U.S. Completes Delivery of 116 M1A1 Abrams Tanks to Poland: How Do Ukrainian Operators Evaluate Them?

The Polish Defence Ministry has taken delivery of the final batch of 47 M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks, after having placed an order for 116 of the vehicles. The first company of 14 tanks arrived in the country on June 28, 2023, alongside M88A2 armoured recovery vehicles. This has made the country the only one in Europe to have purchased the American tanks, with the only other operator Ukraine having received 31 of the vehicles as aid. The first Polish order was supplemented by a second purchase in April 2022 for 250 more Abrams tanks, which were more modern M1A2 SEPv3s. Acquisitions of new tanks from the United States has been critical as Poland has donated several hundred Leopard 2 and T-72 tanks from its inventories as aid to Ukraine. Even with 336 Abrams tanks delivered, the backbone of the country’s armoured units will still be formed by more modern South Korean K2 Black Panther main battle tanks which were first ordered in July 2022. The K2 began deliveries to Poland in December that year, with 1000 set to be delivered.

The M1 Abrams had been in service in the U.S. Army for 44 years since 1980, and remains one of just two tank classes in production in the Western world today alongside the German Leopard 2. The Abrams’ combat performance, however, has been reflected on poorly by Ukrainian crews, who have complained of technical issues including vulnerability of electronic components to condensation, as well as the tank’s demonstrated vulnerability in combat. With the vehicles having taken heavy losses since their first engagements with Russian forces in February, including to drones, anti tank missiles and the guns of T-72 tanks, the personal lamented that the Abrams also lacked sufficient armour for modern battlefields. The Ukrainian Army withdrew its Abrams tanks from frontline positions in the final week of April after heavy losses were incurred, with Vice Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Christopher Grady having indicated that their deployment was not assessed to have been effective. The M1A2 tank Poland is set to begin receiving boasts superior armour and fire controls to the M1A1, although whether their protection levels will be considered satisfactory remains uncertain.