Musk and Starlink aren't major difference makers in this war. It's a years-long slog where the main takeaway is "cheap and reliable in volume is more than a match for the newest and fanciest." It hasn't been on the verge of turning in Ukraine's favor since the end of Russia's initial push towards Kyiv.

[–] conditional_soup@lemm.ee 1 points 10 hours ago (2 children)

I have a buddy who's been eating/sleeping/breathing this war and, hands down, cheap and reliable FPV drones have changed how warfare is done. It's the main reason why trench warfare came back, and one of the things that fucked Russia up in the mid-term. Apparently they have a long-standing strategy that involves armor and something something something that my buddy explained and I don't remember, but because there's always drones watching every inch of the front at all times, Ukraine was able to bust that strat by being able to dial in artillery fast and early. At least, that's how I'm remembering what was explained.

[–] MarxMadness@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 9 hours ago

cheap and reliable in volume

cheap and reliable FPV drones have changed how warfare is done

We're in agreement here. I'm not saying new technology is useless, I'm saying there aren't any wonder weapons (or wonder communication systems) that would have given Ukraine a decisive advantage.

Long-term, it's still a matter of which side can outproduce the other when it comes to the cheap and reliable equipment we're talking about. At this point that's clearly Russia.

[–] Realitaetsverlust@lemmy.zip 2 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

It's not rly the ability of drones to observe that makes them so strong, but the ability to attack. Russia's air defense is unable to stop a drone swarm, especially because its something the world hasn't yet seen. And if two drones armed with explosives take down a bigass helicopter, that's a massive win.

A few weeks ago, Ukraine decimated an oil refinery on russian territory with a swarm of drones of which only 40% were taken down by the russian air defense.

[–] conditional_soup@lemm.ee 2 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

I think it might be more fair to say that it isn't just the ability to observe. Drones have absolutely transformed the modern battlefield.

[–] Realitaetsverlust@lemmy.zip 1 points 49 minutes ago

Certainly true. But observing is something we could do for a long time with satellites.

[–] jlh@lemmy.jlh.name 2 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago) (1 children)

Is that why you guys are welding cages on your tanks?

[–] MarxMadness@lemmygrad.ml 4 points 11 hours ago

"Everyone who disagrees with me is a Russian" was ran into the ground five years ago, get new material.

But yes, a steel cage offering significant protection against much more modern technology is a great example of what I'm talking about.