Despite its losses in Ukraine, the US Army upgrades the Bradley
The US Army has signed a 390-million-dollar contract to upgrade an additional number of Bradley fighting vehicles and bring them to the M2A4 standard.
According to a report by Military Watch Magazine, the upgraded vehicles will replace older Bradley variants to provide ground units with improved firepower, protection and control systems. Bill Shee, director of the ground vehicle production line at BAE Systems, stated that continuing to modernize the Bradley to the A4 level is essential to ensure that fighters have the equipment needed to maintain superiority. He added that the new contract guarantees the continued operation and manufacturing readiness of US production lines.
The US Army currently operates around 300 advanced M2A4 vehicles, out of an estimated total fleet of about 4500 Bradleys, while the rest belong to older models.
Production of the Bradley ceased in 1995.
Heavy losses in Ukraine
The Bradley faced its first high-intensity battlefield test in Ukraine at the beginning of 2023, after elite units of the Ukrainian Army were supplied with large numbers of them.
Of the roughly 200 Bradleys delivered early that year, estimates indicate that about 80 were lost within the first five months alone.
The first images showing the heavy losses of the vehicles, alongside German Leopard 2A6 tanks, appeared in June, prompting Washington to pledge to compensate for these losses with new shipments.
On July 22, Russian sources released footage which they described as a cemetery of Bradleys near the settlement of Robotyne in the Zaporizhzhia region, highlighting the weakness of their armor in intense combat, as well as the ammunition shortages faced by the units operating them, according to testimonies from members of Ukraine’s 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Growing Ukrainian criticism
In January 2024, CNN reported that Ukrainian soldiers expressed growing dissatisfaction with the Bradley’s performance against Russian forces. The network stated that these vehicles had been the spearhead of the failed Ukrainian offensive the previous year, with dozens damaged or destroyed, making them scarce on the front lines.
Ukrainian crews also criticized the Bradley’s limited ability to withstand harsh winter conditions, as well as the condition of some older units sent by the United States.
Similar losses for Abrams tanks
The Bradley was not the only system to suffer significant losses. US-made M1A1 Abrams tanks supplied to Ukraine also sustained heavy damage. By June, the Ukrainian Army had lost 87 percent of the tanks delivered, with 27 out of 31 destroyed or captured.
Following these losses, the US Army canceled its plans to develop a new version of the M1A2 and instead shifted to developing its most advanced tank in nearly half a century under the M1E3 program.
As for infantry fighting vehicles, no announced programs currently aim to develop a radical replacement for the Bradley.
