Is Ukraine about to have a war?

[ORAC]

I’d we’d had them, and the men trained to use and maintain them, and the gas system to fill them - they’d undoubtedly have been stored on the Atlantic Conveyor…

[Timmy Tomkins]

Originally Posted by NutLoose

Yes, the level of corruption must be staggering, when the oligarchs murdered, stole and bribed their way into companies and took over, they reaped the fortunes they were making on yachts, homes, and art for themselves instead of reinvesting it into modernising and diversifying into goods that they could only buy from the opening up western markets, and just like the EU who sold their energy security down the river for the cheap Russian gas this is coming back to haunt them.
Their need for western electronics in their aircraft and main battle tanks etc is proving to be their Achilles heal, something thank God I believe the west has started to wake up to over the likes of China and Huawei being involved in our telecommunications systems.
I do hope the U.K. drops any plans to use them in the future and we all really need to look at our strategic suppliers for our core military and countrywide infrastructure ensuring if a war ever comes we will not be subject to the Vunerability the Europeans and Russia are finding themselves in with both energy and basic core parts used throughout industry, there is a lot to be said for homegrown.
Just look at the inability to ramp up military production the world over due to dumping production facilities and selling off parts of it means a rapid growth possibility has gone, the availability of machining equipment as an example is no longer there.

And we need to stop vital private companies being sold to overseas owners. The Chinese have already bought too much of our vital infrastructure. Getting politicians to stop focusing on money is an ongoing problem.

[t43562]

Originally Posted by NutLoose

I do hope the U.K. drops any plans to use them in the future and we all really need to look at our strategic suppliers for our core military and countrywide infrastructure ensuring if a war ever comes we will not be subject to the Vunerability the Europeans and Russia are finding themselves in with both energy and basic core parts used throughout industry, there is a lot to be said for homegrown.
Just look at the inability to ramp up military production the world over due to dumping production facilities and selling off parts of it means a rapid growth possibility has gone, the availability of machining equipment as an example is no longer there.

Isn't there often a debate about how the armed forces want kit that works (e.g. from the US) rather than debugging some homegrown alternative? Isn't the price of 'homegrown' that you have to put up with all the problems till there's enough money to sort them out?

[Beamr]

Regarding russian protective gear, Ukrainian soldiers from the 95th Air Assault Brigade inspect a set of captured ballistic vests.
They're probably, and I'll quote a Russian equipment expert on this; "locally made garbage from the DNR"

Twitter

[dead_pan]

@fdr - have to say your posts are excellent, spot-on.

If this is all Russia can achieve after spending c.20 years modernising its armed forces during a period of relative prosperity, then we really have nothing to fear. What does surprise me is that those restive regions haven't yet twigged that the game is up and begun taking matters into their own hands.

[ORAC]

Isn't there often a debate about how the armed forces want kit that works (e.g. from the US) rather than debugging some homegrown alternative? Isn't the price of 'homegrown' that you have to put up with all the problems till there's enough money to sort them out?

If we went to at a UK company wouldn’t be able to meet the need anyway - we buy in penny packets spread over years and the company facilities and staff are set up to do the same - take NLAW as an example.

Assuming we don’t expect to go to war without US support, then we can draw on their reserves - as we did during the Falklands war for AIM-9Ls, fuel etc.

[ORAC]

What does surprise me is that those restive regions haven't yet twigged that the game is up and begun taking matters into their own hands.

Two things to start with.

Nobody wants to be first whilst the others wait to see how Russia responds.

Most of their leaderships depend on Russian support to stay in power - kick out the Russians and you’ll probably quickly follow them out the door.

Hence any move would probably follow a coup by a group claiming national support.

[The Helpful Stacker]

Originally Posted by ORAC

I’d we’d had them, and the men trained to use and maintain them, and the gas system to fill them - they’d undoubtedly have been stored on the Atlantic Conveyor…

You mean they weren't?

I thought most of the British military's gash kit in 1982 was packed onto the Atlantic Conveyor?

[NutLoose]

The pontoon bridge into Kherson being constructed under the underhang of the bridge, reports have the bridge still in use, but the fact they are building a pontoon bridge indicated the Russians hold little chance of it remaining so.

Twitter

Looks worrying or fake news?

Twitter

[The Helpful Stacker]

Originally Posted by Beamr

Regarding russian protective gear, Ukrainian soldiers from the 95th Air Assault Brigade inspect a set of captured ballistic vests.
They're probably, and I'll quote a Russian equipment expert on this; "locally made garbage from the DNR"

https://twitter.com/Osinttechnical/s...77443862163458

This is what happens when you buy AR500 plates from the Russian version of Wish.com.

[Wokkafans]

Is the pontoon bridge on the upstream side presumably to stop them plinking each end and it drifting gently down the stream.

[NutLoose]

I don't know, my thoughts would be they have worked out the direction of fire onto the bridge then put the pontoons on the opposite side so the bridge is protecting them, shame a few mines could not be drifted down stream

[NutLoose]

Hitting the bridge again, just now

Twitter

[NutLoose]

First views of a Gepard in country, soon to be unservicable if they keep tree wacking with the radar dish

Twitter

[Johnboyle007]

Air activity over Romania

I see one of the recently arrived B52s at Fairford is stretching its legs over Romania today with several tankers and surveillance aircraft at hand.

[Beamr]

Lukashenkas had wrong medicine this morning: Belarusian SU24's are now modified to carry nukes.
"Aleksandr Lukashenko said: “They (the west) have to understand that no helicopters or aircraft will save them if they decide to aggravate the situation. Putin and I once said in St Petersburg that we will refit Belarusian Sukhoi aircraft among other things so that they could carry nuclear weapons. Do you think we talk nonsense? Everything is ready! This is why may they bring it.”"

https://eng.belta.by/president/view/...s-152726-2022/

[WB627]

Lets hope reunification takes place sooner rather than later.

[NutLoose]

Powers back on at the NPP

Twitter

[Tartiflette Fan]

Originally Posted by NutLoose

First views of a Gepard in country, soon to be unservicable if they keep tree wacking with the radar dish

https://twitter.com/UAWeapons/status...DQ7Yrl8q8rAAAA

Puzzlingly (for me ) a German magazine yesterday pictured Scholz climbing into a Gepard on a visit to Putlos military base, and then added that Ukrainian soldiers were training on the Gepard at the same base. Since there are only 65 Gepard -and this has been a drawn-out saga - I believed that all troops would have been trained long ago.

https://www.focus.de/politik/deutsch...137168638.html

[Tartiflette Fan]

Originally Posted by NutLoose

Looks worrying or fake news?

What does it matter which it is ? A pontoon bridge is only going to have a capacity of 5 %(?) of a major road-bridge, so drastically under-performing. Maybe the UKr want the Russkis to keep enough soldiers on the west bank so their capture will be a greater propaganda success.