Ukraine War Update EXTRA: Great Artillery Interview, Rifling vs Smoothbore, & Iran Drones
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This summary has been produced automatically by an AI Large Language Model (LLM) without any human intervention. Whilst every effort has been made to prompt the LLM to produce accurate output, there may be inconsistencies, inaccuracies or hallucinations!
Table of Contents 📖
| Topic ID | Topic Title | Timestamp |
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"He was a god, a real god. I love that. He had six children. He could have avoided going to war altogether and he was also born talent. He figured out how to act on his own."
Hello Team!
Jonathan discusses an article from Foreign Affairs by Dara Masako about what Russia got wrong in the war and how they are adapting. The article highlights Russia's self-defeating deceit, censorship, and the difficulty in correcting course due to these systemic issues.
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Rifled vs Smoothbore Barrels
- Rifling in gun barrels helps stabilise bullets/rounds by imparting spin, while smoothbore barrels use fins for stabilisation
- Most NATO equipment uses smoothbore, except for a few like the British Challenger 2 tank
- Rifling is more precise but can wear out barrels faster with larger calibre rounds
- Modern artillery rounds like Excalibur use base bleed and fins for stabilisation instead of rifling
Iran Smuggling Drones to Russia
- Iran has smuggled advanced long-range armed drones to Russia using boats and their state airline
- These drones (Mohajer-6, Shahid-129, Shahid-191) have longer range and can carry heavier payloads than the Shahid-131/136 drones previously supplied
- Israel attacked the Iranian factory producing these drones, causing significant damage
- Iran is the only nation consistently sending military equipment to Russia, helping to offset the asymmetry in support between Russia and Ukraine
Interview with Ukrainian Colonel Oleg Fadyuk
- Ukrainian artillery crews can be trained on Western systems like M777 in just 2-3 weeks
- The flat, open terrain in Zaporizhzhia makes it difficult for Russians to advance
- Half of Ukraine's artillery is now Western-supplied, with 155mm rounds being used 10 times more than Soviet 152mm due to logistics and availability
- In the Bakhmut sector, the artillery ratio is 1:1, with Ukraine supporting their troops more consistently
- Ukraine can likely hold Bakhmut until spring unless the situation changes significantly
Wrap up
Jonathan discusses Elon Musk's restrictions on using Starlink for "offensive" operations, arguing that the distinction between offensive and defensive actions is moot when a nation is defending its sovereignty from an invading force. He compares it to only being allowed to punch an intruder in your home if they punch you first.
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🤖❓ AI Debrief (post task) - anything the AI didn't understand
🤖💭 AI Plan (pre task) - the AI's step by step thought process
Steps:
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