The War in the Ukraine

Sinnavuuty

Senior Member
Registered Member
I'm curious how they shot down the Shahed-136. If they're using more expensive weapons on these than great for Russia. If they're getting shot down with small arms and machine guns, or EW, Russia may want to reevaluate how they use these drones.
We have supposed evidence:
So simply a case of bad luck then it seems like. Interesting choice to put a RnD office right next to a powerplant.

Edit to avoid double posting:

One of the missiles got shot down using a IGLA impressively.
I'm not convinced the Ukrainian shot down a missile in this video, but a Shahed-136. Cruise missiles were very effective today because apparently Shahed-136 drones were used as bait to distract and confuse Ukrainian anti-aircraft defenses. Ukrainian soldiers celebrated thinking they shot down a missile with MANPADS, but it was just a Shahed drone.
It's not just me with this claim...

Another video of Kerch bridge rail tracks, seems like the only barrier now is to remove the old rolling stock and put on new rails.

Substantial damage due to heat deformation visible on the rails, guardrails and what appears to be a metal divider between the two tracks. It remains to be seen whether the heat was sufficient to affect the structural strength of the concrete.

Interesting also that in this video there is no vehicular traffic visible on the road bridge.
 

Atomicfrog

Major
Registered Member
We have supposed evidence:

I'm not convinced the Ukrainian shot down a missile in this video, but a Shahed-136. Cruise missiles were very effective today because apparently Shahed-136 drones were used as bait to distract and confuse Ukrainian anti-aircraft defenses. Ukrainian soldiers celebrated thinking they shot down a missile with MANPADS, but it was just a Shahed drone.
It's not just me with this claim...
Still a nice shot against a Shahed-136, these slow flying suicide drones are probably not to hard to kill with manpads. If they have plenty of manpads left it's good, if they are running out of them they could have shot a ka-52 with it instead. How many manpad Ukraine received in the end? Someone have a count?
 

sheogorath

Major
Registered Member
Still a nice shot against a Shahed-136, these slow flying suicide drones are probably not to hard to kill with manpads. If they have plenty of manpads left it's good, if they are running out of them they could have shot a ka-52 with it instead. How many manpad Ukraine received in the end? Someone have a count?

Around 2000 Stingers(most probably past their due date), around 200 Mistrals, an undisclosed number of Startreaks(probably not that many given the only confirmed kill so far was an Mi-28 back in April) and whatever they had left in their Igla and Strela-3 inventory
 

Tam

Brigadier
Registered Member
The Soviet army in WW2 was immensely capable at combined arms and maneuver warfare. Operation Bagration where the Soviets destroyed the Wermacht’s Army Group Center and advanced 300 miles in 5 weeks or the Invasion of Manchuko where the Soviets steamrolled a 1M strong Japanese/Korean army and conquered an area almost twice the size of Ukraine in 3 weeks are prime examples.

I am yet to see Russia demonstrate that it is capable of either.

With every Soviet operation that was followed by intense shelling and MLRS hell that made Katyusha such a hated household word for the Germans. Manchukuo army was pretty much a demoralized army. The Russians are following the same book they had since WW2, e.g. Stalingrad.
 

Tam

Brigadier
Registered Member
Still a nice shot against a Shahed-136, these slow flying suicide drones are probably not to hard to kill with manpads. If they have plenty of manpads left it's good, if they are running out of them they could have shot a ka-52 with it instead. How many manpad Ukraine received in the end? Someone have a count?

Yes, every MANPAD costs more and takes longer to make than a Shahed 136. Furthermore, it's the Igla that's most effective against the drones and that's not being furnished anymore.
 
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RottenPanzer

Junior Member
Registered Member
Since Putin allowed Suvorov to used any means necessary except Nulcear Weapons, wouldn't it be a right time to conduct strategic bombing then? Tho i could see it depends on how still active is Ukrainian remaining air-defense network
 

Temstar

Brigadier
Registered Member
Fortunately, they took away the nuclear power of General Armageddon.
It's apparently his birthday today, one wonders what he will do.

If he has the ISR to support it now would be a good time to hit any transformers being fixed, as doing so would both put them out of commission even more so as well as reduce Ukraine's capacity to enact further repair.
 

Sinnavuuty

Senior Member
Registered Member
Since Putin allowed Suvorov to used any means necessary except Nulcear Weapons, wouldn't it be a right time to conduct strategic bombing then? Tho i could see it depends on how still active is Ukrainian remaining air-defense network
This attack a few hours ago took place mainly through strategic bombers, if I'm not mistaken there were some sources saying that there were 40 bombers in the air, with the NATO media confirming this number reporting to Ukraine.

It's apparently his birthday today, one wonders what he will do.
I heard. Ukraine gave Putin a belated birthday present by attacking the Crimean bridge and General Armageddon appears to have presented himself today, even been placed on the SBU's most wanted list.
If he has the ISR to support it now would be a good time to hit any transformers being fixed, as doing so would both put them out of commission even more so as well as reduce Ukraine's capacity to enact further repair.
I share your enthusiasm in sustaining an air strike campaign of this magnitude, but that would be unfeasible, the missile strike has to be continuous, but it is still too early to say that there will be something like this, if I remember correctly, Russia itself disclosed that these attacks were a warning, which to me means they won't do it until they're forced to do it, but it would certainly be interesting if VKS could continue to operate in this way carrying out sustained air strikes, but I very much doubt that they would be able to do this in a sustained way, and I also very much doubt that this is the desire of the Russian military leadership, I could be wrong of course, we will see this in the coming weeks with this new commander who apparently has almost unrestricted freedom.
 

Atomicfrog

Major
Registered Member
Since Putin allowed Suvorov to used any means necessary except Nulcear Weapons, wouldn't it be a right time to conduct strategic bombing then? Tho i could see it depends on how still active is Ukrainian remaining air-defense network
Not a lot of Russian heavy bomber have dumb bomb capacity anymore. They probably used strategic bomber in the latest cruise missile attack. A bear is a sitting duck against S-300 or BUK... TU-22 didn't fair well in Georgia, Would not risk a Tu-160 over Ukraine.

Would have been interesting to recycle old Intercontinental ICBM to carry a giant conventional load at 2000 km by keeping only the first booster stage...
 
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