks the depleted uranium (DU) armor used by U.S. forces due to policy restrictions.
To compensate, these tanks rely on composite armor with add-on explosive reactive armor (ERA) kits—still offering protection, but not at the same level as their American counterparts.
Armed with a 120mm M256 smoothbore cannon, the Abrams tank remains a formidable platform on paper, capable of firing kinetic and chemical energy rounds like APFSDS and HEAT with lethal accuracy.
Its secondary armament consists of a .50 caliber M2HB heavy machine gun and two 7.62mm M240 machine guns—one coaxial and one turret-mounted—to provide close-range defense against infantry and light vehicles.
But the Ukraine battlefield has revealed a harsh truth: even a platform as iconic as the Abrams is highly susceptible to modern aerial threats if not equipped with Active Protection Systems (APS).
Unlike Israeli Merkava tanks fitted with Trophy APS, the M1A1 SA lacks the ability to detect and intercept incoming drones or missiles in real-time, leaving its top armor exposed to saturation attacks.
Ukrainian forces have reportedly resorted to field improvisations—such as anti-drone mesh cages, camouflage netting, and operating under cover of darkness—to improve survivability.
The first batch of Abrams arrived in Ukraine in September 2023.
By late that year, concerns over the tanks’ effectiveness in drone-dense environments reached critical levels.
Brigadier General Geoffrey Norman, Director of the U.S. Army’s Next Generation Combat Vehicles program, acknowledged the limitations.
“Abrams is excellent when facing direct fire from other tanks or armored vehicles,” he said.
“However, it was not designed to withstand top-attack threats as we’re seeing in Ukraine, whether from diving ATGMs or kamikaze FPV drones.”
General Norman further noted that while the Abrams excels in offensive maneuver warfare, it becomes highly vulnerable when stationary—an increasingly common scenario in Ukraine’s drone-dominated battlespace.
Other U.S. military officials have echoed these concerns, highlighting that the threat posed by FPV drones and top-attack loitering munitions now extends to all frontline vehicles—not just tanks.
According to a senior armor warfare expert, “Any vehicle that enters the battlefield is now almost immediately targeted by FPV drones, regardless of its armor thickness or cost.”
Faced with such overwhelming threats, Ukraine—reportedly at the urging of U.S. advisors—has withdrawn its Abrams tanks from active frontline operations.
Two senior U.S. defense officials told the Associated Press that the tanks “cannot survive on the battlefield” without being immediately spotted and destroyed by Russian reconnaissance and kamikaze drones.
“The drone saturation is so severe, there is simply no open ground left where these tanks can maneuver without being detected,” said one official.
This strategic retreat was later confirmed by Admiral Christopher Grady, Vice Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, who stated that the Pentagon is now working with Ukrainian command to revise operational doctrine accordingly.
The Russia-Ukraine war has now earned the distinction of being the most drone-intensive conflict in modern military history—featuring an array of FPV drones, ISR platforms, kamikaze UAVs, and unmanned maritime vehicles.
