If, in the remote hypothesis, the M1A1 Abrams captured by ISIS should face them, the Russians will have no mercy. The T-90 deployed in Syria could put them out of service with devastating simplicity.
The Russian army, at the September 17, deployed six third-generation T-90 tanks in Syria, 15 self-propelled heavy artillery pieces, thirty-five BTR-82A combat vehicles, SA-22 ground-to-air missile systems to protect the city Syrian of Latakia and among the 1000 / 1500 men, between soldiers and technicians. Five warships off the coast complete the deployment. We do not know the number of specnaz in the field, but their presence has already been confirmed in the Syrian Military Academy.
But why did Moscow send tanks?
Because if it is true that on the one hand, the caliphate should be wary of attacking any Russian location for retaliation that would not take into account the sensitivity of the international community, on the other there is a remote possibility that some M1A1 Abrams captured by ISIS , may be in the operational area.
We know that the Iraqi army "donated" Abrams tanks to hundreds of other vehicles to the fundamentalists 2.300 Humvees and 140. Many of these tanks were destroyed by anti-tank missiles, but some of them could be operational.
Most of the Abrams have been captured in Iraq and some of them may have been moved to Syria. Even if it did happen, the Abrams of the Isis would not have a chance. Beyond the formation of Russian troops, the Caliphate does not have a logistic asset for such a platform. Even if the Abrams' leaders were to have Saddam's veterans, they would still be inexperienced with the M1A1. The systems built by the Soviets for export were generally models without the most advanced devices. Furthermore, the training of crews, tactics, maintenance, spare parts availability and logistic support may have remained at a standstill during the first Gulf War.
The M1A1 sold to Iraq (perhaps too quickly for what looked like a supermarket) have some advanced features, but they don't have the armor in depleted uranium that protects the Abrams of the US Army. The tanks sold to Iraqis then were not equipped with reactive armor that could have allowed vehicles to survive anti-tank missiles.
It should be noted that Iraqis are losing the war not because of their equipment, but because they lack discipline, tactics, training and procedures. We cannot forget some episodes of cowardice such as that of the much publicized elite force "Golden Brigade", presented to the public as the best special unit of the loyalist army, which was the first to leave its positions during the battle of Ramadi. .
The Isis, consequently, the unconventional fighting force par excellence, should adapt to the logistic needs of the Abrams, first of all the constant need for fuel to power the propulsion system, a monster from 1500 horses. The Russians, who probably deployed the latest version of the T-90, the MS Tagil in Syria, must not fear an Abrams force, but the "human tides" formed by fundamentalists armed with grenades and anti-tank missiles.
Moscow will not repeat the mistakes of the past. The T-90 represent a significant deterrent effect in a given asset in a specific context, but to see them in the open (even if tactically it would not make sense to send them in battle against ISIS), the Kremlin will have to strengthen its military presence from the air. Translated means: heavy assault helicopters. It's just a matter of time.
(photo: MoD Russian Federation)
