Ukraine

All three of these systems seem promising in particular though I think the avilus bussard is EXACTLY what Ukraine needs to deal with drone swarms/mass flying bomb attacks (i.e an electronics warfare and surveillance platform like this) see my post on the Aero Shark ultralight airplane for more info on the topic.

The new defense product lineup positions the Bussard drone as a long-range strategic asset capable of persistent surveillance and precision effects. With its maximum takeoff weight of 800 kg and payload capacity of 143 kg, Bussard provides wide-area reconnaissance thanks to its Hensoldt Argos EO system and PrecISR radar, ensuring day-night, all-weather intelligence collection.

The wespe can carry a stretcher for medevac, it also provides a way to carry a soldier killed in action off of the battlefield so their loved ones can have peace without having to place a human operator at risk or require an unrealistic amount of manpower than is available at the front at that moment in time due to the Russian attacks. While this seems like a grim point, I don't care, what matters is that human beings are going to do everything possible to get fellow deceased soldiers off the battlefield so they can have a decent burial and this will inveitably place humans at risk when they do this. In those instances the impact of a wespe drone is no longer just assistance in a kind but grim epigraph, it becomes an agent to free the other human beings defending up so they can better ensure it doesn't happen again...

The wespe (and systems like it) deserve their own post for the potential life saving applications they have in Ukraine, it is not lost to me that the original use of helicopters in warfare quickly morphed from reconnaisance into medevac.

https://blog.eastmanleather.com/view-post/korea-the-first-helicopter-war

Think of these medevac drones that can lift a medical compartment/stretcher out of combat zones while under great risk as an echo of how helicopters were first used to save lives in war.

https://blog.eastmanleather.com/view-post/korea-the-first-helicopter-war

Early in 1951, Army helicopters also began to fly medevac missions, sparing seriously wounded soldiers punishing ambulance trips over Korea's wretched roads. Between their rescues of downed airmen and isolated ground troops and flying ambulance missions, U.S. helicopters were credited with saving tens of thousands of lives during the war. "Few technical innovations were equal in importance to the growing use of the helicopter for medical evacuations," one Army history declared. With the arrival of larger, more capable helicopters later in the conflict, the Marines and Army would demonstrate the usefulness of vertical lift aircraft in the tactical movement of troops and supplies — a role that would become the hallmark of another Asian war a decade later.

There is a terrible capacity in flight to kill, but even as it was being innovated at the most rapid pace empires on earth could muster, others still were moving faster by figuring out how to save lives with these incredibly flying machines.

The H-5/HO3S-1 gained its greatest fame during the Korean War when it was called upon repeatedly to rescue United Nations pilots shot down behind enemy lines and to evacuate wounded personnel from frontline areas. It was eventually replaced in most roles by the H-19 Chickasaw.[citation needed] In 1957, the last H-5 and HO3S-1 helicopters were retired from active U.S. military service.[citation needed]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikorsky_H-5

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikorsky_H-34

"Lieut. Stew. Graham, U.S.C.G. demonstrating the ease of leaving the rescue basket to the helicopter cabin. Rotary Wing Development Unit, Elizabeth City, N.C., 1947, rescue basket designed & perfected by personnel of the TWDU."; 1947; no photo number; photographer unknown.

https://www.history.uscg.mil/Browse-by-Topic/Assets/Air/All/Rotary-Wing/Article/3051521/sikorsky-ho2s-1ho3s-1g-dragonfly/

The H-19 Chickasaw holds the distinction of being the US Army's first true transport helicopter and, as such, played an important role in the initial formulation of Army doctrine regarding air mobility and the battlefield employment of troop-carrying helicopters. The H-19 underwent live service tests in the hands of the 6th Transportation Company, during the Korean War beginning in 1951 as an unarmed transport helicopter. Undergoing tests such as medical evacuation, tactical control and front-line cargo support, the helicopter succeeded admirably in surpassing the capabilities of the H-5 Dragonfly which had been used throughout the war by the Army.

The U.S. Air Force ordered 50 H-19A's for rescue duties in 1951. These aircraft were the primary rescue and medical evacuation helicopters for the USAF during the Korean War. The Air Force continued to use the H-19 through the 1960s, ultimately acquiring 270 of the H-19B model.

https://www.ewarbirds.org/aircraft/uh19d.shtml

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piasecki_H-21

https://unodigitalhumanitiesprojects.omeka.net/exhibits/show/heroes-and-hueys/helicopters-1946-1969/h-21-shawnee

https://www.thisdayinaviation.com/tag/piasecki-yh-21-work-horse/

The U.S. Air Force immediately ordered 32 H-21A helicopters for Search and Rescue operations. The Workhorse was well suited to cold weather operations and it was widely used in Alaska, Canada, and the Antarctic. Another 163 H-21B models were ordered as a troop transport. The U.S. Army ordered a similar H-21C variant.

In 1955, Piasecki became Vertol and eventually Boeing Vertol. The company would continue to produce tandem rotor helicopters such as the H-46 Sea Knight and the CH-47 Chinook, which is still in production.

What I am trying to point out is that the military industrial complex of the world thinks we are seeing a preview of the next generation of war in Ukraine... and unfortunately we have (and unfortunately in some ways we haven't i.e. the west hasn't been very serious about arming Ukraine with what it actually needed to decisively defend itself) but looking back at the history of helicopters if you take a closer look at the bleeding... leading edge of aviation innovation you will see... it was always for live saving and rescue.

There are people who sit in austere rooms thinking about how to use aviation technology to kill people... and they will always be flanked by pilots who took the flying machine that was put in their hands and WENT without stopping to build an architecture of death and oppression.

That hasn't changed, and what is bigger than this revolution in warfare in the revolution that is happening in search and rescue aircraft and unmanned ground vehicle capacity. To bring it back to the avilus bussard, this plane is also immediately useful as a life saving search and rescue aircraft or as a surveillance aircraft for natural disaster response, the applications are wide reaching. Don't be fooled into thinking this just applies to war, it only does if our imaginations fail us and I don't see a lack of imagination in Ukraine...

https://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/sikorsky-h-5-combat-rescue-in-korea/

Загальні бойові втрати противника з 24.02.22 по 13.07.25 (орієнтовно)

#NOMERCY #stoprussia

| Підписатися ГШ ЗСУ |
t.me/GeneralStaffZSU/26571

https://youtu.be/ig6LKlFn_xQ

https://militarnyi.com/uk/news/nosij-bpla-ta-kamikadze-v-ukrayini-rozrobyly-nevelykyj-richkovyj-dron-ursula/

Mirror

⚡️ Rheinmetall's Skynex anti-aircraft artillery system in service with the Air Force shows impeccable results in destroying enemy strike UAVs.

We will keep the time and place a secret, but, as you can see in the footage, the productive work of the 35-mm automated anti-aircraft gun is quite inspiring for our sky defenders!

🤝 Thank you to our partners!

More Skynex - more protection from Russian terrorism!

🇺🇦 Together - to victory!

https://t.me/kpszsu/38284

☣️The fable about “red mercury”: Kremlin intelligence services continue information operation in Syria

Another episode of the Kremlin’s information operation in Syria directed against Ukraine — Russian intelligence services offer on the so-called Syrian “black market of weapons” another mystical black box with two capsules, which allegedly contain dangerous “chemicals”.

▪️One of the capsules is inscribed: “PU.9424 U”, the other – “HG25 P307 9.99 U92”.

So, this time the Muscovites, in addition to the fictional “plutonium” [Pu ― plutonium], are reviving the old Soviet fable about the so-called “red mercury” [Hg ― mercury] – a substance that does not exist in nature.

❗️“Red mercury” is a fiction of the Soviet special services, which was used for a large-scale disinformation campaign in the Middle East in the 80s-90s of the 20th century. The legend about “red mercury”, created in Moscow and directed against foreign intelligence, claimed that this modification of the chemical element could become a material for making a “terrible” bomb.

The hacks from Lubyanka claim that the container they brought was purchased from “corrupt officials of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine” for “immediate sale”.

Also, along with the fake “elements” for making a “nuclear bomb”, the Russians in Syria are offering ten capsules with supposedly “unknown toxic gases” – in fact, these are reagents for an old chemical intelligence device, which agents of the aggressor state had already tried to sell earlier as part of an information operation against Ukraine.

“Nothing new and original - Russian special services operate according to the patterns of their predecessors from the 20th century. So the old mythology about “red mercury” indicates an aggravation of the genre crisis among the Kremlin’s special services. We see how Russia is helplessly “getting out of its pants”, sowing conspiracy theories in order to discredit Ukraine, destabilize the situation in the Middle East, in particular in Syria, where the criminal regime of Putin’s friend, Bashar Assad, has fallen. Ukraine is taking all measures, including through the line of military intelligence, to destroy these next hybrid plans of Russia”, - noted the representative of the GUR of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Andriy Yusov.

https://t.me/DIUkraine/6418

https://youtu.be/VSS9bmf1m1M

Загальні бойові втрати противника з 24.02.22 по 12.07.25 (орієнтовно)

#NOMERCY #stoprussia

| Підписатися ГШ ЗСУ |
t.me/GeneralStaffZSU/26530

I read a news item about how the recent surge of drone aggression is stressing Ukrainians and affecting moral. It wasn't clear whether that was a propaganda piece meant to imply Ukraine is weakening, but I have noticed far fewer Zelenskyy updates in the past couple of months, and the feeling I get from even the pro-Ukrainian media that the invasion is wearing Ukraine down.

I just want Ukrainians to know that you're not forgotten. Even if you feel as if American attention has shifted to other concerns (we have our own crises and fascists now to occupy us), many of us are still staunchly supportive of the Ukrainian cause, and think about you, and donate to causes which we hope help.

Russia seems like a vast, unending well of cannon fodder. Your allies are fickle, at best. You just want to go back to normal lives, regular prosperity; you want your children back. I can't have any idea what you're going through is really like. For what it's worth, know that you have people around the world who sympathize and grieve with you, who are rooting for you, and most of all, who admire what you've achieved: David resisting a brutish and imperialistic Goliath for years, showing the world just how much how a strong and innovative people can accomplish.

I look forward to seeing what a peaceful, prosperous Ukraine makes of itself after the invaders have been defeated and pushed out. This invasion started with prognostications that Ukraine wouldn't last weeks; three years later, and you continue to defy the invaders. I do not doubt that you can persevere; I just want you to know that, despite the media attention on other struggles, you're not forgotten: we stand with Ukraine.

Slava Ukraini. Heroiam slava.

According to FFI, the Ukrainian battlefield experience reinforced Norway’s decision to prioritize artillery systems capable of achieving more than 40 kilometers in range and better survivability, and led to a reassessment of ammunition acquisition strategy, favoring volume and cost-effective accuracy improvements over limited high-cost precision rounds. The evaluation judged the acquisition to be economically sound and aligned with modern operational requirements, despite noting that long-term viability would depend on integrated force protection and continued ammunition procurement.

...

The K9 VIDAR is a Norwegian variant of the South Korean K9 Thunder, configured to meet national requirements. It is equipped with a 155 mm L52 gun and designed for indirect fire support at ranges exceeding 40 kilometers. The platform is powered by a 1,000-horsepower MTU diesel engine and has a maximum speed of 67 km/h. With a five-person crew, the system measures 12 meters in length, 3.4 meters in width, and 3.5 meters in height, and weighs approximately 48 tons.

It features a rate of fire of up to eight rounds per minute and a burst capacity of three rounds in 15 seconds. It can relocate within 30 to 60 seconds between firing positions, reducing exposure to counter-battery fire. The hydropneumatic suspension minimizes shock and enables stable operation across diverse terrain and weather conditions. Norwegian trials confirmed the system’s ability to fire Nammo’s 155 mm IM HE-ER rounds to a range of 43.6 kilometers. A maximum range of 54 kilometers has been reached under test conditions. The K9 VIDAR is compatible with the BONUS 155 mm sensor-fused top-attack munition and is expected to integrate future ramjet-assisted rounds with ranges up to 100 kilometers.

Due to South Korean arms exports limitations it is highly unlikely the K9 will see service in defense of Ukraine, but I think it is important to keep providing simple but direct evidence of my arguments about the general media's lack of recognition of how important 155mm artillery systems are in comparison to the more flashy drones and missiles that strangle the imaginations of people.

Patriot missiles are a major thing for Ukraine, but 155mm shells don't need to wait around to swat down Putin's war effort, they actively leap into the sky, seek out the Russian war effort and apply themselves to stopping it with vigor.

South Korea is looking at the war in Ukraine and concluding that armored 155mm artillery is essential for their defense, and so is Norway. Two different countries each facing the realistic medium term prospect of an armored fullscale land war from different countries are both looking at Ukraine and concluding they need more of what Ukraine has in the 155mm department (well, Ukraine has the M109 and other 155mm artillery systems including the domestically produced Bohdana in towed and armored wheeled self propelled variants not the K9 but you get my point).

I will repeat the calculus for this war right now is brutally simple, Ukraine has a superior towed and self propelled 155mm artillery gun production domestically, it has domestic production capacity for 155mm shells and the international community has recently consolidated around ensuring Ukraine will continue to have that capacity both in cannons and ammunition for said cannons. At every level Ukraine's approach to applying artillery fire is more integrated in a dynamic combined arms sense than Russia's which is dependent on more structured doctrine and higher volumes of artillery shells available to fire (which Russia can no longer count on having access to), and finally Ukraine's fire control systems for artillery derive from the M109 Paladin systems which is one of the most fearsome weapon systems on earth.

Also it hardly needs to be said but Ukraine has far superior UAV drone spotters for coordinating friendly artillery... by a long measure...

Most crucially though to the calculus of the war, Ukraine has invested in thorough counter-artillery capacity while simultaneously investing seriously in keeping its own highly trained artillery crew alive. The longer the artillery crews survive the more ruthless and lethal they become in terms of being able to decisively support friendly infantry and armor. Especially given the sophisticated digital fire control systems Ukraine is using in their artillery.

This coupled with the fact that Russia clearly cannot even defend its artillery adequately enough to make effective use of it spells disaster for Russia. This is how land warfare has always worked since gunpowder entered into the equation.

Do not believe the media blitz right now, it must be a very scary time to live in Ukraine (it is scary enough to watch from an international perspective), but the media blitz is happening to attempt to cover up that this is the last serious chance Putin has to make decisive progress in the war in Ukraine and that window just slammed on Putin's fingers. The window slamming in this metaphor being the production graph for towed and armored self propelled 155mm artillery and ammunition for/in Ukraine. Compare what Ukraine states now for Bohdana production vs. a year ago, the difference cannot be expressed in words adequately in terms of battlefield impact.

Now the international powers that be are more interested in entering into weapons contracts with Ukraine than they are "stepping back and letting Russia continue the war" (i.e. selling vital electronics components to Russia for their fighterbomber jets?) and the longer Russia continues the war the more they underline how international powers stand far more to gain by working with Ukraine and gaining access to their advanced technology and innovative tactics than they do partnering with Russia and gaining access to outdated equipment, doctrine and armored vehicles that simply cannot protect their crews and passengers period.

Mirror

https://t.me/kievreal1/93592

Mirror

https://t.me/osb878/1382

https://t.me/GeneralStaffZSU/26523

Helicopters apparently didn't get the memo they were obsolete in modern combined arms full scale land warfare.

Somebody tell the Mi-8s those must be very confused given how old they are!