Tank Lovers Group
Hobbies & Interests
This group is for everyone who like tanks, sci-fi tanks, real tanks, funny tanks, you can put here tank mods, tank maps, simply everything with straps, armor and gun :D
Battle of Vukovar was fought from August to November of 1991 and was but one chapter in the Croatian War of Independence (1991-1995).
As part of the 87-day siege of Vukovar, a large column of M-84s and armored personnel carriers are said to have barreled into the town, ready to flatten all that lay in their path. However, the armored vehicles of the Serb-controlled Yugoslav People's Army were defeated, and the road on which the vehicles lay stricken became known as groblje tenkova, or “graveyard of tanks”. Around 400 - 600 tanks and APC were destroyed in and around Vukovar.
Anti tank weapons used by Croats were M79 Osa, M80 Zolja, RPG 7 and other (including AT land mines).
Destroyed tanks on pictures are Yugoslav M-84, T-55 and T-34/85 (yes YPA/JNA still used it in 1991., mostly for infantry support).
The battle lasted for 87-days. More info on the battle: En.wikipedia.org
This pictures I uploaded are not here to bring hatred, but to show the amazing courage of Croatian defenders that were outnumbered and had to face one big war machine.
It also show how tanks can end when they go to deep in town without a proper strategy or infantry support.
This one seems to be in fine shape...
Maybe it is not destroyed but it is immobile, crew probably abandoned it, whether it was because of a AT hit (maybe the damage could be seen on the rear), a landmine or a mechanical malfunction I don't know. But staying in it without a proper infantry support is a death sentence, it could get hit from any direction since you could flank him easily by going behind or through out the houses on the left and right.
Guerrilla warfare has that effect on armor, infantry support or not. These poor bastards obviously tried to retard approach most nations with competent military forces do these days. If you want to beat your enemy, think like them, a tactic that is absent in the "modern" theater of war.
Strategy is a very important factor, I agree, as you can see it in the end of the description.
I just think that even with appropriate strategy it is not easy to beat the enemy if you don't send some sort of infantry support.
YPA did send support, but it always went ~50 meters behind the tank and most importantly it went by the road instead throughout flanks (houses left and right). The defenders would commonly let the tank go behind the first line where they could just hit it, that left YPA infantry exposed which ended in significant loses. Later on YPA organised it self a bit better and changed the strategy.