Russian attacks (look towards the end of the video on the left side)

Originally Posted By AlmightyTallest:



Are they all missing their cockpit sections?

Originally Posted By AlmightyTallest:
First batch is 18 F-16's.

?\uD83C\uDDFA\uD83C\uDDE6?? "Preparations for the transfer of the first 18 #F16 fighter jets for their delivery to #Ukraine have begun", — Zelensky pic.twitter.com/0Wrg0g6vah

— MAKS 23 \uD83D\uDC40\uD83C\uDDFA\uD83C\uDDE6 (@Maks_NAFO_FELLA) December 22, 2023

\uD83C\uDDF3\uD83C\uDDF1 The Netherlands have started preparations for the transfer of 18 F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine - Prime Minister of the Netherlands

*A total of 42 fighters will be transferred to Ukraine \uD83C\uDDFA\uD83C\uDDE6 pic.twitter.com/bOVVu5VnRv

— Getty \uD83C\uDDFA\uD83C\uDDE6\uD83C\uDDF9\uD83C\uDDFC (@region776) December 22, 2023

Originally Posted By jungatheart:

"Started preparations"  Jesus, how long are they gonna string this out?

Originally Posted By AlmightyTallest:



 I know, each step takes time which is why we need to start things rolling before a crisis instead of waiting for the actual crisis.

Originally Posted By CarmelBytheSea:

I’ve been pushing this for over a decade to no avail. Everyone worldwide waits till the last minute, after the fact, reacting and instead hoping for world peace is automatic and guaranteed - what in human history supports the idea of that?

Originally Posted By 4xGM300m:


This isn't metal, these plates are fibre cement.

Originally Posted By Tomac:


Giving a CMoH to a mercenary (sorry, 'volunteer') would be an insult to Americans who earned them fighting for this country.

Originally Posted By Saltwater-Hillbilly:


The author is actually correct!  However, these tactics take time and bloody experience to develop and implement.  The USAF and Navy burned through a lot of F100s, F105s, A4s, A6s, A7s, and F4s and their pilots/crew to refine these tactics.  Similarly, the Israelis had to suffer through the aerial bloodbath of the 1973 Yom Kippur conflict and it's aftermath as well as leverage the American experience gained in Indochina to get it somewhat right.  Some of the better "Weasels", in addition to training against known/projected foreign systems also do exercises with PATRIOT at White Sands since it is a nasty system (from an Air Force perspective) and very hard to defeat when manned by above-average crews.  I know the Naval Aviation does similar with  Aegis platforms.  The Russkies will have to train against both a plethora of western systems AND their own systems since there are a lot of S-300-type systems in the wild.  In a decade, they might get somewhat good at it, but this will take a LOT of training, experimentation, and will take a level of dedicated platforms; I doubt the Russians will get very good at it during this war as it is doubtful they can commit the assets to pilots with the requisite training and experience during the course of this war.

Originally Posted By Saltwater-Hillbilly:


The author is actually correct!  However, these tactics take time and bloody experience to develop and implement.  The USAF and Navy burned through a lot of F100s, F105s, A4s, A6s, A7s, and F4s and their pilots/crew to refine these tactics.  Similarly, the Israelis had to suffer through the aerial bloodbath of the 1973 Yom Kippur conflict and it's aftermath as well as leverage the American experience gained in Indochina to get it somewhat right.  Some of the better "Weasels", in addition to training against known/projected foreign systems also do exercises with PATRIOT at White Sands since it is a nasty system (from an Air Force perspective) and very hard to defeat when manned by above-average crews.  I know the Naval Aviation does similar with  Aegis platforms.  The Russkies will have to train against both a plethora of western systems AND their own systems since there are a lot of S-300-type systems in the wild.  In a decade, they might get somewhat good at it, but this will take a LOT of training, experimentation, and will take a level of dedicated platforms; I doubt the Russians will get very good at it during this war as it is doubtful they can commit the assets to pilots with the requisite training and experience during the course of this war.

Originally Posted By Easterner:


Don't panic. Ukraine has their own "Hero of Ukraine" medal of honor. Sorry it's volunteer in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Our service is not as mercenaries, but nice try to shit on someone giving their life trying to save another.

Героям слава 🇺🇦

The information regarding the 3 destroyed Russian Su-34 is still fluid and we still need some more solid facts, but the evidence already at hand and the fuming in Pro-Russian social networks we can be sure that it is basically genuine.

Everything points to an event similar to the so-called "Bryansk Massacre" in May 2023, where in a matter of a few minutes 2 fighter planes and 3 choppers of the Russian air force were blown out of the skies of Bryansk, Russia. The Ukrainian Air Force later confirmed that it was responsible and that a MIM-104 Patriot air defence system was used, finally proving all speculations.

The events today in the south of Ukraine are similar but in some aspects even more impressive. It required extensive coordination and planning. The three Russian Su-34 were likely part of an air group attacking the Ukrainian detachment in Krynky, Kherson. Russians have been using improved FAB-500 missiles which they fired more than 50km from the impact points and out of range of short and medium-ranged air defense assets of the Ukrainian army. Russians felt basically safe to deploy their standoff weapons.

This has dramatically changed. It is highly likely that Ukraine deployed the latest MIM-104 Patriot battery in the south, likely the latest Patriot battery from Germany. The PAC-2 variant has a range of at least 160 km (probably more). This considerably extended the zone in which the Ukrainian air defense was able to destroy enemy planes. I marked it in orange on my map but it is a relatively conservative estimation and considers that the battery is not deployed too close to the current frontline. You can easily extend that area and strike even far deeper.

I speculate that once the 3 Russian fighter planes were in the killzone, the Patriot system turned on, targeted the enemy planes and then fired its missiles. This is common practise for all missile-based air defense assets. The missiles travel with the speed of Mach 4 and reached their targets within 1-2 mins which is virtually impossible for the Russian planes to counter or to lose altitude. Yet, the level of planning and coordination is extremely difficult. Even with a excellent weapon system such as MIM-104 Patriot system, you cannot take this for granted. Even small errors could cause failure in this undertaking or even threaten the own survival of the air defense system. The window of success is short and dangerous. But just like in Bryansk they succeeded. The Ukrainian air defense system once again showed us how capable they are. A tribute to their never-ending ingenuity.

For the Russian war effort this is extremely bad news. The Russian swarms of drones and missiles in this winter are getting effectively repelled so far. Ukraine finally allows to use its best air defense system even for offensive operations. Krynky is only an example but a good one. Despite the Ukrainian forces only having around 300-500 men in Krynky and Russians on the other side around 7 brigades, which should actually be enough to repel the small Ukrainian detachment in Krynky alone, it was mainly the Russian air force which countered the small Ukrainian unit. The Russian ground forces were pummeled by artillery and drones. It was only the Russian planes which weren't countered, yet. This has obviously changed and it will be another painful thorn in Russia's side. This also comes only after weeks when the Russian Su-24M was shot down over the Black Sea near Snake Island. The message is clear: the south is now officially an hot area for the Russian air force.

Even though we shouldn't get too much carried away around these events, it nevertheless shows us that even with a limited extension of supplies Ukrainian forces can inflict decisive losses on the Russian war machinery. The is also no new development. Ukrainians always overperformed with that little they got and with the right weaponry and especially with the right amount they can finish the job. The Russian "strategy" is purely based on the West to stop delivering supplies. They have no plan B, no alternative, and when we start raising the stakes and go seriously in with our supplies and industry, then Ukraine will liberate all the Ukrainian territory and finish the war which Russia started.