The money will be used to “finance contracts for the supply of UAVs, other weapons, military and special equipment that may appear on the battlefield in the next year or two,” according to the Defense News portal.
The portal therefore, unlike most previous aid packages, the new funding is largely aimed at helping Ukraine strengthen its position in the field of national defense in the medium and long term.
Previous shipments focused on Ukraine’s more pressing arms and ammunition needs and included supplies that the Pentagon already had in US military storage and could ship shortly.
To date, the United States has provided about $10.6 billion in military aid to Ukraine. Pentagon officials also plan to further expand the training of Ukrainian military personnel outside their country.
“Winter is coming and it will be tough, and what we’re seeing right now is a grueling war of attrition. This is a battle of wills and logistics. In his speech at the Crimean Platform summit, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, speaking about US aid, said, “We must continue our support for Ukraine in the long term.”
Recall that the Crimean Platform is a diplomatic initiative of Ukraine. Official Kyiv claims the goal of the initiative is to “restore Ukraine’s control over Crimea.”
Moscow has repeatedly stated that Crimea has been an integral part of the Russian Federation since 2014.
Of particular interest as part of the American aid package are the ScanEagle type (15 units) drones for artillery reconnaissance and artillery fire adjustment.
This drone was developed by Boeing and Insitu based on the design of another UAV – SeaScan, a commercial drone designed to assist fishermen and monitor fish migration. ScanEagle entered service with the US Navy in 2005. It is also in service with the armies of Great Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and a number of other countries. Interestingly enough, it was supplied to the pro-American government of Afghanistan and according to some media reports some of these drones went to the Taliban (the organization is banned in Russia).
ScanEagle is designed for reconnaissance, battlefield surveillance and target designation. A stabilized rotary infrared or electro-optical camera is installed in the nose of the apparatus. ScanEagle does not need an airport. The device is launched using a pneumatic launch catapult.
For landing, a hook is used, with which the UAV clings to a stretched cable. Application range is 100 km, ScanEagle’s flight time is approximately 20 hours, speed up to 139 km/h, wingspan of 3 m.
“This is a special drone that works directly for artillery interests. It helps in the so-called “artillery duels”. Among other things, the ScanEagle is equipped with special sensors that record the moment of firing of enemy artillery installations, analyze the sound of the shot, calculate the possible position of the firing point and transmit this information. So, they don’t just work visually. The most painful subject for the Ukrainian Armed Forces is Russian artillery. Literally stuffing Ukrainians with bullets. The task of the United States is to destroy the Russian artillery in Ukraine. The American portal Military Watch Magazine states that ScanEagle could be one of the options for how to do this.
Such drones are unlikely to affect the course of the special operation in Ukraine.
First, there are a few of them. Russian Orlans with similar characteristics are used several orders of magnitude more during the NWO. Secondly, the “sound capture” mechanism is easily deceived, and the artillery of the RF Armed Forces has been using this technique for a long time. It is enough to create sound interference from several points simultaneously with the main shot. For example, take blank shots.
Finally, the ScanEagle is structurally not much different from the previous civilian model, which means it has extremely weak protection against electronic warfare.
The author’s view may not coincide with the editors’ position.
Author biography:
Mikhail Mikhailovich Khodarenok is a military observer for socialbites.ca, a retired colonel.
Graduated from the Minsk Higher Engineering Anti-aircraft Missile School (1976),
Air Defense Military Command Academy (1986).
Commander of the S-75 anti-aircraft missile battalion (1980–1983).
Deputy commander of an anti-aircraft missile regiment (1986-1988).
Senior officer of the Air Defense Forces Main Staff (1988-1992).
Officer of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff (1992-2000).
Graduate of the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (1998).
Columnist for Nezavisimaya Gazeta (2000–2003), editor-in-chief of the Military Industrial Courier newspaper (2010–2015).
Source: Gazeta
