Vanir Ausf B

This Means War Podcast
Manoeuvre theory is in a coma
https://sites.libsyn.com/420071/manoeuvre-theory-is-in-a-coma
 
 

Damn, next aviation crash. Two Mi-8 helicopters of 18th army avaiation brigade have fallen down by unknown reason near Kramatorsk, Donetsk oblast. Six men - two crews, are lost. Investgation is opened. It could be collision, diversion or using of extreme long-range (300 km) R-37M missiles, having 300 km of range  - there were several incidents, when our jets and helicopters were shot down with this missiles from Russian territory. R-37M can be launched from MiG-31BM and Su-35

Some armour in action I think the emblem is the 3rd Assault Brigade which has been operating north of Bakhmut from memory.  Looks like a grad strike or two at towards the end as well.
 

Meshes with a (paywalled) FT article noting the language barrier is a significant issue:
_____________
Teaching inexperienced soldiers how to operate a tank on the front line in just six weeks was never going to be easy.
But when German, Dutch and Danish officers gathered in a lush green patch of the North German countryside to train Ukrainian men, they were not expecting a shortage of competent interpreters to be the top issue.
“Interpreters are challenge number one,” said Martin Bonn, a Dutch brigadier general who is deputy head of the multinational EU training mission launched last November to educate Ukrainians on a range of weapons and tactics. Kyiv and western capitals are providing translators, who often struggle with the necessary vocabulary.
“The big challenge is the translation of words used in a military or technical context . . . Words no one uses in everyday life,”
European trainers were full of praise for the “tremendous motivation” of the recruits, despite the stress of the brutal war they are fighting and the daily dangers to friends and family back home.
But they also said that the age and ability of the soldiers they are sent varies wildly, as Ukrainian commanders on the front line are often unwilling to spare their best men. One volunteer who turned up in Germany was 71 years old.
https://www.ft.com/content/5bcb359e-f0ae-475d-9773-b89c0ebe0a1b

Like "I have two news -  good and bad"...
We advanced for today to Verbove direction, but, alas, we have big losses

Thank you and everyone else! I'm lurking around and read this juicy thread occasionally, but I've been self-isolating myself after coming back and don't communicate much at all. Reaching out to anyone is... hard, after everything that's happened, and when you know you are being watched/monitored. But sometimes I force myself to communicate, because that's what therapists recommend. I'm mostly using Telegram these days, and that's it.
I appreciate all the support.
Thank you as well.
I've talked to a lot of people, with all kinds of opinions, of different ages and genders. Even almost got robbed by two orcs one time in broad daylight. Who knows? Maybe my opinion is just wishful thinking, because my brain simply needs something good to hope for. I've always tried to be as much realistic as possible, but, as you said, we're just humans.
Uhm. To drop a JDAM from that kind of range, it must either be powered, or the attack profile must be really really high. I guess that's gotta be Mk 82 turned into a missile package?

https://www.threads.net/@maks_23_ua/post/CwfsDLFqZSx
Yet more high end Russian radar and EW equipment getting hammered by something with a CEP of about 3 meters.

Meshes with a (paywalled) FT article noting the language barrier is a significant issue:
_____________
Teaching inexperienced soldiers how to operate a tank on the front line in just six weeks was never going to be easy.
But when German, Dutch and Danish officers gathered in a lush green patch of the North German countryside to train Ukrainian men, they were not expecting a shortage of competent interpreters to be the top issue.
“Interpreters are challenge number one,” said Martin Bonn, a Dutch brigadier general who is deputy head of the multinational EU training mission launched last November to educate Ukrainians on a range of weapons and tactics. Kyiv and western capitals are providing translators, who often struggle with the necessary vocabulary.
“The big challenge is the translation of words used in a military or technical context . . . Words no one uses in everyday life,”
European trainers were full of praise for the “tremendous motivation” of the recruits, despite the stress of the brutal war they are fighting and the daily dangers to friends and family back home.
But they also said that the age and ability of the soldiers they are sent varies wildly, as Ukrainian commanders on the front line are often unwilling to spare their best men. One volunteer who turned up in Germany was 71 years old.
https://www.ft.com/content/5bcb359e-f0ae-475d-9773-b89c0ebe0a1b

I found this article about the problems of NATO training of ukrainian troops very interesting.
https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/odr/ukraine-russia-training-nato-west-military/
 

Post says this is a pair of UKR T series tanks doing shoot and scoot.  One is very nearly hit by return fire at the 1:30 mark.  Thankfully they both appear to bug out successfully.
Posting as a link because all these tweets are flagged as restricted.  There's nothing R18+ in this one.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1695494020015726875

Bloody hell! If you can, it's worth reading the whole thread as there is images embedded. Suffice it to say, the whole idea that the Ukrainians would succeed if only they did it the NATO way is questionable (i.e. bollocks). This would appear to be a tough nut to crack.
"Translation:
Much has been written about the battles in the South. I wouldn't say that this is the case where it's better to see once (or multiple times) than to hear/read about it many times. Especially through the eyes of the frontline units. A thread about battles from the perspective of aerial reconnaissance:
Environment. Steppe. Fields, tree lines. Slight elevations and dips, villages, small rivers. Minefields. Whoever you may be, an armored assault group, evacuation team, aerial or infantry reconnaissance, your movement is visible from afar. The enemy has long been preparing.
Equipment and personnel can be spotted from a distance and targeted. Both sides understand that there are limited places for positions and deployment. Most likely, there's something to shoot at in almost every tree line. Confirmation is needed, of course. Primarily, it's necessary to determine the priority of the target
There's a limited number of access roads, logistical routes. Everything's been calibrated and fired upon repeatedly every day. You certainly can be spotted. Carrying out the mission while maintaining complete concealment from the enemy is mostly impossible
There has been a great deal of talk about fortifications and minefields. Every tree line has been dug up. On one stretch of the Mariupol highway, anti-tank fortifications have been installed. We're not just talking about trenches. There's an entire system of trenches, dugouts, and even undeground tunnels in some places
In each tree line, there's a network of trenches and firing positions for various weapons. AGS, DShK, ATGMs. Anti-tank ditches and mine obstacles stretch across the fields. From regular TM and POM mines to more "sophisticated" ones, all lying in wait for infantry.
Once again, it's crucial to emphasize that we're specifically discussing a system of trenches, interconnected by passageways and pathways. These pathways facilitate the movement of personnel, weaponry, and ammunition. As for what remains unexcavated, it's mined. All of this must be navigated to make progress forward.

For those who are "overly smart" and believe that the Ukrainian Armed Forces took an incredibly long time to drive the Russians out of the village of Robotyne, they must have missed the defense system that needed to be overcome in order to push the russians away from the Mariupol highway and gradually approach the village, encircle it, and finally seize control. Truly, a monumental task has been accomplished.

The russians are establishing firing points (AGS, heavy machine guns), and they mine the routes to them. They themselves move along designated paths. Our positions in the liberated territory are surrounded by mines and tripwires. Paths are cleared for ingress, and sappers gradually clear the area.
Frequently, the hidden "surprises" detonate during shelling, triggered by fires that start due to the shelling (weeds, shrubs, and trees catch fire, setting off tripwires). At times, we ourselves discover and call in sappers to clear specific areas.
There's much talk about armored vehicle losses, but the issue of initial setbacks is overlooked. In the long run, it's impossible to entirely avoid armor losses, even due to the enemy's advantage in the air. However, armor serves a specific purpose that entails risks.
There's much talk about armored vehicle losses, I'll skip the topic of initial setbacks. In the long run, it's impossible to entirely avoid armor losses, especially due to the enemy's advantage in the air. However, armor serves a specific purpose that entails risks.
These actions are justified by the fact that they save lives. I spoke with a soldier who survived two direct hits on a Bradley during shelling. Even the most critically damaged equipment is recovered and taken for repairs. You can replace a piece of metal, even if it's expensive, but you can't repair a human life
Enemy ATGM operators position cameras in advance of their positions. This way, they can spot targets (all types of vehicles) in advance and engage them effectively. If successful, artillery finishes off the targets. Alternatively, they might start with air force, followed by artillery.
They hunt for evacuation teams – both vehicles and stations. Right under our noses, they hit an armored vehicle, and an evacuation vehicle arrived for the guys. They had to maneuver in a tight spot, moving very slowly on a narrow road, avoiding going off-road into a mined field. Taking risks as well. Fortunately, they managed to get them out.
KAB's are one of the biggest fears. The russians use them extensively. I can't speak to their accuracy, but the weaponry is powerful. They attempt to target logistics and command centers, just as we do. They don't hesitate to simply fire on roads. Forward defenses in settlements are constantly under shelling.
The aerial reconnaissance linked system Orlan-Zala-Supercam is effective and causing issues. They identify targets and launch Lances, releasing them in swarms along with KAB's. They attempt to break through and hunt down vehicles. 
The recaptured positions are even more calibrated. Bombs are not spared. No lack of mines either. The tree line where one of the crews was operating was simply leveled. Only a palisade remained, and a well-made trench ceased to be usable.
The russians use a standard tactic for their armor. The route to the firing position is determined, usually in a way that keeps the vehicles under visual cover of the tree lines and eventually positions them in an open space for shooting. They quickly expend their ammunition and retreat
Vehicle cannot be completely concealed. Dust clouds are visible during movement, and the vehicles can be seen shifting between tree lines, while drones provide visibility as well. The main task here is to execute the firing mission quickly enough to prevent artillery targeting or counterattacks using FPV or ATGMs.
I understand why the russians are intensively butthurt due to the loss of the village with six streets. They put in significant effort to prevent the Ukrainian Armed Forces from advancing. Defending is easier according to all norms. On the other hand, we're putting in a tremendous effort to break through. And when we succeed, it shows that our efforts are paying off
Thank you for your attention. I might continue sharing in the future."
 

RA sending elements of 76 Guards Air Assault Division from northern Luhansk to Robotyne.   

I put 3 pair of Pz IVs 1250m across from 3 isolated IS-2s, let one of each pair of Pz IVs (call them Group 1) fire for two turns (9 shots each) to ensure every subsequent shot was a hit, then let the other Pz IVs (Group 2) start shooting. The number of shots taken by Group 2 tanks to achieve the first hit was 2,4 and 3 respectively.

There was another article from yesterday on this:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2023/08/25/to-blow-up-russias-s-400-battery-in-crimea-ukraine-tweaked-its-cruiser-sinking-neptune-missile/?sh=5a4b39d57d3d

SPIEGEL has a long article about the destruction of Nord Stream (paywalled, German):
https://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/nord-stream-anschlag-in-der-ostsee-die-spuren-fuehren-in-eine-richtung-in-die-ukraine-a-befcbfbb-b1cd-4912-aeaa-56bef4dd8047
They did it together with German TV ZDF who made a documentary (I'm not sure if this is accessible from abroad):
https://www.zdf.de/politik/frontal/doku-fall-nord-stream-spurensuche-ostsee-andromeda-gas-pipeline-explosion-russland-sabotage-ukraine-krieg-100.html
TL;DR:
it was done with a small sail boat with 6-man crew, specialists have confirmed that to be feasible Russian activities at the time & place likely were attempted countermeasures all trails lead to Ukraine & Ukrainians Zelensky's involvement highly unlikely, but maybe lower rank, nothing proven could be Russian false flag - biggest counterargument is that they didn't botch that highly complicated mission German government is unusually tight-lipped & has no real interest in solving the case (now or maybe never)

Huge loss for our knights of the sky. This night, in result of collision of two jets over Zhytomyr oblast experienced pilot "Juice" has died. He was one of "energizers" of F-16 supply for Ukraine and has been preparing for training on F-16 in October. 
"Juice" on the photo

Also,as became knowingly, other known pilot "Nomad" was lost in sortie on 2nd of June.
 

Tatarigami with short, sobering remarks. Rather similar I observed among 2 or 3 more insightful and connected commentators here, too. It's too early to tell if Russians indeed lack reinforcements to man these powerful lines; additionally, the front of offenisve is very narrow. Just by keeping "hinges" enough time muscovites can likely delay Ukrainian progress.
 

I put 3 pair of Pz IVs 1250m across from 3 isolated IS-2s, let one of each pair of Pz IVs (call them Group 1) fire for two turns (9 shots each) to ensure every subsequent shot was a hit, then let the other Pz IVs (Group 2) start shooting. The number of shots taken by Group 2 tanks to achieve the first hit was 2,4 and 3 respectively.

Oh I get that. Sometime wild claims get made and it's nice to check for sanity so they don't get absorbed into the form lore.
Thanks.

I agree with Haiduk and Steve that there won't be any pro-russian insurgency in Crimea in case of UKR troops going in hot. But, yes, it is going to be hard to govern, for sure. Something good to look forward to anyway. 
It is quite hard to predict how the events will unfold exactly from now on. That raid was definitely fun though, even if only symbolical.

Some interesting behind the curtains stuff coming out

Contrary to speculation in that thread that this is a bug it is in fact WAD. My source for that is BFC 🫠

The Vilnius summit showed there will need to be a dramatic shift in Western perspective for a wartime NATO entry to be seriously considered.