The history of the demise of the steel behemoth: from the war damage in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict
As of late April, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict had lasted for two months, much longer than military observers and commentators had expected in the early days of the conflict.
In the early stage of the conflict, views such as "1 hour and 22 minutes to destroy Ukraine's living forces", "Ukrainian troops cannot last for 3 days", and "the war will be completely over within a week" were scattered in the gaps of history as the war between the two sides fell into a stalemate.
In the conflict, the two sides used a lot of heavy equipment, and the Ukrainian army fought with all the strength of the country. Although the Ukrainian army was at a disadvantage for most of the conflict, their relatively backward equipment and tenacious fighting spirit caused the Russian army to pay a considerable loss.
Although the authenticity of some data is questionable, it can be seen from the battle damages announced by Russia and Ukraine that in this conflict, both sides lost a lot of military equipment, and a large number of advanced weapons and equipment were either broken in the wilderness, or sleeping in seabed. These giant steel beasts, invented and manufactured for the sake of galloping on the battlefield, are finally able to rest.
Black Sea Storm: Missing "Moscow"
On April 14, the flagship "Glorious"-class guided missile cruiser "Moscow" of the Russian Black Sea Fleet was cruising off the "Snake Island" when it caught fire about 40 nautical miles from the port of Odessa, and the ammunition exploded.
According to Russian sources, on the way of the tugboat urgently towing the "Moscow" to the port of Sevastopol, due to the loss of stability of the hull, the ship unfortunately sank in the "storm" in the early morning of the next day. The Ukrainian side said that the direct cause of the fire of the "Moscow" was that it was directly hit by two Ukrainian "Neptune" anti-ship missiles. The Russian side remained silent on this statement.
As the first ship of the "Glory" class, the "Moscow", which was officially commissioned by the Soviet Navy in 1983, was originally named "Glory". Its 16-barrel P-500 "Basalt" anti-ship missiles on its deck make it quite recognizable. In 2000, the overhauled "Glorious" was launched again, and the Russian army renamed it after the capital Moscow, which represented the Russian army's trust and expectations for the "Moscow".
The "Moscow" did not humiliate its mission and played an important role in the Russian military's military operations in Georgia, Crimea and Syria.
But "Moscow" is, after all, an old ship with 43 years of age. It has major shortcomings such as cumbersome weapon systems, backward ship electrical systems, and lack of stealth performance. Although it has a strong deterrent effect when suppressing the navies of backward countries, compared with the current naval powers, it is equipped with phased array antennas and vertical launchers. The "shield ship", which is characterized by units and has certain stealth capabilities, has fallen behind.
According to Turkish sources, in the early morning of April 15, the wind speed in the area was 12 knots, and the sea conditions were average, but not bad. Regardless of the specific reasons for the sinking of the "Moscow", for this steel behemoth, sleeping at the bottom of the sea may be a natural destination.
If you put aside the sinking of the "Moscow", the Russian Navy's record should be regarded as the best among the three armies. Most of the main ships of the Ukrainian navy were captured or sunk by the Russian army, and the Ukrainian army has no strength to compete with the Russian army at sea.
But even if the weak Ukrainian navy has a complete lineup, its total tonnage will not exceed the tonnage of the single-ship "Moscow", which ranks third in the tonnage of the Russian surface ships. The sinking of the "Moscow" this time, if the reasons for the soldiers' low business ability and mishandling that caused the ship to catch fire and explode, and if it is assumed to be a Ukrainian missile attack, in addition to the lack of necessary vigilance when the ship was cruising, it failed. NATO's intelligence support for Ukraine was also an important reason, in addition to the detection of an incoming missile on radar.
If you put aside the sinking of the "Moscow", the Russian Navy's record should be regarded as the best among the three armies.
Attack "Matryoshka" melee
In a recent video footage, a group of Ukrainian soldiers wrapped in blue armbands were moving near a BMP infantry fighting vehicle abandoned by the Russian army on the side of the road, when two tanks without obvious signs drove from the road; Ukrainian soldiers judged it to be a tank and ignored it.
However, when the first tank was about 20 meters away from the Ukrainian soldiers, it suddenly fired its main gun, and the video came to an abrupt end. Through the video from other perspectives that flowed out later, it can basically be determined that the soldiers of the team were killed. Judging from the video, the tank should be a T-64BV tank equipped by the Ukrainian army, and the shelling incident is most likely a friendly fire.
In the conflict, since the main equipment of both sides were of Soviet origin, it was difficult to identify the battlefield. In the military conflict between Russia and Georgia in 2008, the Russian army also faced a similar situation - they used to identify themselves by placing national flags on their combat vehicles.
However, in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Ukraine's military equipment and level of engagement were stronger than Georgia's. The Russian army chose a more direct solution: using white paint to paint letters on the body.
The letter Z on a vehicle of the Russian military, February 28, 2022
The Ukrainian land was in the pulping period at that time, the strength of the soil foundation was greatly reduced, and the traffic environment was extremely harsh.
According to the Russian media satellite network, the letter Z on the Russian military vehicle means "for victory" (Запобеду, the initial letter Z after the Cyrillic letter is transliterated into Latin), and the letter V means "will definitely complete the mission" or "" The power of truth", and letters such as A, O, and X were sprayed on vehicles by the Russian army.
In the early stage of the conflict, after the Russian army used missiles to destroy a large number of Ukrainian military targets and gained air superiority over most of Ukraine with strong air superiority, its ground troops were based on highly mobile "battalion-level tactical groups" and adopted "large-scale tactical groups". "Deep and fast interspersed" tactics, the troops quickly advanced to the hinterland of Ukraine in multiple ways, intending to control important targets throughout Ukraine.
Due to the rapid advancement regardless of cost, the Russian army discarded a large number of faulty equipment. However, the "battalion-level tactical group" has a small number of combat infantry (200-300 people) and the disadvantage of relying heavily on logistical support is also fully exposed.
The Ukrainian army adopted the strategy of dispersing its forces for static defense, using various military strongholds to contain the advance of the Russian army, and frequently harassing and attacking the flanks of the Russian army and its already weak logistical support system, causing a considerable part of the Russian army to fall into the war. quagmire.
Tanks and heavy vehicles are the support and guarantee for the Russian tactical group to complete high-speed interspersed operations. The Ukrainian land was in the pulping period at that time, the strength of the soil foundation was greatly reduced, and the traffic environment was extremely harsh. The Russian army's mechanized troops, which had a lot of dead weight, were stagnant by the bad road conditions, and their speed was much lower than expected.
In order to complete the established maneuvering goals, the Russian army that penetrated into the depths had to abandon some slightly faulty tanks and other vehicles on the spot without demilitarization; even when the fuel supply was not in place, only because of fuel consumption. At the end of the day, the T-80 series tanks with high fuel consumption gas turbines will be abandoned on the roadside; some self-propelled artillery and self-propelled rocket launchers that are difficult to supply will also have to be abandoned on the spot due to the exhaustion of ammunition.
The battle losses in this situation also made the Russian commander quite helpless.
At present, the main tanks of the Ukrainian army include 7 models including T-64BV, T-72AV/B1, and T-84 Oplot. The main tanks of the Russian army are 13 models of T-72, T-80, and T90. Although the names are complicated, the appearance on the battlefield is not very different, like a Russian nesting doll, which is confusing and difficult to distinguish.
Ukrainian soldiers use Javelin missiles during a military exercise in the Donetsk region on December 24, 2021
Although the tank models are different, the operating systems are similar. In the conflict, there are many examples of capturing the opponent's tanks and armored vehicles and other equipment, identifying them and supplying them immediately after they are put into battle.
In addition to non-combat losses, the main losses of Russian tanks came from individual anti-tank weapons and artillery strikes of the Ukrainian army. As the Russian army penetrates deep into the hinterland of Ukraine, the Ukrainian army in static defense can be broken into pieces and attack the convoy of the Russian army with small teams or drones. Their primary goal is to protect weaker logistics vehicles or auxiliary combat vehicles, etc. If there is a better chance, the anti-tank missiles such as the "Javelin" and "NLAW" that the West assisted the Ukrainian army can also effectively kill the tanks.
Take "Javelin" as an example, it has two attack modes: "top attack" and "level flight". Among them, in the "top attack" mode, after locking the target and launching, the guidance system calculates the best trajectory, so that the projectile jumps up and dives at the vulnerable top of the tank to achieve the best damage effect.
The "Javelin" missile is a "fire and forget" missile, and the launch personnel can evacuate immediately after the launch, which greatly ensures the safety of the personnel. In order to deal with the "Javelin", some tanks of the Russian army were equipped with grille armor commonly known as "iron hat", which played a certain role in combat.
Since air supremacy is basically controlled by the Russian army, the ground losses of the Ukrainian army, including tanks and armored vehicles, mainly come from the precise attacks of Russian armed helicopters and attack aircraft, and the long-range firepower coverage of weapons such as missiles and rocket launchers.
The intensity of the war in the east of Ukraine has not decreased. Although Ukraine still retains a certain number of tanks and obtains a small amount of foreign aid equipment, considering the traffic conditions, the probability of a tank war like steel torrents colliding is unlikely to happen. Matryoshka equipment on both sides will continue to suffer various "unexpected" battle losses.
Air battle results highlight lack of control
On April 3, Ukraine time, a former Ukrainian lawmaker revealed on social media that a Russian Su-35 fighter jet was shot down by the Ukrainian army south of the city of Izum in the Kharkiv region, and provided photos of the scene.
No matter from the "Hibine" electronic warfare pod in the wreckage of the crashed fighter, or the flat tail of the wreckage, which is very different from other members of the Su-27 family, and the lack of airspeed tubes at the front of the radome, the aircraft is indeed a Russian aerospace company. The pride of the army, the Su-35S "Super Flanker" fighter known as the "Ace in the Air".
The Su-35S is a multi-role fighter. It uses vector engines, has super maneuverability, and has advanced avionics systems including infrared tracking and search systems and electronically scanned array radars. It can choose to mount R-37M long-range air-to-air missiles with an effective range of 300 kilometers, or choose Kh-31PM air-to-surface anti-radiation missiles that can strike enemy air defense radar positions according to the difference in the mission.
Simply put, the Su-35S is the most powerful representative of the Russian Aerospace Forces except the fifth-generation fighter Su-57.
The Su-35S is the most powerful representative of the Russian Aerospace Forces except the fifth-generation fighter Su-57.
According to sources, the fighter jet was shot down by a suspected "Buk" M1-2 anti-aircraft missile during the "SEAD" mission to suppress air defense positions in the Kharkiv area, and the pilot was ejected and captured. If confirmed, this will be the first time the Su-35S fighter, the pinnacle of the Su-27 family, has been shot down.
In the early days of the conflict, the Russian army used missiles to attack military targets in Ukraine, including most of the airports, destroying some of the Ukrainian Air Force fighter jets on the runway. land, implement large-scale airborne.
However, because the combat effectiveness of the Ukrainian defenders was not completely destroyed, the Russian airborne troops lacked heavy firepower support. After being besieged by the Ukrainian Fourth Rapid Response Brigade, the airborne troops were repelled. The world's largest aircraft, the An-225 "Dream", was unfortunately destroyed in this battle.
The main aircraft of the Ukrainian army, the MiG-29 "Fulcrum" and the Su-27 "Flanker", did not perform well in the air battle on the first day. Under the condition that most of the ground radar and anti-aircraft firepower were destroyed by the Russian army, the organization could not be successful. The system's counterattack can only be launched in pieces, and the Russian army has been dealing with more modernized and more advanced aircraft of the same type, and the battle damage is quite serious.
Although the TB-2 inspection and strike integrated drone imported from Turkey has carried out some effective strikes on the Russian army's interspersed troops and destroyed the "Buk" air defense missile system, the loss of TB-2 is also very serious - in the Russian army Under the air superiority of the Ukrainian army, the UAVs of the Ukrainian army did not dare to be dispatched on a large scale, and could only sporadically attack the Russian army's targets.
As the conflict timeline lengthens, the Russian army, which has run out of "three axes", gradually exposes its weaknesses. Although Russia claimed to have complete air supremacy over the entire territory of Ukraine, Ukraine's air defense capabilities and air force were not completely defeated.
The Russian army lacks precision-guided explosives. In the ground attack mission, when unguided bombs are used at low altitudes, they are easily locked and shot down by the air defense system. The above-mentioned expensive Su-35S was suspected to have been shot down when one anti-radiation missile was not fired, causing the Russian army to directly lose nearly 100 million US dollars.
According to public reports, the Russian army also lost several Su-34 "platypus" fighter jets, as well as some of the most advanced domestic Ka-52 "Alligator" gunships.
From April 15th to 16th, the Russian Ministry of Defense released three consecutive news of the downing of Ukrainian aircraft, including a Mi-8 "Hippo" helicopter, a Su-25 "Frogfoot" attack aircraft, and two MiG-29. fighter. Although the victory is a welcome development for the Russian military, this news also proves that the Russian military does not effectively control the entire airspace of Ukraine, and the Ukrainian Air Force still has active forces that can be mobilized.
In the two-month conflict, the losses of both equipment and civilian property have reached astronomical figures; although the two sides have conducted several rounds of negotiations, the results have been minimal, and it is unlikely that the war will end in the short term.
Every year, the Jinhe River is restored to Yuguan, and the Ma Ce and the knife ring are facing the court. In the three springs, the white snow returns to the green mound, and the Yellow River circles the Montenegro for thousands of miles. It is hoped that both sides will exercise restraint, avoid escalation of conflict, end confrontation as soon as possible, and allow displaced refugees to return to their homes.
