If there were any way for both sides to lose I’d be in favor of that.
L
*************
Yeah, right.
Trump is doing the right thing.
‘How Putin’s new drone strategy is changing the war in Ukriaine’ [excerpt]
Russia has in recent weeks dramatically escalated its drone attacks on Ukraine, unleashing near-nightly swarms of unmanned aircraft that rain destruction on cities, power grids, and civilian infrastructure.
The intensified campaign – fueled by a surge in domestic production and support by allies – has plunged entire communities into fear, with residents jolted awake by air raid sirens and the ominous buzz of drones overhead.
A day earlier, Russia unleashed a deadly “massive combined strike” that lasted nearly ten hours, according to Volodymyr Zelensky. About 400 attack drones – nearly 200 of them the “Shahed” type – were used in the assault, which also included 18 missiles, some of them ballistic.
This attack followed Moscow’s largest single-day drone assault to date, which was carried out with 728 explosive drones and decoys on Wednesday, surpassing the previous record of 539 drones fired on Friday by 189, according to the Ukrainian air force.
I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a Patriot system today. -Zelenski
Pissing in the wind.
So NATO is coming to the defense of a non NATO nation that is in a war because of the possibility that it will become a NATO member.
Designer Raytheon, Hughes, and RCA
Designed 1969
Manufacturer Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and Boeing
Domestic cost: About US$1.09 billion (FY 2022) for a battery; US$4 million for a single PAC-3 MSE missile
Export cost: About US$2.37–2.5 billion for a battery; US$6–10 million (FY 2018) for a single missile
Produced 1976–present
No. built
1,106 launchers in U.S. (483 were in service in 2010)
Over 250 launchers exported to 18 countries
Over 10,000 missiles manufactured
Specifications
Operational range 160 km (99 mi) (max)
Maximum speed
PAC-2 GEM+: 5,630 km/h (3,500 mph)
PAC-3: 6,170 km/h (3,830 mph)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIM-104_Patriot
Following is the process a PAC-3 firing battery uses to engage a single tactical ballistic missile with two PAC-3 missiles:
A missile is detected by the AN/MPQ-65 radar. The radar reviews the speed, altitude, behavior, and radar cross-section of the target. If this data lines up with the discrimination parameters set into the system, the missile is presented on the screen of the operator as a ballistic missile target.
In the AN/MSQ-104 Engagement Control Station, the TCO reviews the speed, altitude, and trajectory of the track and then authorizes engagement. Upon authorizing engagement, the TCO instructs his TCA to bring the system’s launchers into “operate” mode from “standby” mode. The engagement will take place automatically at the moment the computer defines the parameters that ensure the highest probability of kill.
The system computer determines which of the battery’s launchers have the highest probability of kill and selects them to fire. Two missiles are launched 4.2 seconds apart in a “ripple”.
The AN/MPQ-65 radar continues tracking the target and uploads intercept information to the PAC-3 missiles which are now outbound to intercept.
Upon reaching its terminal homing phase, the Ka band active radar seeker in the nose of the PAC-3 missile acquires the inbound ballistic missile. This radar selects the radar return most likely to be the warhead of the incoming missile and directs the interceptor towards it.
The ACMs (attitude control motors) of the PAC-3 missile fire to precisely align the missile on the interception trajectory.
The interceptor flies straight through the warhead of the inbound ballistic missile, detonating it and destroying the missile.
The second missile locates any debris which may be a warhead and attacks in a similar manner.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIM-104_Patriot
Its Trump facing the reality of dealing with an imperialist Putin.
Date____________Model_______#launched__# destroyed
2025-05-16 Supercam 2 2
2025-05-16 Unknown UAV 7 7
2025-05-17 Shahed-136/131 62 42
2025-05-18 Shahed-136/131 273 216
2025-05-18 –ú–æ–ª–Ω—ñ—è 4 4
2025-05-19 Recon. UAV 2 2
2025-05-19 Shahed-136/131 112 76
2025-05-19 –ú–æ–ª–Ω—ñ—è 3 3
2025-05-20 Shahed-136/131 108 93
2025-05-20 –ú–æ–ª–Ω—ñ—è 5 5
2025-05-23 Lancet 2 2
2025-05-21 Orlan-10 6 6
2025-05-21 Shahed-136/131 76 63
2025-05-21 Supercam 5 5
2025-05-21 ZALA 3 3
2025-05-21 –ú–æ–ª–Ω—ñ—è 2 2
2025-05-22 Iskander-M 1 0
2025-05-22 Reconn. UAV 5 5
2025-05-22 Shahed-136/131 128 112
2025-05-22 –ú–æ–ª–Ω—ñ—è 7 7
2025-05-23 Iskander-M 1 0
2025-05-23 Merlin-VR 1 1
2025-05-23 Orlan-10 2 2
2025-05-23 Shahed-136/131 175 150
2025-05-23 ZALA 1 1
2025-05-24 Iskander-M/KN-23 14 6
2025-05-24 Shahed-136/131 250 245
2025-05-25 Iskander-M/KN-23 9 0
2025-05-25 Orlan-10 1 1
2025-05-25 Shahed-136/131 298 266
2025-05-25 X-101/X-555 and Kalibr 55 45
2025-05-25 X-22 1 0
2025-05-25 X-59/X-69 4 2
2025-05-26 Shahed-136/131 355 288
2025-05-26 X-101/X-555 9 9
It appears to me that only the Shaheds, Iskandars and Xs are getting through Ukrainian defenses.
“Not my war” - President Trump
“Germany was ready to pay for two of the Patriots and Norway for one”
Game Changer /s
Putin needs to be killed
As long as we have the Patriots to spare and the other NATO countries are now ponying up their share, I’m OK with this.
Vlad, can I have a 30-day ceasefire?
Nyet, Don, nyet!
“Ukraine now produces more artillery systems than all NATO countries combined”
I’d wait for the check to clear.