Footage Shows British Challenger 2 Tank’s Destruction By Russian Ka-52 Helicopter in Kursk

New footage has confirmed the destruction of a second British-supplied Challenger 2 tank in the Russian Kursk region, as the vehicles continue to be actively deployed by the Ukrainian Army’s 82nd Air Assault Brigade as part of a broader assault deep into Russian territory. The footage taken on August 12 shows a Vikhr anti tank guided missile, which was developed for deployment by Russian attack helicopters, being used by a Ka-52 helicopter to destroy the tank. The vehicle’s silhouette, and the thermal imaging sight, tank commander's sight, and the gun barrel, all clearly distinguish it as a Challenger 2. The British vehicle is notably the second Challenger 2 confirmed to have been destroyed by Russian forces since the beginning of the offensive into Kursk on August 6, with footage released on August 15 having confirmed the destruction of one of the vehicles. The previous tank was destroyed using a low-flying Russian Lancet 3 single use drone near Sudzha, with the drone causing the ammunition to detonate which destroyed the tank beyond repair. Very high attrition rates in Ukraine’s elite units in Kursk, where they have only limited support from the wider Ukrainian Armed Forces and increasingly appear to be overwhelmed, has led analysts to increasingly conclude that the destruction of these forces is likely to have a serious impact on the country’s broader fighting strength. 

Russian Ka-52 and Mi-28 attack helicopters have been filmed taking a heavy toll on Ukrainian armour in the Kursk region for the past 12 days. Both classes have been deployed extensively for such roles in the broader Ukrainian theatre from early 2022 - albeit initially with only limited success. Although the Challenger 2 was previously widely considered the best armoured vehicle in the Western world, and unlike M1A1 Abrams tanks supplied to Ukraine the tanks were taken directly from British Army stockpiles without seeing their armour downgraded, the vehicles have taken losses very quickly when deployed to the frontlines. The vehicles made a very brief combat deployment near the frontlines in September 2023, during which one was confirmed destroyed by a Russian Kornet man portable anti tank missile, with a second Challenger 2 reported destroyed but not confirmed as such. With only 14 of the vehicles having been delivered by Britain, and with Ukraine’s supplies of other high performance tanks such as the Abrams and T-80 increasingly dwindling, each loss represents a significant blow both to the reputations of Western tanks, which were previously widely touted as potential game changers for the war effort, as well as for the capabilities of Ukraine’s top tank units. Losses among Challenger 2s have been far lower than those among Abrams and German Leopard 2 tanks primarily because the vehicles had seen very few frontline deployments until the Kursk offensive.