DARPA has been testing swarm drones for some time, think the latest are Pixys that can fly on their own or can be controlled a few different ways (in case they lose IR, Bluetooth). Don't think they are weaponized yet but they are thought to offer some benefits over a single drone. The key one being redundancy

Of the biggest benefits of the Switchblade is the cost, they can provide CAS at a cost much less than A10s, Broncos, helicopters, or anything else we have recently used. Plus the keep the pilots/crews out of harms way. You can give a give the guys on the ground something with similar capabilities as much more expensive options like javelins at a much lower cost.

The sky in this war is a very dangerous place for both countries, this would give a massive advantage to the Ukes

McInnis 03 said:

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China state media?? Xi may not be as tight with Putin as Putin thinks.....

Chinese state media. https://t.co/RMS5CH19Ky

— Christo Grozev (@christogrozev) March 17, 2022

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It's best for China to remain publicly neutral and see Russia fail. A weak Russia with few friends only helps China gain more negotiating leverage over their "friendship."

China's economy is also not in a great place right now. They don't want sanctions or difficult trade problems with the Europe or the US. Xi needs to keep things calm in the mainland through August. Still a lot of factions in the CCP who do not like the direction he's taking China.

JB!98 said:

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Rossticus said:

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As I said; https://t.co/Zd1rCrv8Y0

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) March 17, 2022

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With the logistical problems they are having, how the hell would they get there?

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Yeah I guess that is after they take Ukraine, Moldova, Romania and Serbia to get there. Any aircraft flying over that is getting shot down. Other option is land invasion at Neum which is literally the only port for Bosnia. Less than 6 miles of coastline.

JB!98 said:

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Rossticus said:

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As I said; https://t.co/Zd1rCrv8Y0

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) March 17, 2022

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With the logistical problems they are having, how the hell would they get there?

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Obligatory "In Soviet Russia, country comes to you"

wangus12 said:

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JB!98 said:

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Rossticus said:

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As I said; https://t.co/Zd1rCrv8Y0

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) March 17, 2022

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With the logistical problems they are having, how the hell would they get there?

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Yeah I guess that is after they take Ukraine, Moldova, Romania and Serbia to get there. Any aircraft flying over that is getting shot down. Other option is land invasion at Neum which is literally the only port for Bosnia. Less than 6 miles of coastline.

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I hope my sarcasm meter is broken

Would they not have to sail through the Bosporus and Dardanelles to get to Ukraine? Aren't those straights closed to warships by Turkey?

rgag12 said:

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wangus12 said:

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JB!98 said:

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Rossticus said:

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As I said; https://t.co/Zd1rCrv8Y0

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) March 17, 2022

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With the logistical problems they are having, how the hell would they get there?

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Yeah I guess that is after they take Ukraine, Moldova, Romania and Serbia to get there. Any aircraft flying over that is getting shot down. Other option is land invasion at Neum which is literally the only port for Bosnia. Less than 6 miles of coastline.

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I hope my sarcasm meter is broken

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It is. There's no ****ing way Russia gets into Bosnia without going through a world of hurt that they surely can't afford after this.

Tweet deleted.

jbanda said:

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Would they not have to sail through the Bosporus and Dardanelles to get to Ukraine? Aren't those straights closed to warships by Turkey?

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Only if Turkey enforces. We have joint allied carrier attack groups in the Aegean to support as well. Basically it would be a matter of them forcing NATO nations to stop them.

meanwhile in Bulgaria, police have raided the homes of former Prime Minister Boyko Borisov and other other officials, and reportedly Borisov is now under arrest. https://t.co/OR51FnyGMM

— Mike Eckel (@Mike_Eckel) March 17, 2022

wangus12 said:

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JB!98 said:

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Rossticus said:

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As I said; https://t.co/Zd1rCrv8Y0

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) March 17, 2022

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With the logistical problems they are having, how the hell would they get there?

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Yeah I guess that is after they take Ukraine, Moldova, Romania and Serbia to get there. Any aircraft flying over that is getting shot down. Other option is land invasion at Neum which is literally the only port for Bosnia. Less than 6 miles of coastline.

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Well that should be no trouble given the amphibious assault prowess they have shown so far in...well lets see...ok...maybe they have never done a successful amphibious assault?

Russia’s advances are largely still stalled. One exception: Pentagon assesses Thursday for the first time that the Russians have seized Izyum, a town southeast of Kharkiv and north of Mariupol.

Russia want to cut off eastern Ukraine from rest of country, U.S. official says.

— Dan Lamothe (@DanLamothe) March 17, 2022

Quote:

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Front end of beleaguered Russian convoy north of Kyiv remains outside city. But Russian forces have moved up artillery, the senior defense official said, as Russia appears to be readying additional fires.

"They're trying to wear the city down," senior defense official says.

As of Thursday, the Pentagon assesses that Russia has now launched more than 1,000 missiles at Ukraine. That number continues to climb by several dozen per day.

The Pentagon, even on background, is discussing very carefully whether Slovakia could be "backfilled" with some other kind of air-defense system so they can send their S-300 to Ukraine.

No announcement to make,
@SecDef
said earlier today.

Russia is considering "resupply" from elsewhere, senior defense official says, roughly repeating what he said yesterday. That includes both weapons and personnel.

Senior defense official was asked if it's a national security threat that
@RepMTG
and others parrot Russian talking points.

Official says that it would be "going too far" to say that lawmakers expressing their opinions is a threat, "whether wrong or right in terms of accuracy."

How long could Russia go? Hard to say, official says.

"But they clearly were not prepared to be in the position they are three weeks in, basically frozen around the country on multiple lines of axes."

Russia appears to be looking for ways to overcome their logistical challenges "from outside Ukraine," official adds.

How soon before Javelins, Stingers and drones identified in aid POTUS approved yesterday will go to Ukraine?

Senior defense official says he isn't sure "and frankly, I don't know if that's the kind of information we're going to be able to give out publicly."

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PJYoung said:

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Nothing confirmed and it could just be disinformation but:

U.S. instructors, of course, were all withdrawn. However, some ex-military have volunteered to fight with the International Legion.

— Michael Weiss 🌻🇺🇸🇮🇪 (@michaeldweiss) March 17, 2022

The only proof seems to be a signed state flag by those three individuals.

This of course could be miserable disinformation from the DNR, after having found or recovered souvenirs at the front.

— Michael Weiss 🌻🇺🇸🇮🇪 (@michaeldweiss) March 17, 2022

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News reported by Pravda? I'm going to go with propaganda, for now.

BonsaiGreen said:

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SPSAg05 said:

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Russia warns United States: we have the might to put you in your place https://t.co/VutdyLxvdS pic.twitter.com/OvmUvB2UuH

— Reuters (@Reuters) March 17, 2022

If you think Ukrainian farmers are formidable......

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From what I'm seeing out of Russia, Ukrainian and Texan farmers can deal with Russia alone.

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FIFY

Ukraine/Russia: Reports from Ukrainian forces that they got another Senior Russian Commander and Colonel of the 331st VDV Guards Airborne Regiment. Not verified as yet.

— The Cavell Group (@TCG_CrisisRisks) March 17, 2022

The commander of the VDV's 331st Airborne Regiment, Colonel Sergei Sukharev, was reportedly killed in Ukraine along with four other members of the regiment.https://t.co/ZiLKB8VckKhttps://t.co/JPOtfiVQeohttps://t.co/r2IHFtl4Dchttps://t.co/daQJ7OmcDohttps://t.co/5C8oG8KVkw pic.twitter.com/nzOnRfpkxu

— Rob Lee (@RALee85) March 17, 2022

91/https://t.co/lsGobUHJIH

— Rob Lee (@RALee85) March 17, 2022

troy_y said:

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Rossticus said:

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The movement of these Russian warships so close to Japan’s islands is unusual but Japan can’t confirm they are bound for Ukraine https://t.co/m5eIpfFIB8

— Samuel Ramani (@SamRamani2) March 17, 2022

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Be ashamed if they hit an "iceberg".

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Odd. To load up the ships with something that can be sent by rail to Crimea for eventual pick up. Only slows down what would be a week plus movement from Vladivostok to the Black Sea. Plus refueling. If a tanker went sideways in the suez, it would be weeks before it gets there.

Rossticus said:

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Zelensky's excellent military advisor Arestovich predicted yesterday that Ukraine could win the war in two weeks time unless something extraordinary happened. Russian troops can be expelled from the whole of Ukraine. The new US military supplies might cause the end of the war.

— Anders Åslund (@anders_aslund) March 17, 2022

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I don't agree based on current events. If it were that close, there wouldn't be a loss of isium (sp) and Russian breakthroughs along the Donetsk front.

ATX_AG_08 said:

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No, then they wouldn't be lobbing them up in the air. They could just fire them anywhere towards the ground. They're lobbing them upward so they carry deeper into the cities.

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Agreed. Killing civilians.
Those rockets have a range of 2-4.5 KM.
Stingers have a range of 4-8KM.
You can see the horizon about 5KM with no obstructions.
They came in low & fast, fired, threw flares, turned and dropped altitude to avoid stingers/etc.
If I was just dumping ammo it wouldn't be in the presence of another crew either.

Ag In Ok said:

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Rossticus said:

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Zelensky's excellent military advisor Arestovich predicted yesterday that Ukraine could win the war in two weeks time unless something extraordinary happened. Russian troops can be expelled from the whole of Ukraine. The new US military supplies might cause the end of the war.

— Anders Åslund (@anders_aslund) March 17, 2022

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I don't agree based on current events. If it were that close, there wouldn't be a loss of isium (sp) and Russian breakthroughs along the Donetsk front.

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Remember that the Germans made significant gains during the Kaiserschlacht at the end of WWI. They also could not sustain them because of major logistical problems, which lead to their initially successful offensive to fail.

I'm not saying the optimistic prediction is right or wrong, but rather that you can still see some gains being made by the ultimate loser in the conflict.

Ag In Ok said:

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Rossticus said:

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Zelensky's excellent military advisor Arestovich predicted yesterday that Ukraine could win the war in two weeks time unless something extraordinary happened. Russian troops can be expelled from the whole of Ukraine. The new US military supplies might cause the end of the war.

— Anders Åslund (@anders_aslund) March 17, 2022

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I don't agree based on current events. If it were that close, there wouldn't be a loss of isium (sp) and Russian breakthroughs along the Donetsk front.

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Unless what we're providing to them will allow overwhelming neutralization of certain Russian assets and facilitate a major Ukrainian offensive. They DO have/are getting goodies that haven't been publicly disclosed.

Waffledynamics said:

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Ag In Ok said:

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Rossticus said:

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Zelensky's excellent military advisor Arestovich predicted yesterday that Ukraine could win the war in two weeks time unless something extraordinary happened. Russian troops can be expelled from the whole of Ukraine. The new US military supplies might cause the end of the war.

— Anders Åslund (@anders_aslund) March 17, 2022

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I don't agree based on current events. If it were that close, there wouldn't be a loss of isium (sp) and Russian breakthroughs along the Donetsk front.

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Remember that the Germans made significant gains during the Kaiserschlacht at the end of WWI. They also could not sustain them because of major logistical problems, which lead to their initially successful offensive to fail.

I'm not saying the optimistic prediction is right or wrong, but rather that you can still see some gains being made by the ultimate loser in the conflict.

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And the Battle of the Bulge. The Germans had gains and breakouts, but ultimately they lacked the fuel and resources necessary to maintain their gains or move further. They were pushed back relatively quickly and ultimately defeated within 4 months in a much larger conflict.

Polaris75 said:

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javajaws said:

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ttu_85 said:

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Valtrex11 said:

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Eliminatus said:

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ElKabong said:

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CONFIRMED Biden to provide killer 'Switchblade Kamikaze' drones to Ukraine…

As part of a massive military aid package announced Wednesday, the Biden administration is providing Ukraine with U.S. made killer drones guided missiles that could accurately target Russian troops from miles away two congressional officials briefed on the matter told NBC News.

The White House referred to the weapons as "100 Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems."

There are two variants of the weapon, the Switchblade 300 and the 600, that have been sold to U.S. Special Operations Command by manufacturer AeroVironment, based in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. The 300 is designed for pinpoint strikes on personnel, and the larger 600 is meant to destroy tanks and other armored vehicles. The Congressional officials did not have clarity on which variant would be provided to Ukraine, or whether both would be.

The Switchblades are essentially robotic smart bombs, equipped with cameras, guidance systems and explosives. They can be programmed to automatically strike targets miles away, and they can be steered around objectives until the time is right to strike. The company says the 600 can fly for 40 minutes and up to 50 miles.

They are single-use weapons, which is why they have been dubbed "kamikaze drones." But they are orders of magnitude cheaper than the Hellfire missiles fired by U.S. Reaper drones.

The Kamikaze 300 can cost as little as $6,000.

Both weapons can be set up in minutes and launched from tubes. They fly much faster than the Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drones that Ukraine has been using.

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This is the new era of warfare that the US has been preparing for/ fearing.

Next step is swarms. Drone swarms between near peers are going to invalidate a lot of commonly held thoughts in regards to tactics and strategy.

From the purely objective side, this war is actually a gold mine of benefits to us in so many different areas. Aeronvirionment just got some free large scale field testing to perfect their craft...

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All of this lethal aide we are giving the UKE how does giving them planes all of a sudden an escalation?

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Politicians and the brass are among the last to figure out changes in warfare. See Trench attacks in WW1 and Admirals insisting BB's were the primary offensive weapon in 1940.

Still Mig-29's are multi role aircraft and capable of both offense and defensive missions. And they have theater wide range. Where most drones, javilins are close in tactical weapons only so the scope is not strategic in nature.

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This x 1000.

These people really fail to realize how technology is rapidly changing things. Tanks and multi-million dollar jets and other expensive hardware will rapidly go out of vogue.

Imagine the damage 1000 drone pilots could do flying 10 sorties each of Switchblades in support of heavily armed infantry? That's 10k hits on target all for the price of less than 1 fighter or MBT. Then scale that up..

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Imagine those same 1000 drones attacking a carrier at sea or another drone flying 10'about the water with a tactical warhead.

Still need infantry but large groups are sitting ducks.

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The Drone Wars.

aggiehawg said:

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troy_y said:

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Rossticus said:

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The movement of these Russian warships so close to Japan’s islands is unusual but Japan can’t confirm they are bound for Ukraine https://t.co/m5eIpfFIB8

— Samuel Ramani (@SamRamani2) March 17, 2022

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Be ashamed if they hit an "iceberg".

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From the looks of that ship, it might fall apart from just rust.

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It's not up to a good CPO's standards no. Also my scorecard has 4 generals 13 colonels 7 light colonels and 5 majors so far. Oooof. Here's to bloody wars and sickly seasons. Gonna be a lot of room for advancement coming out of command school!

aggiehawg said:

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troy_y said:

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Rossticus said:

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The movement of these Russian warships so close to Japan’s islands is unusual but Japan can’t confirm they are bound for Ukraine https://t.co/m5eIpfFIB8

— Samuel Ramani (@SamRamani2) March 17, 2022

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Be ashamed if they hit an "iceberg".

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From the looks of that ship, it might fall apart from just rust.

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or it meets the business end of a Neptune missile...

Maybe the Germans or French can hook the Ukrainains up with some subs..

ATX_AG_08 said:

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The Belarusian Volunteer Battalion named after Kastus Kalinovsky will come to help the Armed Forces of Ukraine in breaking the blockade of Mariupol

Many Belarusians are fighting on the side of the Armed Forces of #Ukraine, and the flow of volunteers does not stop growing. pic.twitter.com/TXsuAIhBFi

— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) March 17, 2022

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After this fight they need to go home and beat the hell out of that loud mouth LukashkwhatTheF*