Search results

Absolutely correct. 30 years on the sea, with the hull bending and bowing with every wave, takes a toll on even the strongest steel. Ships have been lost when they get pushed too far for too long.

The stated Russian policy can be found here: https://www.mid.ru/ru/foreign_policy/international_safety/disarmament/1434131/?lang=en Short version, the policy is implicitly focused on strategic nuclear use and talks mainly about deterrence and deterrence failure. Tactical weapons are not really...

How they would use them operationally is well understood; what isn't clear are the strategic/political circumstances that would result in them being used. Lots of people have opinions, but the Russians don't have a declared policy for tactical nuclear weapons use like they do for their strategic...

The Russians understand the cost/benefit calculus of a potential nuclear war. Their doctrine for the use of their strategic weapons is explicit and reasonable - basically, they are last ditch weapons to be used to preserve the survival of the state, or to defend against WMD attack. It's probably...

No, it was far more than just a slide rule. The fire control computer was an analog computer that took multiple inputs from multiple sources and generated data that was continuously updated. It took a team of skilled officers and ratings to work the system - spotters in the upperworks watching...

I understand the point you are trying to make here, but warships have had networked fire control systems since before WW1. Fire control on those ships was far more complicated than many might realize - it's not easy to hit a moving target at 20000 yards when the gun platform is unstable and...

In terms of doctrine, VDV formations were designed to be dropped in the operational/strategic depths to seize critical objectives, ideally with the element of surprise. Having an air-droppable IFV was intended to give them the capacity to overwhelm whatever rear echelon troops they might...

IDF confirms.

I would also add that they are taking quite a few casualties and it is not clear how long this can be maintained without imposing serious strains their society. They certainly have the demographic depth to take their current loss rates without running out of manpower, but it's much less certain...

Re T90s, my guess is "not many." https://www.iiss.org/online-analysis/military-balance/2024/06/russian-t-90m-production-less-than-meets-the-eye/

Motorized Rifle Division's worth of equipment on a monthly basis. The 1942-style motorized infantry division, as in "mostly walking, but with some trucks," might be making a comeback.

The story didn't say if he was still able to get a win against the Maple Leafs.

Globe and Mail has an interesting headline story today.

Heh. Sounds like the Israelis are trying to stir up a live action version of Kelly's Heroes.

"Have you ever been beaten senseless by the police for no reason? Does your home have an outhouse? Do you drink a gallon of vodka a day? Ever wished that there were more slapping contests on the sports channel? Would you rather pay bribes than taxes? If so, Russia may be for you!"

My guess is that is the result of a conscious decision by the Russians. They are continuing offensives that seem to have no purpose other than to increase the body count. The Russian General Staff can do the math, and they know that they have four times the population of Ukraine, which gives...

I'm sure most soldiers would agree (I certainly do). In most cases there aren't many true ceremonial days in the annual calendar, but it depends on the unit. That is certainly a potential benefit, particularly for some of the more rural units. I seem to recall that about 15 years ago there...

Most ARes units already run about one training weekend a month covering IBTS, Ceremonial activities or CT. That's about 8 weekends from September to May. BMQs and many other IT courses (Dvr Whl, Comms, etc) run on weekends through the training year. Typically this is about two weekends a month...

"Uh, why are you guys building trains that are designed to run on Russian rail gauge?"