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| The M60 AVLB bridge stacker. |
| The photo is illustrative |
Western countries are transferring to Ukraine not only armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles and tanks, but also armored special engineering equipment. So, recently, the first photos of the American M60 AVLB tank bridge-laying machine transferred to the Armed Forces of Ukraine appeared on the Internet.
It is likely that these bridge-laying units were transferred to Ukrainian formations as part of a military assistance package from the United States, which the White House announced back in March 2023, that is, a year ago. This package included tank bridge-laying machines.
It is known that the M60 AVLB tank bridge loader was developed on the basis of the M60 tank. It is designed to build bridges up to 18 meters long, which can withstand loads of up to 60 tons. For the first time, a bridge-laying machine of this type was introduced in 1963, and it was developed to replace the previous version of the M48 AVLB bridge-laying machine. Army engineering units use such bridge-laying machines for the rapid transfer of tanks and other combat vehicles through trenches or small water obstacles.
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| The M60 AVLB bridge stacker in the APU. |
| Source: topwar.ru |
Since its adoption, such bridge-laying aircraft have taken part in many armed conflicts in which armored units of the US Army and Marine Corps were involved. Among them are the Vietnam War, the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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| The M60 AVLB bridge stacker in the APU. |
| Source: topwar.ru |
The US Army decommissioned the M60 AVLB in 2003, replacing them with more modern M104 Wolverine bridge pavers. However, the M60 AVLB vehicles are still in service with the American National Guard. In 2023, they were also transferred to Ukraine – in the amount of eight pieces.