I strongly advise we stop talking about western MBT's as if they are invulnerable. Ukraine won't simply be able to steam roll through the Russian lines with impunity. They need to operate these vehicles wisely. Their improved armor and fire control compared to what Ukraine currently fields will inc...
Jump to postThere is a good article here by General Mick Ryan (retired) of the Australian Army considering Russia's probable strategies for 2023 broken down into 7 components: informational, command and leadership, military, diplomatic, national mobilisation, economic and adaptation. https://mickryan.substack.c...
Jump to postNot much. In theory they have a stronger air force, but they already show they suffer when they expose it. Defeating tanks means flying low which means exposure to MANPADs, and the Ukrainians have been given the world's best MANPADs in large quantities. Now Patriot is on the way which means even ge...
Jump to postIt appears the Pentagon is hedging for the possibility that will not occur quickly: That and they are applying the lesson learned toward possible war with China. Advancing into Russian held territory means less air defense coverage, so increased potential for Russia to utilize it's Su-25, Su-34, Mi...
Jump to postIt's kind of like a family where the kids are in one room while mom and dad have a god-awful row in the next room, then the parents come out and say let's go out to a nice family dinner. No one feels like celebrating, yet they go through the motions anyway, wondering when the next fight will break ...
Jump to postAlso they are across the Atlantic, They can ship over a couple dozen M1 by air if they have to. Poland can also sign over their first contingent of M1. They seem to be bending over backward to support Ukraine. bt Takes months to train personnel to support M1. Longer than the time needed for Challen...
Jump to postYakima is a nonstarter, it's even worse than the harebrained Moses Lake idea. The most direct highway to Yakima from the Sound is closed almost six months of the year, and so much extra traffic would be pushed onto I-90 which people just cannot keep from spinning out on with the slightest hint of s...
Jump to postVladimir Putin is turning away from his reliance on Wagner mercenaries to fight in Ukraine, according to military observers. The Russian president likely intends to rely on conventional Russian forces after recently appointing a new overall commander in General Valeriy Gerasimov, the Institute for ...
Jump to postpriorities. Tomahawks for airfield suppression, and SpecOps teams to eliminate anything that breathes, and has a rank of colonel and above For airfield suppression, airlaunched Tomahawks would be more appropriate. That would have to wait for the F-18s. Unless they can somehow integrate them on to t...
Jump to postThe only concerns I read about the GLSDB is that it is more susceptible of being intercepted than HIMAR rockets due to its relatively slow flying speed (gliding at about 400mph after the propulsion phase is over). 3 thoughts. 1) After the boost phase, the bomb actually detatch from the rocket, so i...
Jump to postSo, what happened to that grand speech Putler was supposed to make today? I searched the news sources and found nothing that matched the predictions, just Putler talking to factory workers. Ref: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/18/putin-could-be-ready-to-announce-a-second-mobilization-drive-analysts-sa...
Jump to postAs that contributor stated, they will likely send experienced tankers, though having no auto loader, a larger crew will be very new to them. But then so will having a much more survivable tank, with way better optics, sensors, ergonomics and you can brew up a hot beverage inside a Challenger! Switc...
Jump to postI'd think that supplying anything in less than battalion size (42-56 tanks) would be a waste. Not a waste, but not enough to make a significant difference. A platoon or company can provide fire support to take out discrete targets, or conduct or support advance an offensive to the current defensive...
Jump to postSeparate from the discussion about more western armored vehicles being committed in time to support a spring offensive, the Russians continue to be concerned that Ukraine will make another significant push now while the ground is frozen. The comments on this are very brief, and from a tertiary sourc...
Jump to post6 days later, Military Sealift Command is unloading Bradleys in the Netherlands. The ship that delivered them would have had to already been loaded and underway to reach Vlissingen so soon after the announcement. While the Army describes the delivery as a routine-sounding unit rotation for the dete...
Jump to postFrom Politico: In response to Duda’s comments, German Vice Chancellor and Economics Minister Robert Habeck, who also oversees arms export controls, dismissed concerns that Germany might not allow this. He said that “Germany should not stand in the way when other countries make decisions to support ...
Jump to postWhy are we being stingy with them? Back to logistics. It takes personel to bring these vehicles back from storage. Their skills are specific and you can not just hire extra help. Then there's a limited transport to get them across the Atlantic (specialized military transport) once there only a limi...
Jump to postEvery other news source I've read says Poland is willing to supply Leopard 2, but needs an export license from Germany to do so, and this is currently not being granted. Ukraine looks like it could beat Russia decisively, given the right support from the west. It is faced with the problem of fright...
Jump to postWagner still feeding the meatgrinder of Bakhmut; https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/09/ukraine-reinforces-bakhmut-defences-relentless-russian-assault They are feeding the meatgrinder, but they managed a comparatively significant gain over the last couple of days just north of Bakhmut. It ap...
Jump to postI am beginning to warm up to the thinking that has held back the transfer of heavy tanks to Ukraine. I began by asking myself: why are heavy tanks needed by Ukraine? The Abrams and Leopards main purpose on the battlefield is to defeat other tanks, but the Ukrainians seem to be doing a good job of t...
Jump to postFurther strikes deep in Russian territory should be expected, the head of Ukrainian military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, has told the US TV channel ABC . He added that the attacks would come “deeper and deeper” inside of Russia, without specifically saying whether Ukraine would be behind them. ht...
Jump to postAn island taken; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naSYIyrGivE The islands near the mouth of the Dnipro River and Kherson City are basically no-man's land right now. They're marshy, without much cover, and difficult to support. Ukraine also raised a flag on one of the points of high ground of another...
Jump to postEarly reports so more information presumably to come, a potential major hit on Russian military personnel in an occupied region; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGTY_CmVjWU https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/02/ukraine-strike-russian-held-makiivka-reportedly-kills-troops It was reported the...
Jump to postToday, I happened across a photo I have not seen before of the An-225 during the fighting at Hostomel. A large fire obscures the fuselage, but is outside of the hangar in front of the aircraft. The aircraft is still intact at this point Russian vehicles (V-markings visible in the full size image) ar...
Jump to postSo if Boeing is their typical slow selves, what is to keep them from not making their 3 or 4 year retrofit to the MAX-8s and 9s deadline, and Congres just passing another extension? Worsening relationship with their customers, who need to plan fleet sizes years ahead of time, and set schedules base...
Jump to postVladimir Putin believes Russia is not to blame for the war in Ukraine, adding both countries are "sharing a tragedy". During a televised address with senior military officials, the Russian president said he continued to see Ukraine as a "brotherly nation". https://www.bbc.co.uk/...
Jump to postI may have missed it - has anyone supplied Ukraine with a M163 aa system? Did the US scrap all of theirs? The US stock is likely all scrapped. They've been out of service for decades. I haven't heard if any other nations have sent any to Ukraine. It was an old system anyways. The simple radar only ...
Jump to postI may have missed it - has anyone supplied Ukraine with a M163 aa system? Did the US scrap all of theirs? The US stock is likely all scrapped. They've been out of service for decades. I haven't heard if any other nations have sent any to Ukraine. It was an old system anyways. The simple radar only ...
Jump to postHere is the text of the proposed amendment. Please note this is a 4-page excerpt from a 4,155-page document. Source: https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/download/jrq121922 That link gave me an error. I'm a little mixed up about the real process between the House and Senate versus the simple tidy ...
Jump to postOkay, can't help myself... this is my "Get Off My Lawn" moment... We have dedicated signage, auditory noise/announcements, flight attendants to "remind" folks to keep their seatbelts fastened regardless of flight conditions. I'm gonna guess the common thread here is lack of seat...
Jump to postWJ001 and WJ002 will be 777-8F airplanes, and they're not planned to be built until at LEAST 2024, with testing taking place 2025-2026. Matt cawby highly respected. What is your the evidence he is wrongs and you right please? 7778 is coming whether u like or the not. With the 7779 eis so slow, no c...
Jump to postI hope that other operators of the A380 are being made aware of the issue and potential need for inspection/repairs. I’m scheduled to fly on the QR A380 in six weeks so watching with interest! Yes, I’m sure they will all read this thread. They should all have received the same Airworthiness Directi...
Jump to postThis appears to be the updated EASA Airworthiness Directive on this matter, published August 31, 2022: https://ad.easa.europa.eu/ad/2022-0174R1 Portions of the rear spar require inspection after 12.5 years and front spar after 15 years form the date of wingbox assembly. Inspections are to repeat eve...
Jump to postMaybe the famous loud mouth AAB has a point when he points fingers at poor quality of Boeing B787? Just saying. The AD cites two incidents. That's out of a fleet that now numbers over 1000 aircraft, across more than a decade since the type entered service. This definitely sounds worth an AD, since ...
Jump to postAll this science and I’m guessing any practical application will, in the end, involve a steam boiler. Yes. For now, the simplest method to convert the energy generated by the fusion process would still be to boil water and run a steam turbine. The devices need cooling anyways, so this is a natural ...
Jump to postMy understanding is that the plasma is contained by magnetic fields. What happens if the magnetic field is removed. The National Ignition Facility uses inertial confinement, not magnetic confinement. A hollow, gold-plated metal cylinder (called a hohlraum) about 5 mm in diameter, containing a froze...
Jump to postMy understanding is that the plasma is contained by magnetic fields. What happens if the magnetic field is removed. The National Ignition Facility uses inertial confinement, not magnetic confinement. A hollow, gold-plated metal cylinder (called a hohlraum) about 5 mm in diameter, containing a froze...
Jump to postAs an engineer, and not an attorney, I'm wondering: when you raise capital for a project like this, that is 100% vaporware, or, to put it much more charitably, has very low probability of success, to what extent do you have a responsibility to inform your would-be investors? Can you just later blam...
Jump to postSounds like they stole my idea: https://www.airliners.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1468449&p=23516081#p23516081 Anyways, a passenger B-52 is an absurd idea.today. On the other hand, playing around with a concept for idle discussion would be far from the most absurd aviation video on Youtube...
Jump to postIt's pretty interesting to me we live in an age where drones roam freely, spot armored vehicles, then artillery is accurate enough to eliminate those vehicles. I read recently that the average life of fixed wing drones in Ukraine is about 6 flights, and of quad copters, 3 flights. If I remember rig...
Jump to postWith the Renton Factory being jammed right in the middle of the city, would there be any benefit to consolidating 737 production at Everett and shutting down the Renton facility? Potentially, but I don't really know if the money the sale would generate would offset the cost of moving all of the equ...
Jump to postCould they move any of the Boeing Defense assembly lines in in there? If I remember right, they bragged at one point, I think it was before they won the KC-46 contract, about consolidating the 767 production into a smaller area to free up more space for other programs. I tend to suspect that the sp...
Jump to postYou really begin to scratch your head when you look at some of the countries that the Swiss have sold military equipment to. Countries that have questionable human right records. And that's putting it nicely. My understanding is Switzerland's restrictions on weapons exports were not enacted based o...
Jump to postIt gets worse, Canada wanted to send Piranha 25, the APC version with the 25mm cannon, (Canada has been unusual in also sending brand new armoured vehicles, including their new 8 wheel one), guess who vetoed the 25mm cannon ammunition. I was wondering why the YPR tracked APC’s sent by the Netherlan...
Jump to postI still cannot wrap my head around the fact the Swiss refuse to allow munitions made in their country to be sent to Ukraine. Did it ever enter their minds that those munitions might be used in anger one day? My understanding is the sale to Germany, for example, was intended so that Germany could us...
Jump to postUS political scientist William Spaniel speculates that the real reason for Putin's invasion was to secure a landbridge to Crimea, which, despite the Kerch bridge, was suffering serious problems due to its isolation from Russia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIE1g8kqIpk&ab_channel=WilliamSpani...
Jump to postHas anyone seen any information on this? https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=41e8370f0928bb3bJmltdHM9MTY2OTkzOTIwMCZpZ3VpZD0yMmQyYTQyNS05YTYyLTYxMWMtMzk4Ny1iNDY0OWI4NDYwYzMmaW5zaWQ9NTQ4MQ&ptn=3&hsh=3&fclid=22d2a425-9a62-611c-3987-b4649b8460c3&psq=russian+invasion+plans+leaked&...
Jump to posthttps://mobile.twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1597928157696651266 Good God that is a staggering figure for Ukrainian casualties. Those losses are simply not sustainable. Ukraine's General Staff have been daily reporting their estimate of Russian casualties, and claim the count is over 88,000. T...
Jump to postNTSB prelim is out, https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/106276/pdf Thank you for sharing the report. Unfortunately, it's fairly short and very little of the information in it appears new. It does at least clarify some information: The P-63 was notionally ...
Jump to postA new video has surfaced that shows a possible drone hitting the P-63, and then descending fast into the B17. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/dallas-midair-tragedy-new-videos-show-startling-change-in-flight-path-of-p-63/ar-AA14KpwD?cvid=6ea703d9e97d4154b396a7d0e776e3a9 The video appears highly...
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