The Ukraine war. (Yes, we'll mind our manners)

[SosaUK1987]

I have NO idea if there's a relationship between the 2 things but the US conducted balloon delivery vehicles for EMP releases - in the 1960s i think

Ironic that we deployed a multi- billion dollar extension of that weapon platform

To shoot down a balloon

It that pilot was an Academy grad --
GUARANTEED he bucks for a recorded "kill"

I think the shooting down of the one over Lakes, the first missile actually missed. Lol. Whoops. And the price tag was like $250k each missile. Ouch.

If I’m remembering correctly.

 

[CastleRubric]

Yeah it was. We used a pretty nice missle to do it too. No doubt to show the chinese what's up.

Really??
Like an AMRAM i bet

 

[RunninRichie]

Really??
Like an AMRAM i bet

i used to buy inertial measurement units for that missile

Critical sub component to the guidance system

Honeywell & Northop were the 2 main suppliers
Collins Aero maybe too

Whats cooler is the F22's assigned to shoot it down were named after WW2 MOH recipient Frank Luke Jr. Better known as the ''Arizona Balloon Buster''.

 

[CastleRubric]

I think the shooting down of the one over Lakes, the first missile actually missed. Lol. Whoops. And the price tag was like $250k each missile. Ouch.

If I’m remembering correctly.

I believe I do remember hearing they had trouble shooting it down initially

Doesn't inspire confidence in what a matchup against comparable competition would like

Seems like snipers in helicopters would have made MUCH more sense - leaving the USAF loitering & monitoring the wider area maybe -

Fkking death by communist balloons - just great

 

[Spica Orbit]

Offensive fails.....

US Intelligence Deems Ukraine's Counteroffensive a Failure - News From Antiwar.com

According to the Washington Post, the US intelligence community has assessed that Ukraine’s Spring counteroffensive will fail to meet its core objectives. Western officials said their war games had predicted massive Ukrainian losses, but that Kyiv would remain committed to the operations and...

news.antiwar.com

 

[Spica Orbit]

I think the shooting down of the one over Lakes, the first missile actually missed. Lol. Whoops. And the price tag was like $250k each missile. Ouch.

If I’m remembering correctly.

---
If it was an AIM-120 AMRAAM, it costs over 1 million per missile. The simplest "balloon buster" would have been the F-22's 20mm gatling gun, but leave it to the Pentagon brass to choose the most expensive weapon, although Lloyd "Lockheed" Austin probably made the final call. Got to pump up those MIC profit margins!

 

[SosaUK1987]

---
If it was an AIM-120 AMRAAM, it costs over 1 million per missile. The simplest "balloon buster" would have been the F-22's 20mm gatling gun, but leave it to the Pentagon brass to choose the most expensive weapon, although Lloyd "Lockheed" Austin probably made the final call. Got to pump up those MIC profit margins!

Apparently, it was the F22 and it was a AIM-9X Sidewinder missile, according to this.

At least the one off of South Carolina.

 

[RunninRichie]

Apparently, it was the F22 and it was a AIM-9X Sidewinder missile, according to this.

At least the one off of South Carolina.

Those missles are badass too. Made in 1952 but very advanced. Think I read they can hit planes BEHIND the jet they're fired from.

 

[SosaUK1987]

Those missles are badass too. Made in 1952 but very advanced. Think I read they can hit planes BEHIND the jet they're fired from.

Gotta love American engineering.

 

[Spica Orbit]

Apparently, it was the F22 and it was a AIM-9X Sidewinder missile, according to this.

At least the one off of South Carolina.

---
Up north, too, apparently. Although with the Pentagon you can really never be sure of anything. Newsweek pegs these at about $450,000. At that price they should have popped about two at each object. It's a bargain!

'Sidewinder' missile Biden used over Lake Huron cost over $450k

The object shot over Lake Huron has not yet been confirmed by the U.S. to be another Chinese spy balloon.

www.newsweek.com

 

[barton keyes]

privatization.gov.ua/en/

pretty depressing

 

[SosaUK1987]

privatization.gov.ua/en/

pretty depressing

????

 

[barton keyes]

they’re auctioning off state assets, doubtless a condition of the west propping up their war effort

 

[entropy13]

Seems like snipers in helicopters would have made MUCH more sense - leaving the USAF loitering & monitoring the wider area maybe -

The balloon was at 60,000 feet or so, IIRC. Choppers can only go to about 25,000 max. That's almost 7 miles away, far beyond the range of a sniper rifle, not to mention the chopper not being able to hold steady with air currents and whatnot for a good shot.

That said, the general idea of using a gun makes sense. Not sure why an F22 couldn't have just used its gun. They can fly that high and it'd have been much cheaper.

 

[entropy13]

In other news, Russia attempted to broaden the front in Ukraine by attacking...the Moon.

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/19/rus...technical-glitch-in-pre-landing-maneuver.html

 

[SDC888]

These violent delights have violent ends.

 

[vhcat70]

These violent delights have violent ends.

View embedded media

This is so surprising. Just wow.

 

[RunninRichie]

Ukraine drone maybe? Or maybe Putin killed him. Either way, a good win for Ukraine. That guy is seriously crazy.

 

[RunninRichie]

Have to think if the Wagner fighters and their new leader ''Wagner'' realize Putin killed him they'll march to Moscow for real this time.

 

[CastleRubric]

The balloon was at 60,000 feet or so, IIRC. Choppers can only go to about 25,000 max. That's almost 7 miles away, far beyond the range of a sniper rifle, not to mention the chopper not being able to hold steady with air currents and whatnot for a good shot.

That said, the general idea of using a gun makes sense. Not sure why an F22 couldn't have just used its gun. They can fly that high and it'd have been much cheaper.

Ah. didn't realize that !
I may need to go back and read up on those incidents
Have there been other balloon type encounters since?

 

[vhcat70]

^ I thought he wanted to end war to stop Russians from being killed. No?

 

[Tskware]

Ukraine drone maybe? Or maybe Putin killed him. Either way, a good win for Ukraine. That guy is seriously crazy.

Agree, couldn't have happened to a nicer more deserving fellow.

 

[entropy13]

Have there been other balloon type encounters since?

Good question! I haven't heard of any. Maybe China's dialed the balloon stuff back. What irks me is that we probably don't have any idea of how many there were before the recent spate because apparently our sensors were tuned to treat such things as "noise."

 

[SosaUK1987]

Ah. didn't realize that !
I may need to go back and read up on those incidents
Have there been other balloon type encounters since?

Not that we have been told.

 

[Bill Cosby]

Apparently the guy who looks like a less mentally challenged nazi Fetterman was also on the plane.

 

[SosaUK1987]

Apparently the guy who looks like a less mentally challenged nazi Fetterman was also on the plane.

I saw 2 of his Lt’s were with him.

 

[BlueSince92]

The Ukraine issue is something it seems most Americans have backwards, mostly thanks to Tucker Carlson falling for Putin’s propaganda.

Overwhelmingly today American conservatives oppose supporting Ukraine against Russia, while American liberals favor it.

But that doesn’t make any sense. I can assure you as an American conservative who spent near 18 months over there during Covid, American conservatives would love it in Ukraine.

And American liberals would largely hate it. By a big majority Ukrainians love Trump and dislike Biden. There’s a church on practically every street corner and they stay full. Teenagers in Ukraine are more likely to get made fun of if they believe in evolution and not the other way around. Jews feel very safe over there despite the ridiculous propaganda, which is why they celebrate the biggest Jewish culture festival in the world over there every year and why they have big synagogues downtown in every major city and why they feel free to wander around at all hours on the city streets in black hats and long black robes with huge beards “Shalom”ing everybody happily all day.

It’s not surprising at all that our country is divided about Ukraine because we can’t even make a sandwich over here anymore without getting divided about it. But it is really strange which sides we generally picked when we got divided on it.

 

[AustinTXCat]

Really ramping up training.

US to teach Ukrainian pilots English in Texas, flying F-16s in Arizona

The U.S. will start training Ukrainian pilots to fly U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets, beginning at an Air National Guard base in October, the Pentagon said Thursday.

www.nbcdfw.com

 

[bigblueinsanity]

The Ukraine issue is something it seems most Americans have backwards, mostly thanks to Tucker Carlson falling for Putin’s propaganda.

Overwhelmingly today American conservatives oppose supporting Ukraine against Russia, while American liberals favor it.

But that doesn’t make any sense. I can assure you as an American conservative who spent near 18 months over there during Covid, American conservatives would love it in Ukraine.

And American liberals would largely hate it. By a big majority Ukrainians love Trump and dislike Biden. There’s a church on practically every street corner and they stay full. Teenagers in Ukraine are more likely to get made fun of if they believe in evolution and not the other way around. Jews feel very safe over there despite the ridiculous propaganda, which is why they celebrate the biggest Jewish culture festival in the world over there every year and why they have big synagogues downtown in every major city and why they feel free to wander around at all hours on the city streets in black hats and long black robes with huge beards “Shalom”ing everybody happily all day.

It’s not surprising at all that our country is divided about Ukraine because we can’t even make a sandwich over here anymore without getting divided about it. But it is really strange which sides we generally picked when we got divided on it.

"Everything I disagree with is Russian misinformation" lol

I can 100% tell why me and most fiscally conservative people oppose it: it's a giant waste of money when our economy and inflation is out of control. If we had loads of surplus, then sure go for it.

Yes yes I get that Putin is a bad person etc. There are plenty of bad people. Him taking back a sliver of the Ukraine wouldn't lead to world domination. Just 11 years ago Obama "zinged" Romney on Russia saying the 80s called and wanted their foreign policy back. Then Hillary et al sold him uranium. So apparently they didn't think he was bent on world domination all that long ago. If course that's before Ukraine money started outbidding Russia.

If we're going to overspend to stop any nation on the world stage, it should hands down be china. They're openly pursuing world domination and making significant inroads. In fact, it's pretty likely they're currently the preeminent super power. If not, they certainly will be. But they too wisely bribe all the right politicians. So instead we'll spend billions and billions to stop a mildly dangerous country from acquiring insignificant land while ignoring our own people and the imminent Chinese threat

 

[RunninRichie]

"Everything I disagree with is Russian misinformation" lol

I can 100% tell why me and most fiscally conservative people oppose it: it's a giant waste of money when our economy and inflation is out of control. If we had loads of surplus, then sure go for it.

Yes yes I get that Putin is a bad person etc. There are plenty of bad people. Him taking back a sliver of the Ukraine wouldn't lead to world domination. Just 11 years ago Obama "zinged" Romney on Russia saying the 80s called and wanted their foreign policy back. Then Hillary et al sold him uranium. So apparently they didn't think he was bent on world domination all that long ago. If course that's before Ukraine money started outbidding Russia.

If we're going to overspend to stop any nation on the world stage, it should hands down be china. They're openly pursuing world domination and making significant inroads. In fact, it's pretty likely they're currently the preeminent super power. If not, they certainly will be. But they too wisely bribe all the right politicians. So instead we'll spend billions and billions to stop a mildly dangerous country from acquiring insignificant land while ignoring our own people and the imminent Chinese threat

Sure, China can be a super power. As soon as they solve their population problem...

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Sure, China can be a super power. As soon as they solve their population problem...

Can be? They already are. They almost surely exceeded us on the world stage. Far and away more of a threat than Russia even if they reacquire the small portion of the Ukraine.

The time to truly stop Russia was years ago when they were still down. Instead Obama was joking and selling them uranium.

 

[vhcat70]

Russia's War on Ukraine is not a mere local territorial dispute:

"... Putin’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine was not intended to win over the West. To the contrary, it was a premeditated assault not just on the territory of Ukraine but on Western power as such. Putin wanted the war to help Russia align with the non-West, expose the hollowness of Western power, and demonstrate that Russia is destined to be an important arbiter of international order. This is a top-line effort for Russia. Had the war gone well, Putin would have tried to split Europe from the U.S. He has not given up on this agenda and will wage a long war, either to grind down Western backing for Ukraine or to ensure that the Ukraine invited into Western institutions like NATO and the European Union is a failed state. Putin’s dream in Ukraine is to prove the reality of American decline." Territorial dispute. LOL.

For Putin, American decline equals Russian ascendance."

"Since 2014, Putin has also cultivated good relations with China. The two countries are supposed to be the linchpins of a post-American international order, a multipolar world liberated from the depredations of American militarism and democracy promotion. Achieving this end is the grand strategic aim of Putin’s Russia.

Putin’s sweeping ambitions have shown him to be a political romantic. He is besotted with history: Foreign Minister Lavrov has quipped that Putin’s advisers are Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great and Catherine the Great. By attempting to conquer Ukrainian territory, Putin believes he is restoring Russia’s proper grandeur." I.e., grandeur, not territory.

Essay | The Godfather in the Kremlin

The very public death of Putin henchman Yevgeny Prigozhin highlights the evolution of Russia into a mafia state held together by violence and incapable of global leadership.

www.wsj.com

 

[vhcat70]

Can be? They already are. They almost surely exceeded us on the world stage. Far and away more of a threat than Russia even if they reacquire the small portion of the Ukraine.

The time to truly stop Russia was years ago when they were still down. Instead Obama was joking and selling them uranium.

Agree China is superpower. But how is "They almost surely exceeded us on world stage" true? Economy? Currency? Technology? Military power? Friends?

 

[bigblueinsanity]

Agree China is superpower. But how is "They almost surely exceeded us on world stage" true? Economy? Currency? Technology? Military power? Friends?

All the above except probably military. They far exceed Russia in every characteristic.

 

[Marleydogg]

What's even funnier is seeing all you far-right guys repeat Russian propaganda. Russia did not invade Ukraine to ''de-nazify'' it.
https://euvsdisinfo.eu/report/only-the-ruling-elite-in-ukraine-are-nazis-not-ordinary-ukrainians

This is an new twist on the Nazi Ukraine narrative. One of the Kremlin’s most common disinformation narratives to justify its devastating war against Ukraine is the lie that Russia is pursuing the “denazification” of Ukraine. In reality, Ukraine is not a Nazi state, does not have a Nazi ruling elite and Nazism is not Ukraine’s ideology.

The myth of Nazi-ruled Ukraine has been the cornerstone of Russian disinformation about the country since the very beginning of the 2013-14 Euromaidan protests, when it was used to discredit the pro-European popular uprising in Kyiv and, subsequently, the broader pro-Western shift in Ukraine's foreign policy.

In 2015, Ukraine issued a ban on Nazi and Communist ideologies. On top of that, far-right groups had a limited presence during the Euromaidan protests and have suffered defeats in every national election after that, with a united front of all radical right-wing parties in the 2019 parliamentary elections winning only 2.15% of the vote falling far short of the 5% minimum guaranteeing entry into parliament.

But I thought they were a 'free democracy'!

 

[AustinTXCat]

Bad day for Ivan. Switchblade drones are awesome.

 

[WayneDougan]

Bad day for Ivan. Switchblade drones are awesome.

View embedded media

Imagine getting your kicks when some nobody gets killed.

 

[Mash 2.4]

Bad day for Ivan. Switchblade drones are awesome.

View embedded media

That’s surely equipped with some explosive right? If it takes out the whole truck I can see the effectiveness. If it just takes out one guy I don’t understand it’s use. Although I suppose it would be useful as a terror tool.

 

[vhcat70]

All the above except probably military. They far exceed Russia in every characteristic.

Your Russia diversion is a red herring & you know it. Sad. Your contention is that China has exceeded us. Answer: NOT AT ALL.

 

[BlueSince92]

"Everything I disagree with is Russian misinformation" lol

I can 100% tell why me and most fiscally conservative people oppose it: it's a giant waste of money when our economy and inflation is out of control. If we had loads of surplus, then sure go for it.

Yes yes I get that Putin is a bad person etc. There are plenty of bad people. Him taking back a sliver of the Ukraine wouldn't lead to world domination. Just 11 years ago Obama "zinged" Romney on Russia saying the 80s called and wanted their foreign policy back. Then Hillary et al sold him uranium. So apparently they didn't think he was bent on world domination all that long ago. If course that's before Ukraine money started outbidding Russia.

If we're going to overspend to stop any nation on the world stage, it should hands down be china. They're openly pursuing world domination and making significant inroads. In fact, it's pretty likely they're currently the preeminent super power. If not, they certainly will be. But they too wisely bribe all the right politicians. So instead we'll spend billions and billions to stop a mildly dangerous country from acquiring insignificant land while ignoring our own people and the imminent Chinese threat

Shame you didn't have anything to say that wasn't based on wildly misquoting me.