Top Stories· August 18, 2026 at 10:18 p.m.
Ukrainian Drones Overcome Russian Tank's Active Protection System in Limited Success
Key takeaways
- Russian tanks equipped with Arena-M active protection system in combat for first time
- Ukrainian forces destroyed at least seven T-72B3A tanks, including some with the Arena-M system
- Ukrainian soldiers required between 15 and 20 drones to finish off each tank
Russian tanks equipped with a new active protection system, Arena-M, aimed to counter incoming drone attacks during a battle in eastern Ukraine on July 22. However, the Ukrainian forces repelled the attack and destroyed at least seven T-72B3A tanks, including some with the Arena-M system. The Russian system was able to shoot down some incoming drones, but Ukrainian soldiers required between 15 and 20 drones to finish off each tank. This incident demonstrated the ongoing struggle of many militaries to protect their expensive main battle tanks against swarms of cheap drones.
