The commander of a Ukrainian tank called the Russian factory that manufactures T-72 tanks to complain about numerous problems with the machine, captured by his unit from the Russian military, reports Business Insider.

An officer with the callsign “Nomad” called the technical support service of the Uralvagonzavod manufacturing plant in the city of Nizhny Tagil, Sverdlovsk region, to complain about the numerous problems that the Ukrainians had discovered with the captured Russian T-72B3 tank.

These include leaking oil from the tank, non-working compressors, permanent failure of the electric mechanism for turning the tower, which forces the crew of the combat vehicle to turn it manually with the help of a handle.

“I am the commander of an armored group, and the problem is that we simply cannot control it,” complained a Ukrainian serviceman, reports Forbes.

The Ukrainian commander allegedly communicated with the director of the Russian arms factory

His complaint was picked up by an employee of Uralvagonzavod, who introduced himself as Oleksandr Anatoliyovych and apparently did not realize that he was talking to a Ukrainian military officer.

He assured Kochevnyk that he would raise these issues at the next meeting of the Uralvagonzavod on Tuesday, and would also ask for clarification from the company in the city of Cheleabinsk, which separately produces engines for these tanks.

The T-72B3 tank is the most modern of this line, which entered service with the Soviet armed forces in 1973. Ukrainians have been demonstrating such a combat vehicle, which they captured, since June last year.

As Forbes reports, Kochevnyk then called a person he identified as Andriy Abakumov, one of the heads of Uralvagonzavod, whose work phone number is listed on the company’s website.

He also didn’t seem to realize that he was talking to a Ukrainian military man and asked Nomad to describe in detail all the technical problems found in the tank in a WhatsApp message.

Forbes also notes that while it is clear that the Ukrainian officer is “trolling” the Russians, his claims about the tank are real.

The Ukrainian army captured more than 80 T-72B3 tanks

Although Kochevnyk did not specify when his unit received the captured tank, the independent website Oryx notes that since the beginning of the war, Russian forces have lost 342 T-72B3 tanks, 85 of which were captured by Ukrainians.

At the end of the phone call, Nomad revealed his identity to both men.

“Look, I am the commander of the armored group K-2. This is the second mechanized battalion of the 54th mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Make these tanks better so that they will be easier for us to control when we take more of these tanks as our trophies,” he told Anatolevich.

“Agree? We are very grateful to you. Be healthy. Glory to Ukraine!” he concluded.

According to the independent website Oryx, which tracks the losses of both armies fighting in Ukraine, the Russian army has lost two-thirds of the tanks it had before the “special forces operation” began last year.

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