Future wars could be fought with hordes of killer ‘tanklets’, top Tank Commander says

Retired Sergeant Matthew Baldwin said the tanks of tomorrow might shrink to the size of a child’s go-kart and work in large, coordinated groups to hunt down the enemy.

Armed with laser guns and powerful electric engines, the nimble drones would overwhelm enemy forces with firepower, speed, and sheer numbers.

And their radar-proof, camouflaged coating would make them “almost impossible to spot before it was too late - much like apex predators in the wild”, he said.

Rtd Sgt Baldwin, who served in The Second Royal Tank Regiment, completed multiple tours of action in Northern Ireland, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan, and was Mentioned in Dispatches for his bravery.

He hit the headlines last week after claiming the British Army would become a laughing stock if its ranks were filled with “snowflake” Gen-Z conscripts.

Speaking at the launch of his latest book, he said “small and deadly” could be the next evolution in warfare.

He said: “We often think of tanks as these massive, imposing machines, but the future of armed conflict could be very different.

“Instead of giant, relatively slow-moving behemoths, we could see the advent of tiny, far faster vehicles working in cooperative packs.

“A battalion of such small, deadly, and very capable tracked tanklets would feasibly overwhelm much larger enemies like a pack of hungry hyenas, wolves, and other fearless carnivores do in the wild.”

Rtd Sgt Baldwin, whose team also tracked down war criminals on the UN’s most wanted list, said full-size, traditional battle tanks will always be needed.

Vehicles such as Britain’s 70-tonne Challenger 2 provide “unmatched troop protection, heavy artillery, and the ability to penetrate heavily fortified positions from a distance” and are unlikely to be replaced.

But as technology advances, he envisions a future where much smaller vehicles – what he calls ‘tanklets’ – will play a key supporting role on the battlefield.

Equipped with AI-powered autonomous systems and satellite guided GPS, they could work alone or as part of a larger coordinated force, drawing on real-time data to determine “who or what to attack next”.

The machines, which he says may be tracked or wheeled, could also be controlled remotely by professional tank commanders at command centres anywhere in the world.

Working in tandem with airborne drones, the tanklets could be used within 50 years for high-risk missions behind enemy lines or to “run amok” amongst enemy soldiers in urban environments, he said.

They might also be used for night raids, reconnaissance, intelligence gathering, and clearing enemy trenches.

In the event of a breakdown or a missile hit, the tanklets – which would be cheap and easy to mass produce - would be pre-programmed to self-destruct to protect their technology from falling into enemy hands.

Rtd Sgt Baldwin left the army after 19 years of active service in 2015 and is now a full-time author whose ‘Operation Fools Mate’ series of thrillers are inspired by his own military experiences.

He said: “No one can say what the future holds, but in my view, vehicles like these tanklets are more likely to come sooner than later—within the next 50 years, maybe less.

“The direction we’re heading in makes it clear that smaller, faster, and more efficient machines – like the small flying drones that have become indispensable in Ukraine - will play a significant role in the future of warfare.”

Story by Anthony Harvison (Belters News/News X)