Vet 0369

Most here are probably not old enough to remember it, but I think it was Khrushchev who said “the Capitalists will sell us the rope we use to hang them.” He wasn’t wrong. The corporations will climb over each other to be the first in line to get their profits. Corporations don’t really care about politics until the politics interfere with their bottom lines. If Russia nationalizes all of the air carrier fleets, the lessors will just claim their insurance and buy stock in Boeing and Airbus.

Yup, it’s a tactic that’s been developed over millions of years by large herds of prey animals. It does work too!

Hippity, hop, mob stop! This type of movement is obviously why they don’t seem to have much infantry protecting their columns!

Steve, I don’t disagree with your assessments, but feel they’re a bit too Utopian. Here in the U.S., we also suffer some of the same “Toadies.” I worked for 20 years for a Federal Agency that is charged with safety. I watched as a Director removed a manager who refused to certify a product his test group said wasn’t ready for certification, and replaced him with a manager he knew would follow his order to certify the product. That the Director had promised the Applicant (take note of that term), that the product would be certified by a certain date. The Director always referred to the Applicant as the “Customer.” Fortunately, the removed manager (it’s very difficult to fire someone for doing their job) resigned and contacted a Senate Oversight Committee. What resulted from the investigation and Oversight Committee was the Director’s boss, an Associate Administrator, a co-responsible Director of our sister organization both “retired,” and our Director was removed from his position of responsibility. Additionally, Congress also forbid using the term “Customer” to be used for an “Applicant.” It was a case of the “lower-level” employees standing up to them at the risk of their own careers and pay. We were very happy to see that Congress listened to us for once instead of the Lobbies It doesn’t’ always work that way.

Ukraine had, and continues to have, their dedication to a National Identity. Plus, More Ukraines have probably died due to Soviet control then died from the NAZIs in WWII. They have motivation to make Putin pay in blood for each square inch (or whatever SI equivalent) of Ukraine he takes and continues to hold.

U.S. Marines have been considered “heavy infantry” for a long time. Primarily because of the sizes of the units, rather than the weapons that they use. For example, here are the unit comparisons of a Marine Rifle Platoon to an Army Rifle Platoon; a Marine squad is three four man fireteams and a Squad Leader/Army squad is two four man teams and a Squad Leader. Both Marine and Army Rifle Platoons have three squads, a Platoon Sgt., Platoon Leader, and, I think still, a Radioman. That means that a Marine Platoon has 42 Marines, and an Army Platoon has 30 soldiers. Each Rifle Company has three Rifle Platoons, so effectively, the Marine Rifle Company has four Rifle Platoons(minus one Platoon Leader, one Platoon Sgt., and one Radioman). Weapons wise, Each Army Squad has an AT team, while all Marine MG, 60mm mortars and LIGHT antitank assault weapons are Company level. Marine AT weapons such as Javs are Battalion level, so Army Rifle Platoons have the edge in heavy weapons, but Marine Platoons effectively have an extra squad of infantry.

Might look like a Piper to the uninitiated, but it isn’t. That is a Stintson. They were piloted by a pilot in the front seat, while the Piper was piloted from the rear seat. Also, the Piper doesn’t have anywhere the amount of window area.

Here’s some more food for thought. I, as a former U.S. Marine can no more play the Russian Campaign with the thought processes of a Russian than a former Russian military man can play the U.S. Campaign from a Western thought process. I freely admit this, so the outcomes of my missions as RA are irrevocably skewed by my training. I recognize and accept this inability, but I cannot change it.

Also, don’t forget that “General Mud” is impartial. If the UA counterattacked now, they’d face the same movement problems as the RA. UKR is remaining flexible by using infantry with AI weapons, while the RA seemed to be blindly following the prewar planning. That’s the difference between Western training of the new UA, and the Soviet training of the pre-2014 UA and current RA.

No surprise. I think probably “four out of five” commercial airplanes in the world are leased. Most from Boeing, Airbus, and GE Capital Leasing. Just like with land vehicles, you can have the “latest and greatest,” for less expense when you lease. It will be interesting to see how many of those Russian Commercial airplanes end up landing at non-Russian airports while declaring “an emergency” or a “hijacking!”

I agree. That was actually my first thought, but I’ve been conditioned by CMBS to Black smoke grenades as IR resistant, and white just visually resistant. Maybe I give the Russian armor too much credit to properly prepare their tanks against modern munitions.

I think the terms are more like “Tributaries” and “Fiefdoms” than “Satellites” and “Clients.”

Looks like something from the National Inquirer. Congratulations John, you’ve earned another Ignore.

This! The historic purpose of armor has been to support infantry by taking out hard points or distance fire locations. Infantry protect armor from AT weapons so the armor can provide their support.

That “white smoke” looked like WP to me. Perhaps an artillery marking round? Do we/they still use them?

Once, while my Reserve unit was deployed to Camp Lejune for it’s annual two week “Summer Camp,” we were in the Staff NCO club having a beer after a training day. A Navy Petty Officer in Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) came in, chugged a beer, ate the glass, and somersaulted out the door. We all attributed his behavior to brain damage from holding his breath while defusing explosives.

Interesting terminology of saying they are deploying “in theater.”

Yeah, I fully expect all those commanders to take it in the butt for Putin, NOT.

This! There is ALWAYS in-fighting in the U.S. Department of Defense for increased funding. The Air Force tried, and almost succeeded in getting the Navy’s aircraft carriers scrapped in favor of more nuclear bombers after WWII. The thing that saved the carriers was N. Korea invading S. Korea. Carrier borne air power convinced Congress that scrapping them was a bad idea. The U.S. Army tried for years to separate the USMC from the Navy, and incorporate it into the Army in order to get it’s funding. They said that WWII showed the Army was just as capable of making amphibious landings as the Marines, and that was true. Bottom line is that no matter what high-tech gear or nukes you use, it will always fall to the Grunt to go in and dig out the enemy, even if it means using sticks and rocks.

Why are KAL still flying into Moscow? I thought most were boycotting. Is there a “World Champion Gaming Tournament going on there?

I’m not a petrorefinement engineer, but I expect the refinement level isn’tfar from that of JP.

Yeah, shut down the password protected system software used to refine the petroleum, and you can cut the entire country off from fuel; power plants, trains, buses, military, heating oil, etc.

Err, such as tanks,

All the gas turbines, aviation, industrial, marine, etc., that I know of, run on JP-4 or JP-5 (kerosene or paraffin in Europe) or natural gas. The old Soviet reciprocating vehicles such tended to burn a fuel that was only one or two refinement stages above tar.

I would ask if anyone knows how many refineries Russia has. Sure, they are a major oil exporter, but how much do they actually refine for internal use?