Russia invades Ukraine {2022-02-24} (Part 2)

Presumably the “classified information” and “state secrets” the journalist is accused of gathering are otherwise known as “reality.”

One TV documentary I saw showed some people using a 3D printer to make a release clip that they attached to a hobby drone, and that could hold a small grenade that they managed to drop on to, and sometimes into, a tank - complete with video.

I haven’t heard much about strafing attacks in this war. Probably because neither side has air superiority.

Strafing attacks were refined in WWII. Often it was support staff, cooks, motorpool, clerks etc.who got caught in open road convoys. .50 cal aircraft guns were nasty business against the deuce and a half. But winning the war was crucial.

Sweden, however, seems to have been left behind. Turkey is the main roadblock. Here’s hoping their issues can be resolved quickly.

And here’s an article about how some Chinese are rethinking their attitude towards Putin and Ukraine: Russian ‘invasion was wrong’: Views from China on war in Ukraine | Russia-Ukraine war News | Al Jazeera

Sweden is now surrounded by NATO members. Russia would have to attack by sea.

Strafing as a tactic has lost a lot of utility in the era of the $50 million jet and plentiful MANPADS.

Isn’t taht what A10 Warthogs are for?

MANPADS will ruin a Warthog’s day pretty well. Even if the aircraft and crew survive, it will be driven off the attack and spend time getting patched back up.

They’ve lost some utility in the era of plentiful MANPADS. The original design of a “gun with a plane” is not nearly as viable now - it’s all or at least largely about precision guided munitions that can be launched at a distance. Which the A-10 can do. But strafing running with that big cannon are problematic, because tough as A-10’s are the modern contested airspace has just gotten much more hostile than it once was.

What we need is a drone A-10. :laughing: Or other uncrewed gunship.

All of these drone stories are giving me Shadowrun flashbacks.

Russia is willing to offer food to North Korea for weapons.

North Korean weapons are probably top notch /s.

…and then claim they were coming to Sweden’s rescue, after having been surrounded by Evil NATO.

A couple hundred pieces of N. Korean 1950’s artillery is plenty good enough to sit 20 miles away and flatten the rest of Bakhmut till nothing remains.
That would force the Ukrainians to abandon it, and fall back 5 kilometers to the next small town. Which gives the Russians the ability to advance 5 kilometers and flatten that small town.

How effective is shoot and scoot in that situation?

I think I’ve said this before, but it still blows my mind how low Russia has fallen. The USSR exported weapons all over the world, arming their allies against NATO, and now, Russia is reduced to begging North Korea, of all places, for weapons.

If the days of Russian forces no longer being able to make any kind of significant advances are not already upon us, I suspect they will be in the near future. Russia has already lost much of their good offensive kit and does not possess the industrial capabilities to replace it any time soon.

Russia mostly wants munitions, not like advanced airframes or anything.

I saw a box of rifle cartridges; they were falling apart like rotten batteries. I’ve never understood how this can happen if you can grab the factory foreman and a few randomly selected workers, give them a five minute trial and shoot them.

Considering Russian food, it’s still a fair exchange.