Iran
Joined: Mar 2008
Aviation Qualifications: Spotter
Posts: 1,811
Likes: 214
From: London
And do what, jump every time Trump asks?
It was only a few short months ago they were urging us and the rest of Europe to be less reliant on them for our collective defence. And then, before you know it, they cry foul when we tell them we don't want to get involved in their latest military misadventure.
It was only a few short months ago they were urging us and the rest of Europe to be less reliant on them for our collective defence. And then, before you know it, they cry foul when we tell them we don't want to get involved in their latest military misadventure.
Thread Starter
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Joined: Jul 2000
Aviation Qualifications: Spotter
Posts: 24,509
Likes: 7,254
From: Peripatetic
Video
A helicopter of the UAE Air Force shoots down an Iranian ‘Shahed-136’ kamikaze drone near the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
Joined: Jun 2009
Aviation Qualifications: Military
Posts: 1,851
Likes: 645
From: florida
Salute!
Thnx ORAC, Lonewolf, et al for recognizing the fog of war RE: the short round that struck a school. Sadly, sierra happens, and we can only try to find out why and then do our best to prevents it from happening again.
The ROE and the extràordinary efforts by the planners and actual delivery folks on one side to minimize collateral casualties and damage in this conflict is beyond pale. Yet sierra happens, and there is no reason to disregard actaing upon poor intell or even intentional "poor" intell by nefarious parties. Happened to me a few dozen klicks nw of Plieku in 1968 when my wingie and I dropped on a small ville supposedly harboring an enemy big guy. Turned out it was a political enemy of the provence chief! Talk about feeling low! It is the second worst thing to find out other than you snuffed a bunch of your friends.
Despite the unnerving accuracy of the stuff nowadays that I would love to have had back then and on my second chapter, things have not evolved to achieve what most of the innocent critics think is possible.
Gums reminds all who have not experienced the opportunity to mistakenly drop a short round. Maybe Mogs can comment from his adventure in the 80's.
out,
Thnx ORAC, Lonewolf, et al for recognizing the fog of war RE: the short round that struck a school. Sadly, sierra happens, and we can only try to find out why and then do our best to prevents it from happening again.
The ROE and the extràordinary efforts by the planners and actual delivery folks on one side to minimize collateral casualties and damage in this conflict is beyond pale. Yet sierra happens, and there is no reason to disregard actaing upon poor intell or even intentional "poor" intell by nefarious parties. Happened to me a few dozen klicks nw of Plieku in 1968 when my wingie and I dropped on a small ville supposedly harboring an enemy big guy. Turned out it was a political enemy of the provence chief! Talk about feeling low! It is the second worst thing to find out other than you snuffed a bunch of your friends.
Despite the unnerving accuracy of the stuff nowadays that I would love to have had back then and on my second chapter, things have not evolved to achieve what most of the innocent critics think is possible.
Gums reminds all who have not experienced the opportunity to mistakenly drop a short round. Maybe Mogs can comment from his adventure in the 80's.
out,
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 740
Likes: 58
From: Nottinghamshire
Safe days to those in harms way.
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 3,534
Likes: 293
From: The Alps
One of my old best mates who lives in Dubai, ORAC mentioned to me while we were zooming a few hours ago about the UH-60 engaging with the drone. Reports said AH-64 but looking at the X twitter feed its a UH-60 Black Hawk. One report said door gunner used their M134 to bring it down.. hasten to add she was worried about her eldest daughter being other side of the city awaiting cab/uber to come back home. She says air raid sirens going off here there everywhere, says two and now three major oilfields been attacked. Think the one today was Fujiarah (?) as she said.
Back in November in happier times, I attended the Dubai Air Show 2025 so saw their Joint Aviation Command UH-60L/M / Armed Black Hawks on static including one configured for aerial firefighting with unusual long boom by Dart Aerospace (my pics below)
cheers
Back in November in happier times, I attended the Dubai Air Show 2025 so saw their Joint Aviation Command UH-60L/M / Armed Black Hawks on static including one configured for aerial firefighting with unusual long boom by Dart Aerospace (my pics below)
cheers
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 1,470
Likes: 844
From: Here 'n' there!
That includes, but is certainly not limited to, the continual decline in our Armed Forces meaning that we have to scrabble around to send a ship, belatedly, to the Med. That issue has its roots back in the SDR in 2010.
Today, the decline in the relevance of the UK military in Europe is more to do with the fact that much of Europe is actually spending real money to upgrade their warfighting capability while the UK Government are basically only making "promises" of future spending ...... maybe ........ "if the economy allows" (or some such caveat I saw being trotted out) and, in practical terms, we are left with a legacy of decades of under-investment.
There is some new money but, how many months late is the Defence Investment Plan so we know what is actually being funded and when? And I wonder if the delay is because the Govt didn't realise just how unprepared the Armed Forces find themselves to meet the Strategic Defence Review from last year and so how much it will actually cost to close the capability gaps?
And that includes the very significant "new face of warfare" we have seen in the Ukraine War, and now being amplified big-time by the tactics employed by Iran (to get back on topic!!). Add in the current unpredictability as to what the US actually thinks (OK, it's CiC!) on a day-to-day, if not hour-to-hour basis about, seemingly, anything..... All that's done is make a bad situation worse - for everyone!
So, to blame the whole sorry mess on a "suicide note", even remotely, misses the real, long-standing, Government-wide issues of the last few decades. Well, that's my view of it at all!
Edited to add: Dreadful news re the tanker crew in Iraq. Irrespective of rights/wrongs/politics/egos/etc, we have guys and gals who are putting their lives on the line hour by hour on Duty. Watching just the "visible" manifestation of the Iran war, the constant flow of even just the C17's and KC135's, is quite sobering.
Last edited by Hot 'n' High; 13th March 2026 at 00:31.
Joined: Jun 2001
Aviation Qualifications: ATPL
Posts: 4,087
Likes: 4,426
From: 3rd Rock, #29B
Want to have another go at that, as it stands the sentence is "incompl..."?
There are some very good reasons for the X-O-S sized in-flight refuelling probe, there is a great video of an MH-53 demonstrating one of the reasons.
There are some very good reasons for the X-O-S sized in-flight refuelling probe, there is a great video of an MH-53 demonstrating one of the reasons.
Joined: Dec 2017
Aviation Qualifications: SLF
Posts: 977
Likes: 705
From: Yakima
Joined: Apr 2008
Aviation Qualifications: Spotter
Posts: 611
Likes: 249
From: on the ground
Joined: Aug 2013
Aviation Qualifications: Military (Retired)
Posts: 1,345
Likes: 562
From: Washington.
Joined: Nov 2015
Aviation Qualifications: SLF
Posts: 3
Likes: 12
From: Canada
Big thanks, too, to everyone who posts here. I'm mostly a lurker, but often get a better handle on geopolitics from PPRuNe than from the nightly news.
Last edited by snarkle; 13th March 2026 at 04:56.
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 263
Likes: 148
From: SEA
And I can´t see any B-52 flying over countries which have a reasonable working air defence system. Seems like only countries which are second or third tier opponents get it.
Joined: Jul 2003
Aviation Qualifications: Military (Retired)
Posts: 2,688
Likes: 1,522
From: Near the coast
KC135 vs KC46
The KC46 is in service already. When you look down on an apron full of US tankers the first thing you notice is the size difference. The 135 looks miniature in comparison to its successor. The same would have been true if the A330 had actually made it into USAF service.
BV
BV
Joined: Apr 2000
Aviation Qualifications: ATP+Mil
Posts: 10,959
Likes: 1,814
From: EGDC
Only if it was deliberate, but it wasn’t.
Blame hasn’t yet been acknowledged, just a preliminary report which says the evidence points to it have been a deliberately aimed Tomahawk rather than faulty navigation or damage to the missile. Evidence suggests that old intelligence showed the building as being part of the targeted military compound, the target list not having been updated since it became a school.
https://www.nbcnews.com/world/iran/o...ool-rcna262967
Presumably a formal apology will follow the final report. What action will follow the final report remains to be seen. I would assume it would judged to be one of the things that occur in the fog of war unless someone was remiss in assessing intelligence and updating the target database.
Blame hasn’t yet been acknowledged, just a preliminary report which says the evidence points to it have been a deliberately aimed Tomahawk rather than faulty navigation or damage to the missile. Evidence suggests that old intelligence showed the building as being part of the targeted military compound, the target list not having been updated since it became a school.
https://www.nbcnews.com/world/iran/o...ool-rcna262967
Presumably a formal apology will follow the final report. What action will follow the final report remains to be seen. I would assume it would judged to be one of the things that occur in the fog of war unless someone was remiss in assessing intelligence and updating the target database.
It wasn't a 'drop short' or accidental hit - and as for the knee jerk reaction from the administration that it was an Iranian own-goal can nobody tell the truth any more!!!!
What would be the reaction if (heaven forbid) an Iranian terrorist group blew up a school in DC because it use to be a DoD building but they hadn't updated their int?
Joined: May 2009
Aviation Qualifications: ATP+Mil
Posts: 314
Likes: 254
From: uk
KC135 has done , and still is doing, a great job
AAR can be hairy!
America - finish the job - get rid of the Mullahs whilst you have the chance .
no other option
UK and Europe = give all the help you can .
AAR can be hairy!
America - finish the job - get rid of the Mullahs whilst you have the chance .
no other option
UK and Europe = give all the help you can .