Expect to see them in action when Ukrainian forces shift from defense to offense. Look closely for ex-German Pionierpanzer 2A1 Dachs AEVs. The Dachs is the most numerous breaching vehicle in Ukrainian service. It could equip engineer battalions in one or more of the Ukrainian army’s heaviest brigades.
While tanks provide covering fire, a 43-ton, three-crew Dachs rolls along a lane that a mine-clearing vehicle has plowed or rolled through any mines abutting the trench and berm that anchors the defensive line. In the span of perhaps three minutes, the Dachs has filled the trench and cut a hole in the berm. The breach is open. The Dachs can roll forward or reverse and pull aside so the tanks can speed through the breach—and into the enemy’s rear area.