Posted on 05/12/2022 8:12:19 AM PDT by Cronos
The aftermath of the Russian attempt to cross the Siverskyi Donets River.
The better part of a Russian army battalion—50 or so vehicles and up to a thousand troops—in recent days tried to cross a pontoon bridge spanning the Siverskyi Donets River, running west to east between the separatist provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine.
Ukrainian artillery caught them at the river bank—and destroyed them. The rapid destruction of around three dozen tanks and other armored vehicles, along with the bridge itself, underscores Russia’s deepening woes as its troops try, and fail, to make meaningful gains in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region.
“We still assess Russian ground force in the Donbas to be slow and uneven,” an unnamed U.S. Defense Department official told reporters on Tuesday. The Russians’ inability to cross rivers might explain their sloth.
The Siverskyi Donets, which threads from southern Russia into eastern Ukraine then back into Russia, is just one of several water barriers Russian battalions must cross in order to advance west into Ukrainian-held territory. According to the Ukrainian armed forces’ general staff, the battalion that got caught at the pontoon bridge apparently was trying to strike at Lyman, a city of 20,000 that lies 17 miles west of the doomed crossing.
The Ukrainian army’s 17th Tank Brigade spotted the bridge, perhaps using one of the many small drones that function as the army’s eyes over the battlefield. The 17th is one of the army’s four active tank brigades. Its line battalions operate T-64 tanks and BMP fighting vehicles. But it was the brigade’s artillery battalion with its 2S1 122-millimeter howitzers that apparently got first crack at the Russian bridge.
The 17th’s shelling destroyed at least seven T-72 and T-80 tanks, 17 BMPs, seven MT-LB armored tractors, five other vehicles and much of the bridging unit itself, including a tugboat and the pontoon span.
It’s unclear how many Russians died or were wounded, but it’s worth noting that no battalion can lose three-quarters of its vehicles and remain capable of operations. In one strike, the Ukrainians removed from the battlefield one of the roughly 99 Russian battalion tactical groups in Ukraine.
In the aftermath of their defeat, local Russian forces are sticking to their side of the river, “trying to hold positions on the right bank,” according to the general staff in Kyiv. The disastrous river-crossing comes as Russian forces also are retreating away from the city of Kharkiv, farther north.
To be fair to Moscow, crossing any water obstacle during wartime is dangerous. The Ukrainians can claim perhaps the most lopsided victory over an enemy bridging effort, but the Russians have knocked out some Ukrainian spans, too.
“The mesh was likely Molotov cocktail deflectors.”
Actually, they have been trying to put mesh around the turrets to preemptively detonate antitank rockets before they hit the turret, because most of their tanks are missing reactive armor systems. The mesh doesn’t really seem to work though.
Until someone comes out with an EMP weapon that doesn’t require a nuclear warhead...
The article doesn’t have it, but a dozen other photos have been shared of the destruction, though a lot of the armor simply looked abandoned. The russkies took off running after the initial attack.
They look like a good read. I’ve ordered both. Thanks!
“Only 3 tanks destroyed in the images...”
There are a great many more images of the aftermath of this battle available on the interwebs. Many, many more than 3 tanks were destroyed. It actually looks like dozens were abandoned intact on the far side of the river when the Russians withdrew after the bridge was blown, because they had no means to take them back across.
The invincible fact that reigns supreme over all others is that we are now in Week 12 of a war that the Russians were supposed to win in two days, and the Russians have very little to show for it.
The fact that this conflict has dragged on for 12 weeks with no Russian victory anywhere in sight proves a whole lot of things all by itself that wishful thinking a taunts cannot put a dent in.
Putin doesn’t care how many Russian soldiers he kills. Or how many Ukrainians die
—
(If true - I am skeptical of all stories out of the Ukraine. Having said that, my views on the situation.)
I am not sure why Putin would be unconcerned about the loss in men and equipment. It takes time (and money) to build tanks, and it takes time (and money) to train men to operate those tanks.
Besides the loss of men and equipment these type of losses will effect the morale of the troops fighting.
Wars are often won when one side breaks the others will to fight. Throwing away your men is a quick way to lower morale.
Sun Tzu would say to let half the enemy force across and then annihilate them. This is a safe substitute.
Sure, all of that is normal in war.
The Russians are not fighting in pure battalions but in Battalion Tactical Groups. Typically BTG's are made up of an infantry battalion reinforced with a tank company and artillery, air-defence, engineering and logistical support units. Thus there would normally be only 10 tanks. I think that this might be one of the problems with the Russian; they have spread their tanks across their forces in small penny packets rather than concentrating them for a breakthrough or major exploitation. That said, an opposed river crossing is one of the most difficult operations for any army.
Look at the oil slicks ,where are the environmentalists , oh wait they are working with billionaires on the Great Reset
It unbelievable that either you are dumb to believe this disinformation or dishonest enough to keep posting it. But, it's one or the other.
There is but one outcome to this war -- Russia will control the entire Donbass region. The Kherson region will vote for its independence or to become part of Russia. The Russians will own the entire coastline and have full control over the Black Sea.
Ukraine will be a landlocked rump state. It may even have to give control over part of western Ukraine over to Poland.
But, anyone posting this nonsense here should be forced to ask if they supported the legislation that gave another $40 billion to Ukraine.
How hard is it to build a few trebuchets, pack enough parachutes for the battalion, and launch them over the river?
“There is but one outcome to this war…”
Putin and a bunch of his incompetent thieving generals in the Dock at The Hague for war crimes along with about a decade’s worth of Russian oil, gas, and mineral revenues to Ukraine to pay for all the damage he caused. And so the Ukrainians can pay the American taxpayer for all the stuff the “leased” from us.
And I thought this isn’t a war. Isn’t that what Putin said? It’s a “special military operation” which is completely different from a war. Right?
So go tell Vlad to blow the dust off his checkbook because the bill is coming due. After his yacht gets auctioned off to the highest bidder anyway.
L
Right now the Rubble is currently 65:1 to the dollar. On March 10 it was at 138.7:1, so Russia made corrections. Last year at this time it was at 73.4:1. The Ruble is in a state of flux over the war. Its so called "best performance" is really a recovery due to actions of the Russian government and market action. A few months from now and the picture will be different.
That’s been done.
I don’t remember the details, but it think it involves an inductor carrying a high current and a small explosive charge.
There are several systems that create EMP effects. Of course they are much more limited in range than the nuclear EMP effect.
There are short range directed weapons and smaller area weapons.
I have been so informed by a fairly reliable source.
I wonder if the small number of main battle tanks is because of previous losses.
What are you a Putin lover?
Based on western media reports Russia is routed totally
Based on actual reporters who go where the fighting is it’s been over for weeks with Ukraine defeated or contained or holed up
How long has Russian troop mass been parked outside Kiev
Who really knows except much western press is disproven as uke propaganda handed to western news outlets not anywhere close to the action
Daily Mail being a big one
No question there has been fighting in the east but that’s been true past 8 years
The rest looks like Uke hit and runs and Russian arty and air attacks
Like I keep pointing out in the false claim of total war the utilities still run in most of the country outside the separatists territory where it appears Azov is doing a steel plant Alamo
The Lubansk and Donbas seem separatist control beyond that
Yet to be seen how much more Putin wants
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