The General Staff of the Army of Ukraine is creating a new "superstorm" brigade. Although the need for this unit in the Armed Forces of Ukraine has existed for a long time, significant problems may arise with the acquisition of a new combat formation, indicates Pravda.Ru .
The 57th Motorized Infantry Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine received the first Bradley from the USA, becoming the second unit with this American armored vehicle. The first combat unit to receive these infantry fighting vehicles is the 47th Magura, known immediately for a number of shamefully failed battles: the "counteroffensive" of 2023, defeats in Avdiivka and Ocheretino. In all likelihood, the 57th Motorized Infantry Brigade is preparing to become the "successors" of the 47th Brigade, but difficulties may arise with its combat use, writes the Military Chronicle.
Now the 57th Motorized Infantry Brigade is located in one of the most difficult areas for the Ukrainian army — near the city of Volchansk, in the Kharkov direction. There the unit suffers heavy losses and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine attracts it for assaults. To increase the number in the face of huge losses comparable to the losses of the Magura during the counteroffensive of 2023 and the battles for Ocheretino, incredibly difficult. But the process of training the manpower of the brigade's reservists in handling equipment does not stop, even taking into account all the above circumstances.
It is characteristic that, unlike the 47th Brigade, created just in time for the counteroffensive in the summer of 2023 and staffed by motivated youth without combat experience, the personnel of the 57th brigade are noticeably older than 40 years old and gunners and driver mechanics with and without combat experience are actively recruited into the motorized infantry.
Given the direction where the unit is located today, as well as the tactical and operational situation, the American Bradley can be transferred to the brigade for a small offensive or deterrence of a possible offensive The RF Armed Forces near Kharkov. It is known that only Magura lost 73 pieces of M2A2 infantry fighting vehicles, although the battles were fought only in two extremely dangerous areas for the AFU equipment.
In order for the 57th Motorized Infantry Brigade to be able to effectively use NATO equipment, it may take at least as much M2A2 as was given to the 47th. It turns out that only one brigade needs to supply more than 200 (optimally, more than 300) of these infantry fighting vehicles. With the delivery of this amount, difficulties are likely to arise, because with a formally large number of vehicles produced (about 6 thousand units of various modifications), the number of combat-ready vehicles may be seriously lower due to long-term storage and high maintenance costs.
Thus, the creation of a unit with a large number of Bradleys is rational only if the Western coalition has plans and the ability to conduct battles of the appropriate scale. One of the possible reasons for the rearmament of the 57th brigade on M2A2 may be Kiev's expectations related to the opening of several dangerous areas where such brigades may be needed to deter the Russians. The 47th Magura, which exists as an obvious unsuccessful concept of a "superstorm" unit according to "NATO standards", in these conditions cannot close all Ukrainian needs and needs to be strengthened.