- Small drones have been a serious threat to tanks in the Ukraine war.
- It's forcing US military leaders to think about how they will use tanks in future conflicts.
- The Army secretary said tanks will need to hang back in battle to avoid getting hit by drones.
The US is learning from the war in Ukraine that tanks will no longer be able to charge forward in combat like they used to because they're vulnerable to enemy attacks with cheap drones, the new Army secretary said.
"You cannot move without being seen," Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll said of the battlefield in Ukraine during an episode of the War on the Rocks podcast that aired on Tuesday.
"The amount of sensors on the battlefield, the amount of ability from both sides to see what's going on" has created a situation in which Army commanders cannot push tanks "as far forward in the formation as you used to be able to because very cheap drones are able to take them out of any usefulness," he said.
"We have got to be a lot leaner," the secretary said. "We have got to work on hiding ourselves from the air." His remarks echo the concerns of other Army leaders, who have warned that uncrewed systems are always watching the battlefield.
Tanks have taken a serious beating in the Ukraine conflict. Oryx, an open-source intelligence site that visually tracks military equipment losses, says Moscow has lost at least 3,900 tanks; Kyiv has lost over 1,100. A majority of these were destroyed in combat, while some have been damaged, abandoned, or captured.
Drones are a major threat to tanks in Ukraine. The commander of an American-made M1 Abrams in service with Kyiv's military told Business Insider that Russian FPV drones specifically are dangerous. He said the tank relies on additional protective armor and electronic warfare capabilities to stay safe. Still, there have been losses.
The heavy losses have led to assessments that tanks may be obsolete in wars dominated by drones. However, Driscoll recently told BI that the role of US tanks will change rather than disappear. Instead of combined-arms assaults led by armor, where tanks are the first to hit the front lines and lead breaching operations, uncrewed systems may spearhead the charge instead.
Driscoll said that tanks will stay in safe, defended positions until there is a clear path that allows them to move forward. This is a break from the traditional role of tanks, but it is seen by military planners as necessary in a world where armored vehicles worth millions can be easily picked off by drones worth as little as a few hundred bucks.
Using cheap drones to destroy expensive armored vehicles has proven to be an effective asymmetrical warfare tactic. US forces have enjoyed air superiority in recent conflicts, not needing to be constantly looking up for enemy airpower. That's changing with drones.
American soldiers training on tanks and other armored vehicles are learning they need to be aware of their surroundings. That includes looking up for possible incoming threats.
