Ukraine War Upd. EXTRA: ATACMS, C2, Maintenance, & Starlink
Title:Ukraine War Upd. EXTRA: ATACMS, C2, Maintenance, & Starlink Topics:
Table of Contents 📖
| Topic ID | Topic Title | Timestamp |
|---|
"Elon Musk is approaching the Ukraine war with double standards and a lack of consistency, I would charge. And the only thing I can think of is he's doing that because of pressure from Russia."
Hello Team!
- Jonathan invites viewers to join him and Tom Williamson on his other channel "A Tippling Philosopher" for a live chat about flags and vexillology.
ATACMS Missiles for Ukraine
- It's starting to look like Ukraine will get ATACMS missiles (MGM-140) from the US
- ATACMS are short-range ballistic missiles with 300 km range (vs 84 km for current HIMARS)
- US has refused to supply ATACMS so far, possibly due to:
- Worries about Russian escalation
- Fears Ukraine would use them on Russian soil
- Limited US inventory (only 3700 built)
- ATACMS are being replaced by new Precision Strike Missile (PRSM) in 2023
- US likely found additional ATACMS marked for disposal that weren't on active inventory
- ATACMS will need inspection of rocket motors before transfer to avoid catastrophic failures
- US will likely insist on mods to prevent use on Russian soil
- ATACMS are harder to shoot down than cruise missiles. Only Russian S-400 has anti-ballistic missile capability.
- Initial targets likely S-400 radars, then high value assets too far for other missiles
- ATACMS create dilemmas for Russia on what assets are valuable enough to protect vs risk
Command and Control Node
- Photo shows a modern military command and control center with many screens and technology, very different from past wars
Ukrainian Mortar Crew
- Video of a Ukrainian mortar crew firing rounds set to music for a bit of fun, despite the deadly nature of their job
Importance of Military Maintenance and Repair
- Photos show military mechanics working 24/7 to keep equipment operational
- Skilled mechanics are vital to military success even if not on the front lines
- Some repair facilities can be targeted by the enemy
Starlink Inconsistencies and Outage
- Starlink had a major outage on Sept 13 timed with Ukrainian attack on Russian ships in Sevastopol
- Elon Musk has used Starlink as leverage, threatening to stop paying for Ukraine's service
- Most of Ukraine's 20,000+ Starlink terminals are geofenced and can't be used in Crimea
- Pentagon recently bought 400-500 non-geofenced terminals for Ukraine
- Musk claims Starlink can't be used for offensive operations in Ukraine
- But SpaceX has contracts with US DOD to use Starlink for military purposes
- Musk seems to apply double standards to Ukraine, possibly due to pressure from Russia and China which he relies on for raw materials
- Starlink is vital to Ukraine with 150,000 daily users. Controlling it gives Musk significant influence.
Wrap up
- Jonathan reiterates the invitation to join the discussion on flags on his other channel
- He thanks several viewers for their support of the channel by name