The key facts

  • The Russian Defense Ministry claims the Mastiff and Senator were destroyed by the West group
  • The Mastiff is the British version of the American Cougar armored vehicle
  • Earlier, the ministry reported hitting an Italian Puma and the Ukrainian use of the Bucephalus APC

Statement by the Russian Defense Ministry

Russian troops destroyed a British Mastiff armored vehicle during combat in the special operation zone, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on November 8. According to the ministry, the vehicle, which belonged to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, was destroyed by servicemen of the Zapad (West) group of forces.

What else was hit

In the same statement, the ministry said that fighters of the West group also destroyed a Canadian-made Senator armored personnel carrier, two field artillery guns, and a counter-battery warfare station.

What the Mastiff is

The Mastiff is a six-wheeled (three-axle) armored vehicle designed to provide protection against infantry weapons and explosive devices. In the British Army it is designated Mastiff PPV (Protected Patrol Vehicle) and is a modification of the American Cougar armored vehicle developed by Force Protection Inc.

Previous reports on foreign equipment

This is not the first statement by the Russian Defense Ministry regarding foreign equipment in the special operation zone. Earlier, the ministry reported that fighters of the Yug (South) group hit a Puma armored vehicle of Italian manufacture, which is rare for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and before that it reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces used the Bucephalus APC against Russian troops, described in the publication as 'notorious.' It is not possible to independently confirm these reports with independent data in available publications: the information comes from the Russian military ministry.