The War in Ukraine

[KevinB]

Time for Raytheon to update TOW with an FPV camera and fibre optic 'wire' so the operator can be moving and unexposed/hidden as soon as the shot is out

Or just a MMW seeker. The current launchers are all capable of doing that. So you get a fire and forget with wires.

 

[Cloud Cover]

Or just a MMW seeker. The current launchers are all capable of doing that. So you get a fire and forget with wires.

English, please.

 

[Kirkhill]

@Skysix

Further to my last...

Raytheon MGM-157 EFOGM

The EFOGM (Enhanced Fiber Optic Guided Missile) was a U.S. Army ATD (Advanced Technology Demonstration) program to evaluate a fiber-optically guided precision anti-tank and anti-helicopter battlefield missile.

Development of EFOGM can be traced back to 1984, when the U.S. Army began the two-year FOG-M (Fiber Optic Guided Missile) demonstration program. The FOG-M used the motor of a BGM-71 TOW missile, had a TV camera in the nose and a fiber-optic cable instead of the conventional guidance wire. The cable acted as a data link which transmitted the camera's image to the operator, who could then send guidance commands to the missile. In November 1987, a request for proposals for a tactical FOG-M was issued to the industry, and in December 1988, a FOG-M development contract was awarded to a Boeing/Hughes team. However, the FOG-M program was cancelled in 1990.

In 1992, the FOG-M was revived as a technology demonstration program. In early 1994, the Army released a request for proposals for a new EFOGM (Enhanced FOG-M), and allocated the designation YMGM-157A to the missile. In May 1995, Raytheon was awarded a contract to develop the EFOGM. In August 1995, a so called Early Soldier Evaluation (ESE) was conducted by the U.S Army, which evaluated general system design and handling characteristics. Further simulations and evaluations followed through 1996, and all these preliminary studies have presumably led to some design changes in the EFOGM missile, because when the first missiles were flight tested in 1998, the designation had changed to YMGM-157B. The designation DMTM-157B applied to a completely inert version for ground handling training.

The YMGM-157B was launched vertically from an 8-missile launcher on an XM44 Fire Unit, based on the HMMWV (High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle). The missile was powered by a dual-thrust (boost/sustain) solid-fueled rocket motor, and could achieve a range of up to 15 km (9.3 miles). The EFOGM was a non-line-of-sight weapon, and could be launched at a target while the Fire Unit was protected behind a hill. The path to the general target area was programmed before launch by selecting several waypoints, and the missile would follow the preselected flight path using its Inertial/GPS guidance unit. The YMGM-157B had cruciform wings and tail fins for stabilization and control during its non-ballistic flight. For terminal guidance, the operator selected the exact point of impact by using the images of the CCD-based TV camera or the IIR (Imaging Infrared) sensor. These images were transmitted via the fiber-optic cable, which was spooled out from the missile. The operator could either manually control the EFOGM until impact, or lock the missile's tracker on a selected impact point. The EFOGM's shaped charge warhead was detonated by an impact fuze. Because the YMGM-157B flew at altitudes of about 300 m (1000 ft) above ground, armoured targets were attacked from the top, which is the most vulnerable area of tanks. The EFOGM could also be used against low-flying helicopters.

Several successful guided test flights of EFOGM were made through 1998 and 1999, and in 2000, the U.S. Army began the two-year EUE (Extended User Evaluation) phase of the program. The EUE was intended to demonstrate the operational deployment of an EFOGM Company. By June 2002 the EFOGM ATD (Advanced Technology Demonstration) was essentially complete, but the Army cancelled further funding of EFOGM, and so the program was terminated. A total of about 300 YMGM-157B missiles had been built for the EFOGM program.

Data for YMGM-157B:

Length	1.94 m (6 ft 4.4 in)
Wingspan	114 cm (44.9 in)
Diameter	16.6 cm (6.55 in)
Weight	53.3 kg (118 lb)
Speed	100 m/s (330 fps)
Range	15 km (9.3 miles)
Propulsion	Dual-thrust solid-fueled rocket motor
Warhead	Shaped charge

 

[brihard]

English, please.

Millimeter wave radar. Basically radar that can scan somewhat for shape/size/material. Not much open source on it, but it’s used in the Hellfire Longbow variant fired off Apaches in fire and forget mode.

I don’t know why that would still require wires in a ground launched ATGM, I’m very much at the limit of my knowledge here.

 

[Kirkhill]

English, please.

MMW - Millimeter Wave - a type of radar. Employed in the 81 mm Merlin and the Brimstone in the 1980s. Enabled the round to see the ground and compare the image to an onboard library of images. The rounds went looking for T72s in the area into which they were launched.

 

[Kirkhill]

Millimeter wave radar. Basically radar that can scan somewhat for shape/size/material. Not much open source on it, but it’s used in the Hellfire Longbow variant fired off Apaches in fire and forget mode.

I don’t know why that would still require wires in a ground launched ATGM, I’m very much at the limit of my knowledge here.

Snap.

 

[Kirkhill]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1591068104700071937

 

[Kirkhill]

Completing the thought

The Netfires NLOS system that was ahead of its time. A box of 16 vertically launched missiles or the same caliber are Javelin and TOW, complete with Precision Attack Missiles and Loitering Attack Missiles.

The boxes could be positioned on the ground, on trucks or ships. They were originally part of the LCS arsenal.

Raytheon/Lockheed Martin PAM/LAM (NetFires NLOS-LS)

Netfires – Non Line Of Sight (NLOS) Missile System - Defense Update:

The Non Line-Of-Sight-Land Systems (NLOS-LS) is in development for the US Army by Netfires LLC, a joint venture between Raytheon and Lockheed Martin

defense-update.com

If anybody were to put this back into production it would be useful to the Ukrainian war effort.

Precursor to the Israeli Spike N-LOS.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Chally2 .... live fire range with Infantry....

 

[KevinB]

Millimeter wave radar. Basically radar that can scan somewhat for shape/size/material. Not much open source on it, but it’s used in the Hellfire Longbow variant fired off Apaches in fire and forget mode.

I don’t know why that would still require wires in a ground launched ATGM, I’m very much at the limit of my knowledge here.

It wouldn’t need wires. The new TOW systems can in theory fire them, but wouldn’t be able to use a NLOS setup.

 

[McG]

“Russification” is a funny way to say ethnic cleansing.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1767115760466313671

 

[jOnAnder]

Devil is in the details, if you look their GDP growth is fueled by the defense industry. If the war ends and that dries up. It would be economic doom

From what you're saying, it seems like Putin will attempt to handle this war in a manner that keeps it going for as long as he can to secure his grip on power.

 

[jOnAnder]

Invasions take a long time to plan, don't think for a second the Feb 22 invasion wasn't already on the drawing board during the trump administration and their pattern of disengagement. He made it damn clear publicly during his presidency that he was against NATO. This emboldened russia and others to make more aggressive plays by taking advantage of fractured resolve.

Absolutely true. Russia has long been on a course of a war-centric policy, but somehow, it remained unnoticed or was considered a topic best avoided. Just think of Putin's speech at the NATO summit in 2008, which was largely ignored, and then the war in Georgia, later revealed as not a straightforward conflict but rather Georgia falling victim to provocations. Reflecting on this, it seems like a rehearsal for what happened in eastern Ukraine in 2014. Adding to the comments above, I'd like to point out that during the invasion of Georgia, the President of the United States was from the Republican Party. If we look further back, we can examine the activities of various assistants and officials within Putin's inner circle, who always operated in the shadows but were the driving force behind decision-making in Russia. Perhaps their words weren't as publicized for timely attention, but now Russian leaders are acting (almost) openly, rendering it meaningless.

 

[GR66]

Trump's plan to end the Ukraine War if he's re-elected. Stop financing Ukraine which will force an end to the conflict.

MSN ex-President Donald Trump allegedly has a plan to end Russia's war against Ukraine but is not going to finance support for Ukrainians if he returns to power after the US election, states Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban.

The interview was recorded after Orban's visit to Florida, where he met with Trump as a candidate for the US presidency. According to Orban, Trump allegedly told him that he had "detailed peacekeeping plans" for Russia's war against Ukraine. However, the Hungarian prime minister did not elaborate on the content of these plans, noting only that they coincide with Budapest's position.

But, according to Orban, if Trump wins the election, he does not plan to support Ukraine.

"If America does not give money, the Europeans themselves will not be able to finance this war, and then the war will end," the Hungarian prime minister explained Trump's logic.

 

[GR66]

Exclusive: Russia producing three times more artillery shells than US and Europe for Ukraine​

from CNN:
https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/10/poli...production-us-europe-ukraine/index.htmlRussia

Russia appears on track to produce nearly three times more artillery munitions than the US and Europe, a key advantage ahead of what is expected to be another Russian offensive in Ukraine later this year.

Russia is producing about 250,000 artillery munitions per month, or about 3 million a year, according to NATO intelligence estimates of Russian defense production shared with CNN, as well as sources familiar with Western efforts to arm Ukraine. Collectively, the US and Europe have the capacity to generate only about 1.2 million munitions annually to send to Kyiv, a senior European intelligence official told CNN.

The US military set a goal to produce 100,000 rounds of artillery a month by the end of 2025 — less than half of the Russian monthly output — and even that number is now out of reach with $60 billion in Ukraine funding stalled in Congress, a senior Army official told reporters last week.

“What we are in now is a production war,” a senior NATO official told CNN. “The outcome in Ukraine depends on how each side is equipped to conduct this war.”

Officials say Russia is currently firing around 10,000 shells a day, compared to just 2,000 a day from the Ukrainian side. The ratio is worse in some places along the 600-mile front, according to a European intelligence official.

The shortfall comes at perhaps the most perilous moment for Ukraine’s war effort since Russia first marched on Kyiv in February 2022. US money for arming Ukraine has run out and Republican opposition in Congress has effectively halted giving any more.

Meanwhile, Russia recently took the Ukrainian city of Avdiivka and is widely seen as having the initiative on the battlefield. Ukraine is struggling not just with ammunition but also growing manpower shortages on the front lines.

 

[Czech_pivo]

from CNN:
https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/10/poli...production-us-europe-ukraine/index.htmlRussia

With the shell production comes hand in hand the ability to replace worn out barrels - having one without the other will not move the needle forward.

 

[Good2Golf]

Credit to NATO’s top recruiter: Vladimirovitch P.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1767157280699486248

 

[KevinB]

from CNN:
https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/10/poli...production-us-europe-ukraine/index.htmlRussia

Link is gone. But I find that # significantly hard to swallow, given the fact two of their largest mentions plans went up in flames last year.
I'm curious if that was a Hungarian Defense Intelligence estimate...

 

[suffolkowner]

With the shell production comes hand in hand the ability to replace worn out barrels - having one without the other will not move the needle forward.

OSINT seems to suggest that the Russians have raided their storage areas pretty hard. Can they not make new barrels? Cant get them from China or NK or Iran? From where is Ukraine getting their replacement barrels?

 

[Maxman1]

Drone attacked oil refinery in Nizhny Novgorod region of Russia, causing large fire

Read more

newsukraine.rbc.ua