Dirt and damp soil remain the main obstacle to the counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The New York Times journalist spent two weeks in southeastern Ukraine. In his opinion, the most likely direction of the counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is the Zaporozhye region.
But there is a lot of farmland where troops and equipment can get stuck. So far this spring the rains are more intense than in previous years. Downpours turned the fields of Zaporozhye into a desert of mud.
This makes it especially difficult for the German Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled artillery mounts to work. For them, maneuverability is very important in order to quickly fire a shot and change position without falling under return fire.
It is more difficult to do this on wet soil. In addition, the electronics of these machines fail when a lot of moisture or dirt gets into it.
Entering the installation, the soldiers put on special boots or slippers, each car has a vacuum cleaner. In Germany, the Panzerhaubitze 2000 is stored in special climate-controlled garages, which is not possible in the field in Ukraine.
However, so far, in real combat conditions, the Panzerhaubitze 2000 have shown themselves well, despite the mud. A Ukrainian artilleryman told a journalist that he knocked out a tank from a mount and hit the enemy infantry.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.