Britain will be sending an unspecified number of Mastiff heavily armoured vehicles to Ukraine, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has confirmed.
It is understood that the vehicles will be stripped of sensitive equipment with British troops sent to a country neighbouring Ukraine to provide training.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace confirms to me that the UK WILL be supplying #Mastiff vehicles to Ukraine.
More tonight on @Channel4News at 7pm… pic.twitter.com/SYgYtfGXey
— Paul McNamara (@PGMcNamara) April 8, 2022
Mastiff is the British version of the Cougar 6×6 and can be armed with a 7.62 mm GPMG, 12.7 mm heavy machine gun or 40 mm grenade machine gun. Here’s a tour of the vehicle from the British Army, be warned though that the video is 10 years old.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boT3Zgvp0v4&ab_channel=BritishArmy
Describing the vehicle on their website, the British Army say:
“Mastiff is a heavily armoured, 6 x six-wheel-drive patrol vehicle which carries eight troops, plus two crew. It is currently on its third variation. It is suitable for road patrols and convoys and is the newest in a range of protected patrol vehicles being used for operations. Mastiff has a maximum speed of 90kph, is armed with the latest weapon systems, including a 7.62mm general purpose machine gun, 12.7mm heavy machine gun or 40mm automatic grenade launcher.
These wheeled patrol vehicles have a less intimidating profile than tracked vehicles and give commanders on the ground in Afghanistan more options to deal with the threats they are facing. They have Bowman radios and electronic countermeasures and are fitted with additional armour beyond the standard level to ensure they have the best possible protection.”
More on this when we get specifics.
Well, good protected mobility for the northern front if those lines go static.
I’d read they were also offered Jackal.
Excellent idea, great bit of protected kit for javelin toting Ukrainians to storm about in, for a spot of can opening…..
Imagine 2 Javelin operators in a treeline in a Jackal. 2 missiles off in quick succession and the driver is out of there before the missile is even at peak altitude
Yes. I do wonder though that although jackal may be fine running around the deserts and for off road mobility with SF how will the crew cope in it in a pitch battle with air burst artillery going off and it being in effect an open top jeep. They might as well be on foot if the flat steppes of eastern Ukraine are anything to go by, they could hide in a foxhole then! Then again, as I have never served I’m happy to be corrected by Airborne or other army lads on this.
Mate I agree to a degree as light role wagons need to be utilised wisely! They can be used as recce, as they are with us, or they can be used in groups of 3 or 4, drive forward, drop of a few 2 man Jav teams, and retire go the rear to provide cover and be prepared to move forward at a rapid rate, pick up the Jav teams and extract quick! Plenty of options but carful consideration needed mate.
Looks like a Mig-21 in the line behind Ben Wallace.
Yes, Romanian MiG-21 Lancers (upgraded with Israeli avionics).
Christ Romania still flying mig21s? No wonder they want more Typhoons for air policing.
They are the process of replacing them with refurbished F16 from Portugal
He was at the airbase in Romania because Britains adding another 2 Typhoons to take its based aircraft there to six.
Australia is sending 20 Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicles to Ukraine after Zelensky specifically asked for them by name.
The first Bushmasters left from Amberley airbase by RAAF C17 on Friday.
They have been repainted from AUSCAM in standard army green complete with painted Ukrainian flags.
Two of the vehicles are the ambulance variant which should be a more than useful piece of kit.
Good work.
Let’s hope these Mastiff’s will also be repainted in something similar.
They did a very good paint job on the Bushmasters. Twenty is a good contribution, 5 C17 loads worth.
Let’s face it, Putin is in a less threatening position than when this conflict started, and as such, the West should increase this level of aid. If all NATO members offer armoured vehicles, there is an excellent chance the Russian forces will be compromised even further?
Yes we should. Poland and Czech Republic are sending T72 tanks. Hopefully in enough numbers and with the logistics to make a real difference. They need artillery though.
Not sure what the French have given but maybe the nexter cesaer is a good fit, seems relatively cheap but effective, means also we could have a continuous supply of Nato ammo.
Off subject but can brimstone be fitted easily to the SU25’s that Ukraine and some Nato allies still have? This would be a good counter to Russian mass tank movement in the east and being standoff allows the Ukrainians to pop up attack with less risk from Russian SAM
Slovakian S-300 have just arrived today and being reported have agreed to sell Ukraine 16 Zuzana 155mm SPG’s which is being celebrated in Slovakia as saving its arms industry as its the last heavy arm they still manufacture and havent had much export success with it (only Greece bought it).
The UK could do with some more heavy artillery. Well that and everything else. That Zuzana looks a bit crude but capable.
Google it’s sister Diana… good piece of solid, rugged, reliable kit.
Is Poland actually sending T72s?
I think the problem is the US. Poland want to but will not release large numbers of T72s to Ukraine until the US authorises the sale of the 250 Abrams that Poland want.
Disapppointing. There is no time now for bureaucracy. Why would there be an issue – Poland is NATO ally of the uS.
Above my pay scale, and intellect but you get the general idea….
https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R46337
Individual countries should contribute to Ukraine as they see fit regardless of their status in NATO. Important for NATO to focus on their key role. I have every confidence that the Ukrainians can shift the invaders from land where they are not welcome.
After this is all over Russia will either become peaceful and democratic or double down and get new and better kit. Either way it will be a new challenger for the west.
If Russia fails, it will not have the money to rebuild and change course
Let’s hope Russia does not get restocked from China and try again or somewhere else! Georgia looks vulnerable too. At least the West is restrenthening its forces.
What is needed is something to counter the expected surge in Russian Armour and that would be the A10, the Americans have just decided to mothball a good percentage of them so now is the time to get them over to the Ukraine and do what they were designed to do “Destroy Russian Armour” they could fly them to Poland, give the Ukraine pilots a week in Poland to get up to speed then let them lose on the Russians.
If we are giving them APC’s and T72’s we can give then Mig 29’s and A10’s
Although this sounds like a great idea there a few considerations. A weeks training might be ok for SU25 pilots who fly in a similar manner but there will be a massive maintenance gap for these aircraft.
Sorry, but I can’t see a week being anything like long enough to convert pilots on to these……..
A10s would be a game changer but not sure how easy to maintain vs the mig 29 that they know how to use any soar su-25 going? Also not sure how good is a10 v modern manpads
The A10’s were designed to live in a heavy triple A environment but even if the newer systems prove to be more effective against the A10 they will still have time to put a hole in the Russian tank regiments.
The Americans want to get rid of them so give them to a good cause.
The US Congress refused to approve the USAF’s request to mothball 42 older A-10s so there are no A-10s to give. In fact, the USAF just completed a program to upgrade 173 A-10s to include new wings and they expect to be in service until the 2030s.
They could try a dozen on lend/lease to see how they get on!!!
MiG-29s absolutely; Ukrainian pilots could jump in tomorrow and fly them effectively into combat.
A-10s would be a different kettle of fish, though. A week might get them just about flying. You’d probably need a 2-3 month intensive course to make them proficient enough to be effective in them. Aircraft take longer to train in than tanks or APCs.
Is the a-10 really much better than the su25? I imagine the loss rates would be about the same operating in Ukraine. Also it’s the weapons fitted not just the aircraft.
What may be needed more is better electronic defensive systems for the aircraft they have.
Really depends what is causing most losses to Ukraine’s aircraft and can it be countered with add on kit.
MOD was holding an arms exhibition at Salisbury Plain for visiting Ukrainian generals yesterday to show them what they could offer and provide product demonstrations. Interestingly they said they were keen to offer the Ukrainians some systems that had been tested but not yet adopted into UK service.
UK Defence Ministers host Ukrainian government to plan future military aid – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Looks like we have another Russian troll.
A give away being not understanding which spelling of “their” is appropriate…
I’m afraid you don’t have to be Russian to not understand the difference between ‘they’re’, ‘their’ and ‘there’, Marked. As attested to by many a post on this site. They struggle with ‘its’ and ‘it’s’ too.
I don’t know if this is to do with a literacy-defecit or overuse of spellcheck / grammarcheck.Jjust sayin’….
And where are the Russian Generals? Well, I know where seven of them are.
Richard 1 johan 0.
Strange comment as the head sheds are needed to verify and confirm the kit they are interested in!
Another very Russian attitude is to tell lies. See also : ‘We did not bomb a railway station and kill refugees’.
The Ajax perhaps?
Question i have is HOW is Ukraine paying for this Kit, or if its gifted who is paying for it. and why isnt the Ukraine using its transport fleet which is sat in Leipzig not collecting this equipment and stores. keep shouting give me give me give me. yet they are not helping that movement. and again a issue with selling food to Africa as a country is not supporting them and is backing Russia. there are a lot of questions starting to be asked, about Nato Members not wishing to cut ties with Russia, yet would expect support if… Read more »
Why should Ukraine pay for this kit? Payment would be bureacratic and may slow down supply and we would lose moral authority. This is aid – lethal aid. You don’t pay for aid.
If it is gifted then donor governments pay for it or write it off – not hard.
I did not know about Ukrainian kit in Leipzig? Why is it there? What is it?
AN-124 cargo aircraft.
The fact that they’re not cut ff from parts support as the Russian’s have wrecked Antonov’s facilities at Hostomel seems to have escaped the posters attention…
They have been flying, theyve been used to go to Turkey to collect Bayraktar TB2’s and other errands but I expect the Ukrainian’s are having to be careful with their hours at the moment. There are also 3 Russian owned AN-124 stranded there..hopefully they will be turned over to the Ukrainian’s..
I don’t think Ukraine is paying for anything the U.K. sends them. This is about stopping Russia taking over Ukraine and feeling like it can take on the world after a victory. Obviously the U.K. tax payer is paying for the kit. That’s fine by me. So far most things sent have been bought previously.
The only things Ukraine is paying for are the Matador weapons from DND in Germany and Bayraktar from Turkey. They may also be paying for artillery and small arms ammunition from the likes of Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia etc. They’ll be using the funds donated to them for that purpose. Hopefully every eastern european factory capable of producing ex-Soviet calibres is working night and day at present (with the exception of Serbia’s facilities, unless they are pulling away from Russia).
Mastiff while is a great bit of kit, its to large for UK Roads and that sort of shoots it in the foot.
Send them Ajax what better place to send scrap metal like Russia did LOL
Weve already promised to provide the Ajax to Russia lol.
😂😂
So is this the MOD’s way of scrapping off the Mastiff? With Boxers on the horizon, why would we need to keep them anyway.
We don’t want too, it’s off road mobility isn’t great and there’s better systems out there, the plan was to replace them with Boxer for years (until the whole Warrior getting scrapped without replacement thing happened).
They need them we don’t plus they’ll do more good in Ukraine than a UK scrapyard.
Agree Mastiff has no real function for British army outside of insurgency Afghanistan or Iraq. They must be collecting dust. Therefore gift them to Ukraine. Please remember, those few commentators on here asking about payment. Ukraine are paying in blood to fight our proxy war vs Russia so that NATO doesnt have too. For that and their sacrifice and our ongoing avoidance of a hot war vs Russia we should be massively grateful. They are dying so we dont have too.
Even if only one in twenty NLAW’s damage or destroy Russian armoured vehicles, they are well worth the money as Russia has inherited its large MBT stockpile and could not afford to replace them now.
Amen to that Mr Bell. We should definitely not be treating this conflict as some sort of a video game full of replays.
Got to admire the Ukrainian people fighting this Russian monster with what they’ve got to hand. May they be very successful and get their country back!
Completely off track. You may have noticed the vast nbr of Russian tanks with their turrets blown off. In a nutshell this is due to the autoloader resulting in a carousel of shells inside the turret which have a tendency to go bang if excited by a visiting munition. With that in mind here is a control dem of a T72 I think by Ukrainians using a command line. Remember what I said about flyaway turrets:
I thought to myself “That’s a bit close …’
Watched quite a few YouTube vids of the inside of Russkie tanks over the last couple of years! The auto loader and ammo carousel always seems a bit heath robinson and lethal to the crew! It’s got the mechanical tolerance of a cheese grater!
Excellent video Farouk. I always like watching your links. They are well chosen and informative.
Ukraine has a new Olympics sprinter team or…
“I only told you to blow the doors off!” Michael Caine.
Clearly the person taking the video had an ohhh f😱😱k moment with how far that turret and stuff flew upwards and outwards.
What’s a grenade machine gun?
600 grenades a minute? Please !
A GMG superb bit of kit! 40mm grenades out to a range of 1500m, belt fed, crew served ass whupping machine!
H-K’s one the British army use is 340rpm & uses a 32 round belt:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heckler_%26_Koch_GMG
They replace light morters for infantry close support & are used by most armies for some time now.
H&K GMG fires 340 rounds per min.
The MOD has been trying to sell these off for a few years now, seems like they found a solution to that.
I hope they are ok over there and quite reliable. Russia has lots of armor that I imagine could put a hole through a mastiff.
I imagine using them right place, right time will help mitigate this.
Is mastiff something Ukraine has said it needs?
As long as used in protected mobility role.
Yes that’s what I hope. In the correct role they should be great. The Ukrainians have had Saxon for a while so bit of an upgrade for them.
Just saw Boris j has been in Kyiv.
How do we think he got there.I would not want to take a chopper that’s for sure
Hi, In these worrying times, it is nice to see that they are finally sending something that may push the Russians back. Or give them a taste of what might come in the future in this war if they continue with this ridiculous conflict. Good luck and say safe. Dave
Can the Mastiff act as an artery tractor, Ukraine has a lot of towed artery.
Thats Wolfhounds job. Mastiff with a flat bed on the back.
It strikes me that the UK/NATO are stepping up the level of assistance from missiles to actual armoured vehicles…
A summary dated April 8 of what’s going on here.
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/45139/ukraine-situation-report-slovakias-donated-s-300-surface-to-air-missile-system-is-on-its-way
No mention of the Polish T72s or heavy artillery.
with the soft ground in Ukraine ( at present ) that seams to bog down tanks but not tractors 🚜. Would not CVR family of tracked vehicles ( scimitar / Samson ) etc
Be useful.
Spartan ad Samaritan indeed on the way!
Is the MOD getting rid of the Mastiff?