The moment a Russian “invincible” Terminator tank is blown up in Ukraine

An apparently abandoned Russian BMPT “Terminator” armoured vehicle was destroyed by Ukrainians using artillery.

This is a model designed for use in urban areas, where conventional tanks can easily be destroyed with hand-held weapons. The Terminator has been touted by Russia as being extremely difficult to destroy, due to its sensors, supposedly state-of-the-art technology, and varied weaponry.

The platform was given the unofficial name “Terminator” by the manufacturer’s own officials, the Uralvagonzavod factory.

The vehicle has four 9M120 Ataka anti-tank rocket launchers, two 2A42 30 mm automatic cannons, two AG-17D grenade launchers and a 7.62 mm PKTM machine gun. The Terminator has a crew of five, weighs 48 tonnes and can reach a maximum speed of 60 km/h on paved roads. However, for cost reasons, like many other recent Russian weapons, such as the Su-57 aircraft, the Terminator is based on an old T-72 tank chassis.

The BMPT Terminator is the Russian equivalent of the American Bradley, but unlike its rival, the Terminator does not carry troops.

Also read: Russia withdraws from service the highly dangerous weapon featured in the film “The Hunt for Red October”

A video posted to the r/CombatFootage community on Reddit shows such a vehicle being destroyed by Ukrainian artillery. The shot was guided by a drone near the tank, which filmed the moment. Two shells that landed near the vehicle damaged it, and a third hit it head-on.

The tank appears to have been abandoned by the crew as it did not move during filming. Some users noted that the left track was destroyed before the attack began.

The poor performance of modern Russian weapons in Ukraine has caused many traditional customers, such as India, to look elsewhere for alternatives. Among the platforms that have operated below expectations in this conflict are the Su-35 multirole aircraft, the Tigr 4×4 armoured vehicle or the Pantsir anti-aircraft system (which Putin relies on at his residence near Moscow).