“It’s just that our guys are really that good. It would be like clubbing baby seals if we use our front line assets.”
Given my understanding of their air defenses, particularly their operational range, I’m not sure the quality of our pilots and others will matter much.
Anyway, I prefer to not find out, as sending NATO in means World War 3, and Russia has some rather powerful toys and very clever ways to deliver them.
That is the risk we run if things escalate and were intervene directly.
It's the old man in a bar fight analogy. A group of young guys gang up on an old guy who really cannot defend himself hand to hand with a three to one disadvantage with guys half his age. So he just pull out his gun and shoots them. Problem solved. Russia is like the old guy in the bar.
“It’s just that our guys are really that good. It would be like clubbing baby seals if we use our front line assets.”
No doubt a combo of F-35s and F-22s would virtually eliminate Russian air defense. And that would allow the heavy freight carriers free roam of the Russian skies.
And every piece of armor would be at risk.
However, only stupid people believe Russia would not use nukes early and often, to include their strategic assets.