• The_v@lemmy.world
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    12 hours ago

    Two things stood out to me.

    Defense Minister Ruslan Umerov said 96% of all drones fielded by the Ukrainian military are domestically manufactured.

    About 85% of all Russian casualties and vehicle kills on the battlefield are scored by Ukrainian drones.

    That means so 82% of the effective combat activity is domestically produced.

    • JohnDClay@sh.itjust.works
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      10 hours ago

      That’s just the end effect though, you still need support from artillery, air defense, anti armor, combat engineering, and a ton more to enable those rates. Drones are the tip of the force multiplying stack, they wouldn’t be effective by themselves.

      • The_v@lemmy.world
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        7 hours ago

        That’s the other 15% of course.

        Drones are replacing artillery and aircraft as the primary weapon of power on the battlefield. That 85% number is truly remarkable.

        In previous conflicts that’s about the percentage of casualties and equipment losses that aircraft and artillery combined caused.

        • JohnDClay@sh.itjust.works
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          5 hours ago

          Air defense for example causes very few casualties, only a couple of pilots. But it enables the drones to fly without being shot down quickly. It’s an enabler, a force multiplier for the drones. If you didn’t have air defense, you’d get a lot less effective than just the 1% fewer direct casualties would suggest.

    • Devanismyname@lemmy.ca
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      12 hours ago

      Part of the combat activity is missile defense though. Maybe other things that aren’t just taking out soldiers and tanks.

  • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
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    12 hours ago

    I like to fantasize that Ukraine ends to taking over Russia in a reverse uno. I’d never stop laughing.

  • Geodad@lemm.ee
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    9 hours ago

    Watching it all go down from the Corporate States of America.

    Question for the Ukraine’s: Are you guys concerned that Putin will see that he’s about to lose and use tactical nuclear weapons?

    That’s a big worry for your comrades stateside.