Western myths shattered, why was the safest Merkava tank repeatedly destroyed in street battles?

Mondo Military Updated on 2024-01-19

The Merkava tank has always been hailed as the "safest" main battle tank, but in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, it was frequently destroyed, and the loot system did not work, and the name of "safest" seems to have become empty talk. Why would anyone think that the Merkava tank is so safe?In addition to the propaganda of the West, the design of the Merkava tank also brought such an illusion. First of all, the Merkava tank has a maverick front-engine layout, which is unique among the world's active main battle tanks. The engines of the main battle tanks of other countries, such as China, the United States, Russia and Germany, are behind the hull. This front-engine layout gives the illusion that "this tank looks safe".

Words in this paragraph: 109] Secondly, the Merkava tank was designed using the "variable geometry" armor technology, which.

Technology can change the angle of the armor according to different threats, thereby increasing the effective thickness of the armor and enhancing the protection ability. Finally, the Merkava tank is equipped with a "trophie" system that can detect and intercept incoming missile threats. These design features give the mistaken impression that the Merkava tank is extremely safe. However, in actual combat, these security measures did not work as well as they should, and the safety of the Merkava tank was questioned.

Number of words in this paragraph: 80].

In general, the Merkava tank is considered the "safest" main battle tank, primarily because of its front-engine layout, variable geometry armor technology and design features of the "Trophy" system. These features give the illusion that the Merkava tank looks safe.

Number of words in this paragraph: 47].

The front-engine layout of the Merkava tank ensured the lower limit of protection, but limited its ability to strengthen frontal protection.

This is because engine overhaul requires a large access opening at the front of the hull, which prevents Merkava from designing heavy primary armor or draped in heavy** reactive armor. In contrast, other tanks, such as the Chinese 99A and the Russian T90M, can increase their resistance to breakage to more than 1,100 mm when draped in FY4 or "fossil"** reactive armor, which the Merkava tank cannot do. This makes it vulnerable to attacks by advanced anti-tank missiles, such as the recent Israeli-Palestinian conflict when it was destroyed head-on by Allah's Kornet anti-tank missile.

Although the layout of the front-engines raised the lower limit of defensive capabilities, with the increase in the opponent's anti-tank capabilities, the Merkava tank faced the dilemma of not being able to block the attack and had become a "trophy" in the eyes of the enemy. "Trophies" active defense system, how powerful is this defense system that has been talked about by many people?This system is another important defensive equipment of the Merkava tank in addition to the passive protection of the armor. In the fight against the guerrillas, this system has achieved a number of successful interception records, and its performance should not be underestimated. However, the Hamas forces have found some countermeasures, how did they crack the "trophies" active defense system?What has the Hamas armed forces done to deal with this system?Let's take a look at them one by one.

Does the fact that Israel's "loot" system suffers from some serious weaknesses mean that it is no longer so reliable?First of all, it is not able to identify targets with very short intervals, creating conditions for the successful hit of the second missile;Second, it also does not respond to rockets and anti-tank missiles fired within a few tens of meters, providing an opportunity for Hamas to take advantage of it. Although the system was originally performing well, the exposed issues severely affected its performance. Even more worrying is the fact that Israel has not taken steps to improve to address these issues, an attitude that could have serious consequences. At the same time, in the design of the Merkava tank, it neglected the characteristics of carrying infantry.

In the brutal street battles on the Russian-Ukrainian battlefield, the importance of infantry and tan coordinated operations has been proven. However, Israel's infantry spent most of the time in their vehicles, hoping that the vehicle's armor would protect them, and this lack of courage could have serious consequences. Therefore, in the face of these challenges, Israel needs to re-examine its tactics and equipment in order to better adapt to the needs of modern warfare. This also raises a question that deserves an in-depth discussion: what are the challenges facing traditional tactics and equipment in modern warfare?The Israeli army has suffered heavy losses in Gaza City, with tens of thousands of people**. At the same time, the performance of the Russian army in street fighting on the battlefield in Ukraine is impressive. Does this mean that the concept of communication will eventually be subverted?

No amount of "actual combat experience" is comparable to serious combat readiness training and military innovation?Is the current Israeli army experiencing the fate of a second Chechnya?What is the reason for this difference?Let's dive in.

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