BlackMoria

About a week ago, there was video of Excalibur rounds hitting soft skin vehicles and a dugout.  Those are clearly airburst rounds... the signature explosion is unmistakable.
Edit:  I was an artillery officer for 17 years and a forward observer for most of that time.  Airburst rounds go off at a optimal 7 meters for variable time (VT) fuzes.  Depending with distance and angle of view, that is low enough that an airburst can be mistaken for a normal point detonation fuze burst.  So chances are good that airburst fuzes are being more commonly used...but we are not clearly seeing it in videos...because the 7 metre height and seeing if from a drone video (mainly overhead angle) from hundreds of metres distance makes the airburst look like a ground graze burst.

Some humor....

Some humor....

Some humor....

About a week ago, there was video of Excalibur rounds hitting soft skin vehicles and a dugout.  Those are clearly airburst rounds... the signature explosion is unmistakable.
Edit:  I was an artillery officer for 17 years and a forward observer for most of that time.  Airburst rounds go off at a optimal 7 meters for variable time (VT) fuzes.  Depending with distance and angle of view, that is low enough that an airburst can be mistaken for a normal point detonation fuze burst.  So chances are good that airburst fuzes are being more commonly used...but we are not clearly seeing it in videos...because the 7 metre height and seeing if from a drone video (mainly overhead angle) from hundreds of metres distance makes the airburst look like a ground graze burst.

About a week ago, there was video of Excalibur rounds hitting soft skin vehicles and a dugout.  Those are clearly airburst rounds... the signature explosion is unmistakable.
Edit:  I was an artillery officer for 17 years and a forward observer for most of that time.  Airburst rounds go off at a optimal 7 meters for variable time (VT) fuzes.  Depending with distance and angle of view, that is low enough that an airburst can be mistaken for a normal point detonation fuze burst.  So chances are good that airburst fuzes are being more commonly used...but we are not clearly seeing it in videos...because the 7 metre height and seeing if from a drone video (mainly overhead angle) from hundreds of metres distance makes the airburst look like a ground graze burst.

About a week ago, there was video of Excalibur rounds hitting soft skin vehicles and a dugout.  Those are clearly airburst rounds... the signature explosion is unmistakable.
Edit:  I was an artillery officer for 17 years and a forward observer for most of that time.  Airburst rounds go off at a optimal 7 meters for variable time (VT) fuzes.  Depending with distance and angle of view, that is low enough that an airburst can be mistaken for a normal point detonation fuze burst.  So chances are good that airburst fuzes are being more commonly used...but we are not clearly seeing it in videos...because the 7 metre height and seeing if from a drone video (mainly overhead angle) from hundreds of metres distance makes the airburst look like a ground graze burst.

About a week ago, there was video of Excalibur rounds hitting soft skin vehicles and a dugout.  Those are clearly airburst rounds... the signature explosion is unmistakable.
Edit:  I was an artillery officer for 17 years and a forward observer for most of that time.  Airburst rounds go off at a optimal 7 meters for variable time (VT) fuzes.  Depending with distance and angle of view, that is low enough that an airburst can be mistaken for a normal point detonation fuze burst.  So chances are good that airburst fuzes are being more commonly used...but we are not clearly seeing it in videos...because the 7 metre height and seeing if from a drone video (mainly overhead angle) from hundreds of metres distance makes the airburst look like a ground graze burst.

About a week ago, there was video of Excalibur rounds hitting soft skin vehicles and a dugout.  Those are clearly airburst rounds... the signature explosion is unmistakable.
Edit:  I was an artillery officer for 17 years and a forward observer for most of that time.  Airburst rounds go off at a optimal 7 meters for variable time (VT) fuzes.  Depending with distance and angle of view, that is low enough that an airburst can be mistaken for a normal point detonation fuze burst.  So chances are good that airburst fuzes are being more commonly used...but we are not clearly seeing it in videos...because the 7 metre height and seeing if from a drone video (mainly overhead angle) from hundreds of metres distance makes the airburst look like a ground graze burst.

About a week ago, there was video of Excalibur rounds hitting soft skin vehicles and a dugout.  Those are clearly airburst rounds... the signature explosion is unmistakable.
Edit:  I was an artillery officer for 17 years and a forward observer for most of that time.  Airburst rounds go off at a optimal 7 meters for variable time (VT) fuzes.  Depending with distance and angle of view, that is low enough that an airburst can be mistaken for a normal point detonation fuze burst.  So chances are good that airburst fuzes are being more commonly used...but we are not clearly seeing it in videos...because the 7 metre height and seeing if from a drone video (mainly overhead angle) from hundreds of metres distance makes the airburst look like a ground graze burst.

About a week ago, there was video of Excalibur rounds hitting soft skin vehicles and a dugout.  Those are clearly airburst rounds... the signature explosion is unmistakable.
Edit:  I was an artillery officer for 17 years and a forward observer for most of that time.  Airburst rounds go off at a optimal 7 meters for variable time (VT) fuzes.  Depending with distance and angle of view, that is low enough that an airburst can be mistaken for a normal point detonation fuze burst.  So chances are good that airburst fuzes are being more commonly used...but we are not clearly seeing it in videos...because the 7 metre height and seeing if from a drone video (mainly overhead angle) from hundreds of metres distance makes the airburst look like a ground graze burst.

Given how prickly Muslims tend to be against perceived threats to their faith, I don't see this playing well outside of Russia and Tatarstan.
So, two things come to mind. 
 1. Placate Iran (Shia) to get them closer to Russia.   
2.  Bonehead move because if the world largely hates you, might as well double down.
I'm thinking it is 1.   But I can't rule out 2.   Because stupid is as stupid does.

"That is CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow!!   And you have heard of me."

"That is CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow!!   And you have heard of me."

"That is CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow!!   And you have heard of me."

Sheesh.... they are dropping the dropped lit cigarette excuse and going with spontaneous combustion now.   🤣

This is very poorly thought out by Russia.   Doing this is exactly what NOT to do if you want free movement of Russian citizens beyond the Russian border into the west.  Now, this act of stupidity is exactly the pretext that the West needs to apply 'special conditions' to all Russian travellers and ramp up the denial of travel visas.    NATO nations can now enact surveillance on Russian travellers and Russian can protest all they want but NATO now has the justification.
Absolute stupidity....  Well played, Russia.  

This is very poorly thought out by Russia.   Doing this is exactly what NOT to do if you want free movement of Russian citizens beyond the Russian border into the west.  Now, this act of stupidity is exactly the pretext that the West needs to apply 'special conditions' to all Russian travellers and ramp up the denial of travel visas.    NATO nations can now enact surveillance on Russian travellers and Russian can protest all they want but NATO now has the justification.
Absolute stupidity....  Well played, Russia.  

The latest announced package by the US has Demolitions Equipment listed.
Ukraine - "Our SFs can do 's'podey' stuff now.  Much beautiful fires.  Warms the heart.  Want more 's'podey' stuff to use.
US - Well then, 'S'podey' stuff you shall have ...

The latest announced package by the US has Demolitions Equipment listed.
Ukraine - "Our SFs can do 's'podey' stuff now.  Much beautiful fires.  Warms the heart.  Want more 's'podey' stuff to use.
US - Well then, 'S'podey' stuff you shall have ...

The latest announced package by the US has Demolitions Equipment listed.
Ukraine - "Our SFs can do 's'podey' stuff now.  Much beautiful fires.  Warms the heart.  Want more 's'podey' stuff to use.
US - Well then, 'S'podey' stuff you shall have ...

I checked out joining the International Legion when it was first was announced but at age 65 and 25 years out of the military, naturally it was a polite 'no'.  Too old, not current or recent military and my medical history was a guaranteed 'no' but I tried.
So I did the next best thing.  I had a $1500 DJI drone.   I sent it to Ukraine as a donation in my stead.  If I can't do my part, at least my drone can.  I wonder at times every time there is a Ukrainian drone video, if it is my bird.  That helps me get through all of this.

Geo political complexities aside, if a rocket/artillery/whatever crosses a NATO border and damages or kills someone, it doesn't matter if it was planned Russian aggression military or non-military, russian or LPNR insurgents, a bunch of drunk yahoos who found a artillery piece to play around with or just lunatic nutjobs.  It crosses the border and the NATO nation in question can invoke Article 5.  Russia can't explain it away because by now, NATO knows when any spokesman for the Kremlin or Duma speaks, they are lying through their teeth.
This is more a problem for Russia than NATO.  There will be always be hotheads out there, regardless of nationality.  The issue for Russia is this - a hothead does something somewhere to NATO and if traced back to Russia.  It is Russia that wears it.  Not the hot heads.  Russia can't afford to ignore their restive hotheads taking action into their own hands and triggering a uncontrolled escalation.  And if they do... well, then, whatever falls on their heads falls on their heads.

I don't think it be a game changer.  All NATO has to do is capture a few of these mooks alive during an act, establish who they are.  If Russian nationality, brand Russia as state sponsor of terrorism, then draw the red line that another act of aggression will invoke a discussion of Article 5 and the ramifications of that.  
Russia will then send out their enforcer and 'wet' teams to deal with the loose cannons, because Russian doesn't want these groups escalating in an uncontrolled fashion.  Russia did a similar thing with problematic Donbass separatists who were mucking up Moscow's plan.

Geo political complexities aside, if a rocket/artillery/whatever crosses a NATO border and damages or kills someone, it doesn't matter if it was planned Russian aggression military or non-military, russian or LPNR insurgents, a bunch of drunk yahoos who found a artillery piece to play around with or just lunatic nutjobs.  It crosses the border and the NATO nation in question can invoke Article 5.  Russia can't explain it away because by now, NATO knows when any spokesman for the Kremlin or Duma speaks, they are lying through their teeth.
This is more a problem for Russia than NATO.  There will be always be hotheads out there, regardless of nationality.  The issue for Russia is this - a hothead does something somewhere to NATO and if traced back to Russia.  It is Russia that wears it.  Not the hot heads.  Russia can't afford to ignore their restive hotheads taking action into their own hands and triggering a uncontrolled escalation.  And if they do... well, then, whatever falls on their heads falls on their heads.