Ukraine is Using its Leopard Tanks at Night as ‘Nocturnal Predators’

Wes O'Donnell
7 min readSep 14, 2023

The incredible advantage of night fighting in war

Leopard 2 A7, German Army Training Centre, Munster 2015. Boevaya mashina CC BY-SA 4.0

In a recent video posted by the Ukraine Ministry of Defense, a soldier described how they are maximizing the advanced, German-made Leopard 2A6.

This model of tank is currently the best tracked vehicle on the ground in Ukraine and is even more advanced than the older American M1 Abrams that will be arriving in the coming weeks.

These Leopards have some of the most advanced night vision available on the battlefield.

Unfortunately, these tanks are in short supply: Ukraine only received 21 of the 2A6s from European allies, and no more are due to be delivered.

Future shipments include only the older American Abrams tanks and significantly older Leopard models.

Check out the video:

So, how can fighting at night give Ukraine a huge advantage over the Russians?

Seduced by “Owning the Night”

--

--

Wes O'Donnell
Wes O'Donnell

Written by Wes O'Donnell

US Army & US Air Force Veteran | Global Security Writer | Intel Forecaster | Law Student | TEDx Speaker | Pro Democracy | Pro Human | Hates Authoritarians