I'd guess it's probably Russia. They're the world leader in such "gray zone" tactics and one should not underestimate them, they've had the head start on everyone and are quite Innovative here. Most European militaries haven't focused on counter UAS in the same way that the US has, and Ukraine have done, and Russia is trying to do now with Ukrainian drone attacks increasing. There's also different classes of UAS, that require different strategies for intercepting or neutralising. A quadcopter drone or winged unmanned aircraft weighing less than 10kg is very different from a Geran-2/Shahed 136, which is different to an MQ-9 Reaper.
MarmiteLover123
joined 3 years ago
There's no way it's only 10%. Have you seen Facebook ads?
The AGM-181 LRSO is a nuclear only stealth cruise missile, to replace the AGM-86 ALCM. The AGM-181 is a modernisation of the concept behind the AGM-129 ACM, which was the world's first stealth cruise missile and highly advanced, which was made to replace the AGM-86. The US ended up retiring the AGM-129 so they would have more money to bomb Iraq and Afghanistan in a post cold war world, and brought the AGM-86 ALCM back.
AGM-129 ACM:
From the pictures in the article and the photographer's Instagram, the AGM-181 LRSO looks like a mix of the AGM-129 ACM and AGM-158 JASSM:
"Upside down" tailplane design from the AGM-129 is retained. "Beaver tail" exhaust cover is also retained from the AGM-129. The aperture for the LiDAR sensor I'm guessing (the AGM-129 used LiDAR instead of radar for TERCOM navigation to reduce emissions and the possibility of passive detection) is visible and in a similar spot. All very different to the AGM-158 JASSM, and similar to the AGM-129.
However, the wings (and likely the air intake) are a big departure from the AGM-129, which had forward swept wings that popped out of the upper fuselage, and an S-ducted NACA inlet on the bottom as an air intake. The wings on the AGM-181 are like those of the AGM-158 JASSM, on the bottom, and when folded up like in the images above, likely cover the S-ducted air intake. Lots of very complex aerodynamics to design an S-ducted air intake that works at both very low and high altitudes at transonic speeds. Image below of a JASSM dummy round with wings unfolded to visualise:
Performance wise, the AGM-129 had a maximum range in excess of 2000nmi/3700km, could fly at high or very low altitude. The AGM-181 LRSO will likely have similar or better performance. The carry over of a lot of features from the AGM-129 makes sense, as the AGM-181 is designed by Raytheon, who acquired General Dynamics, the company which made the AGM-129 in the 1980s. If Lockheed Martin had won the contract instead, it would probably look a lot more like the AGM-158 JASSM which Lockheed Martin produces.
US Air Force B-52H Stratofortress bombers are doing another show of force/probing flight off of the coast of Venezuela.
Contrails from the B-52s were visible from the Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao
They're now flying in a loop near Venezuela
Venezuela is also moving around S-125/SA-3 air defence systems within the last hour or two.
Some U.S. officials say there is no need to force out Maduro as long as he agrees to curb drug trafficking, give the U.S. more access to Venezuela’s oil reserves and promises to hold fair elections
So there's no need to force Maduro out if he leaves himself? Incredible journalism going on here folks, no one could have come to this conclusion otherwise.
The carrier spent the past 12 days making its way across the Mediterranean, a much slower pace than anticipated. It is likely the ship is moving slowly to complete additional training, including flight operations, to prepare for the Caribbean deployment, experts said. It is also due to undergo routine maintenance before entering a potential war zone, according to two U.S. officials.
It was spotted transiting the Strait of Gibraltar two days ago, and was already in the Atlantic. So it's already far away from any ports now. How quickly it arrives depends on the speed of the escorts, supply ships, and how much strain they want to put on the reactors.
We’re going to see an overproduction of military equipments across the world over the next few years. It’s scary times because those surplus war machines will have to be eliminated somehow.
The RSF in Sudan already got their hands on Chinese made FK-2000 SHORAD (similar to the Russian Pantsir/SA-22 in concept) from the UAE, and shot down a cargo plane operating for the SAF. So yeah as arms proliferate, it's going to be impossible to control who gets what. Azov in Ukraine probably has better counter UAS/drone capabilities than most European armies, for another example.
There is the massive underground bunker/command centre China is building 40km from Beijing. Apparently it's over 10 times the size of the Pentagon.
United States Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau:
The US commends the armed forces of Mali 🇲🇱 in their fight against Islamic extremist militants (JNIM). Today I had an excellent conversation with Mali’s Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop to discuss our shared security interests in the region. Look forward to greater cooperation!
Looks like the US wants to get back in the region, and Trump's selling it to his base as "stopping Christian genocide in Nigeria".
The armoured car decoy doesn't even have wheels...
Oniks (without export restrictions) would be the best card Russia could play here. A Mach 2+ sea skimming cruise missile with the range to actually be of use (600-800km), and the option for both an air launch or ground launch. I don't think the US has any concerns about the current Kh-31 anti ship missiles for Venezuela's Su-30s. Their short range and reliance on being air launched means the chances of getting a shot off are slim, they're basically mini Moskit missiles, hence the much shorter range and smaller size. Also, the US has extensively tested their AEGIS air defence systems against the Kh-31, they bought some Kh-31s after the USSR collapsed and used them as target missiles, called the MA-31. Cursed images incoming:
The US also bought components of an earlier version of the S-300VM/SA-23, called the S-300V/SA-12, from Belarus after the USSR collapsed, but there's not much that can be done about that now.
Hey the RSF managed to shoot down an adversary logistics aircraft instead of their own this time. They're advancing!
But on a serious note, the genocide taking place in El Fasher is heartbreaking and nothing is being done about it. No protests, barely any news coverage, no action against the UAE or RSF/Janjaweed. The world just goes on.
Not really, because if the air defence network is intact, B-52s aren't flying in contested airspace. They'll be lobbing cruise missiles like AGM-158 JASSM ER (500nmi/925km+) range, the shorter range JASSMs, or even glide bombs like JSOW (70nmi/130km+ range and stealth) or JDAM ER. 1 B-52 can carry 20 each of all of the above, hence why the US likes to use them a lot, you'd need 5 F-15Es or 10 F-16s to equal one B-52 in a realistic loadout. They'll only fly over hostile airspace to drop gravity bombs once the air defence network is severely degraded, at which point they can fly over/above the maximum altitude ceiling of AA guns and MANPADS. The EW suite on the B-52H is also quite good, operators say it's equivalent to the EA-18G Growler.
B-52s were deployed to Diego Garcia during the strikes on Iran and Yemen, but it's unknown if they saw any action or what weapons were employed if they participated in any strikes.