Ukraine Combat Footage

[Echo]

I stumbled onto this the other day. Mechanized infantry urban fighting. (English captioning)

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPlIzHEnf70

 

 

 

 

There a lot more, if check Reddit-combat footage. 

Edited February 10, 2015 by Echo

[Phantom Captain]

Completely fascinating!  Thanks for posting.  I couldn't stop watching.

[gunnersman]

Interesting. Spiffy uniforms in that second video. They look too new. And what are those soldiers wearing on their butts? They look like seats that they wear.  Is that to keep their butts warm?

[ridethe415]

Pretty slick

The second video has lots of potential for sound mods @ 14 minutes

[Saferight]

And what are those soldiers wearing on their butts? They look like seats that they wear.  Is that to keep their butts warm?

Ambush pads 

Edited February 11, 2015 by Saferight

[Nidan1]

Not a lot of actual combat going on in these vids......sounds of firing in the distance, guys shooting grenades but obviously not being shot at and other stuff. All firing looks indirect and not aimed.

 

I know people are dying there sadly. but to call these examples "Combat Footage" is a stretch.

[vincere]

Not a lot of actual combat going on in these vids......sounds of firing in the distance, guys shooting grenades but obviously not being shot at and other stuff. All firing looks indirect and not aimed.

 

I know people are dying there sadly. but to call these examples "Combat Footage" is a stretch.

 

Similar to what I was thinking.

 

Some interesting points I noted.

 

1. They appear to have ammo to burn.

2. Lots of under barrel grenades firing vaguely in a direction. Ok vague firing has it's place but there was no professionalism of somebody spotting and calling fro adjustments. Generally mush of the firing seen in vids posted looks mostly ineffective, and somewhat unprofessional.

3. Some professional types in snow suites appear- hmm all their faces are blanked for the news vids... could they be shy.

4. "Finish them off" was said to 2 wounded Ukrainian prisoners- then un background "Press is here, there will be no finishing off." I sadly get the impression that finishing off occurs.. likely ob both sides... but I'd speculate more so with the unregulated fighting groups.

[Zveroboy1]

There is indeed a bit of a disconnect between some of these vids on youtube showing convoys with hundreds of vehicles, AFV, tanks or trucks loaded with troops and low intensity fighting like the example in this thread where all you see are mere platoons of ragtag infantry just taking potshots and blindly firing vogs in the general direction of the enemy. It is hard to reconcile the two.

 

But there is no doubt that there has been some heavy fighting going on in the last two weeks.

 

The separatists are trying to pinch off the Debaltseve pocket. They actually claimed to have done so and have allegedly seized the small village of Logvinovo astride the highway from Debaltseve to Artemivsk with a night attack under the cover of artillery. There are reports of Russian jets' strikes and you only need to look at some pictures of villages where combat has taken place to be convinced there is indeed some hard fighting going on very different from the skirmishes in the vids in this thread. Some of these villages, small towns look absolutely trashed, like wasteland really.

 

I think this is due mostly to two factors, first the very nature of war news and reporters activity. They rarely get to be where heavy combat is taking place, they usually only go there when it is over for mopping up operations. And secondly, this war from what I understand could be described as an artillery war where the bulk of the work is done by artillery pounding areas which forces them to be evacuated if you don't want to be anihilited. Modern artillery is so deadly and both sides have some that it shapes the way the fighting is conducted significantly.

 

So the way I see it, there is probably little of the traditional assaults that we expect to see. Instead it is mostly arty strikes followed by withdrawal and mopping up and counter barrages.

 

 

[MikeyD]

I recall when John Huston was filming combat footage in Italy in WWII he found actual combat to be dreadfully 'uncinematic'. So after the action he'd often call the same units back to recreate their deeds more 'Hollywood' with cameras optimally placed for most dramatic effect.