The United States has created the latest version of the Bradley infantry fighting vehicle based on the experience of combat operations in Ukraine. Posting in CHAT: Russia The American military-industrial complex once again confirmed that the best examples of military equipment can only appear as a result of constant refinement of existing models based on the results of their combat use. And if until recently the search for the ideal lasted for decades since the Korean, Vietnamese, Iraqi and Afghan wars, then under the conditions of the Ukrainian campaign “perfection” is achieved in a much shorter period of time. Born in Fire A few days ago, the US Army released photos of the newest and most advanced version of its Bradley infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), based on the results of the combat use of previous models of this vehicle during the Ukrainian conflict. . In a statement, the US Army's Program Executive Office Ground Combat Systems (PEOGCS) released images of the latest generation M2A4E1 Bradley variant. According to the results of the presentation held last week in Maine, the new product received the title of “the most modern and survivable” version of this armored vehicle. According to the developers, the new Bradley IFV is the result of the integration of the Iron Fist active protection system, an improved high-definition forward infrared shooter and an environmental control unit to “prevent thermal stress upon landing.” M2A4E1 Bradley infantry fighting vehicle. © US Army Will all survivors survive? The Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle is one of the most controversial combat vehicles in service with the US Army for almost half a century. Work on creating an infantry fighting vehicle for the American army began in 1964 as part of the MICV-70 (Mechanized Infantry Combat Vehicle) program and ended in 1981 with the adoption of the M2 Bradley. During this time, several models of infantry fighting vehicles were developed, which were both variants of a deep modernization of the American M113 armored personnel carrier of the 1960s, and fundamentally new vehicles. The inconsistency of the Bradley lies in the fact that this infantry fighting vehicle cannot be classified as either an absolutely successful or an a priori unsuccessful combat vehicle. Over the years of combat use in its history there have been both the most amazing ascents and no less enchanting failures. In its heyday, during Operation Desert Storm, the M2 actually destroyed more Iraqi armored vehicles than the main American tank, the M1 Abrams. Moreover, during the operation, only three vehicles were lost from enemy fire. A Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle during Operation Iraqi Freedom (Iraq, 2003). © US Army However, already during Operation Iraqi Freedom (Iraq, 2003), Bradley suffered serious losses. The reason for this was the different nature of the use of infantry fighting vehicles, and if during Desert Storm it was used primarily in reconnaissance or free hunting mode, then in the second campaign it was tasked with supporting infantry. Here, what remained of the “hero of the first Iraqi war” was something that could not have appeared in the first campaign. Due to insufficient protection of the lower part, Bradleys regularly became victims of mines and ground explosions, including homemade ones. “Many vehicles were damaged by improvised explosive devices, which easily penetrated the thin and vulnerable armor under the Bradley chassis,” said US Army Capt. Josh Kilian, an armor expert. However, at the same time, another property of this machine appeared, which significantly influenced its future fate - incredible survivability. The Bradley is known for its extraordinary ability to keep its crew alive and healthy, even if the BMP is hit by an enemy shell (or ATGM) or blown up by a mine. The experience of the second Iraqi campaign led to significant modifications to the vehicle, which largely eliminated its main drawback - the weakly armored bottom. At that time, no one thought about the imminent appearance of combat drones striking from above... Lessons from Ukraine According to the Pentagon, the United States sent about two hundred Bradleys to Ukraine, and not the latest version of the M2A2. Partially this led to a repetition of the “Iraqi experience”, since the vehicles were badly damaged by mines and land mines, but in general, the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ reviews of them were much better than those of other Western vehicles. , including Leopards 2, Defenders and Abrams. The reason for this is the same high survivability provided by reliable side and frontal armor, as well as the presence of a rear ramp for landing and leaving the vehicle. In addition to survivability, the BMP is distinguished by good armament, including a TOW ATGM, a combat module with a 25-mm M242 Bushmaster automatic cannon and a 7.62-mm M240S machine gun. A fairly powerful 600-horsepower engine allows the Bradley to accelerate to 64 km/h (on the highway) with a relatively small range of 400 km. This is not to say that the Bradleys achieved incredible success during the Ukrainian campaign, but the role of “workhorses of war” rightfully belongs to them. The defeat of a column of Western military equipment in Ukraine. © Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, still from video. Literally immediately after the arrival of the infantry fighting vehicle in Ukraine, the world media distributed a video about the defeat of a column of Ukrainian equipment, consisting of the same Bradley and Leopard 2 tanks. The debut actually turned out to be unsuccessful, but apparently. Judging by the same video, the main reason for the destruction of the column was not technical deficiencies, but gross mistakes by the Ukrainian crews. “If the Ukrainians had kept more distance between vehicles, had more knowledge and understanding of how to use defile (a tactical concept used to describe a military formation's exposure to enemy fire) and medium visibility stripes, many of these vehicles would have remained untouched,” Josh Kilian commented on this episode. Operated in Ukraine The main result of the modernization is the use of the APS Iron Fist protection system, which makes the Bradley infantry fighting vehicle even more reliable and survivable. The system was developed by the Israeli company Elbit Systems and provides reliable protection against anti-tank shells and missiles by launching interceptor ammunition to destroy them from a distance. According to a fact sheet published by Elbit, Iron Fist "increases the survivability" of armored vehicles and is effective against "all types of anti-tank threats." Previously, such systems were used mainly on tanks due to their complexity and high cost. Today they are moving to the next, lower level of military equipment. According to Major General Glenn Dean, who heads PEOGCS, the US military only signed an agreement to purchase Iron Fist at the end of March, having previously believed that it could not afford such complex and expensive systems. “The Army has received funding to purchase an M2A4E1 for every Bradley donated to Ukraine,” PEOGCS said in a statement this week. So, as often happens, brutal fighting in one country provokes the development of industry and technology in another. The newest Bradley infantry fighting vehicle, introduced in the United States, is unlikely to end up on the Ukrainian theater of operations in the foreseeable (and not foreseeable) future. Equipment modernized on the basis of the latest combat experience acquired no matter in which country will for a long time be used only by the army of the country of its origin. Source link Source link
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what happened in Crocus City, latest news, list of victims, why schoolchildren worked as dressmakers, terrorist attack in Crocus City, latest news – March 29, 2024 – Russia today Posting in CHAT: Russia The teenagers said that they went to work at Crocus to save up for New Year's gifts for each other. Source: Lizka Blednaya/Vk.com, Alexander Zhurik/Vk.com Among those who took people out of the Crocus city hall building when they got there Terrorists burst in, there were many teenagers there. We have already written that the spectators were evacuated by 15-year-old Islam Khalilov and 14-year-olds Artem Donskov and Artem Filimonov. But in fact, there were more schoolchildren who saved the lives of hundreds of people. On the evening of March 22, 15-year-old Elizaveta Terekhova and 16-year-old Alexander Zhurik also worked at Crocus. The guys have been in a relationship for six months now. On the day of the terrorist attack, they were in different places: Alexander worked in the dressing room, Lisa “controlled” the hall. “I looked into the hall and saw flashes of gunfire.” Lisa was nominated that day. The controller is in the hall for the first time - before, she, like many other schoolchildren, worked in the wardrobe. After the first call, the girl was asked to go down to the second floor and stand at the escalator to regulate the flow of people. “The second bell rang, and after about 10-15 minutes I heard the first shot. At first I thought that two women were arguing somewhere, because I heard a woman scream. “I looked out from the second floor to the first floor and saw people running from the main entrance into the lobby,” she recalls. “I heard more shots and then realized it was a terrorist attack.” Lisa, the controller of Crocus People, in a panic, began to ask the schoolboy where they should run, but it was a loss, Lisa did not know what to answer. She ran into the hall where her partners were and radioed a senior employee: “We were standing in the hall, there were a lot of people there.” And then we heard shooting in the hall and ran away. There were spectators in the lobby who asked not to close the door: they thought that if they reached the mezzanine, it would be safe there. And we couldn’t persuade them to leave, they were so scared that it was useless to ask them to come with us,” the teenager told MSK1.RU. Source: Lizka Blednaya / Vk.com Employees hid in the hall. one of the columns. According to Lisa, many also hid from the terrorists behind a stand with information about the concert. “While we were standing behind the pillar, a woman came up to us, covered in blood. She said the terrorist smashed her face. We were given instructions where to run, and I started telling people: “Go there, it’s safe.” And the people obeyed. “One day I turned around, looked down the corridor and saw flashes of gunfire.” Lisa, Crocus dispatcher Lisa recalls how her legs gave way from horror - at some point she even thought that she had been shot. However, she managed to go down the fire escape and reach the service door. There she also coordinated people so that no one thought about leaving through the main entrance. They saved for each other for gifts. At that time, Lisa’s boyfriend Alexander was in the wardrobe. Like most people, he heard the sounds of gunfire and at first did not understand what was happening. But then I saw a crowd of panicking people rushing down.” I left work, ran up to the crowd, and directed them to the service exit. There I tried to somehow help people get through the door, calling out those who were hiding in the closet. “I waited until the whole crowd entered the office building, entered me and led them out into the street,” the student told MSK1.RU. Alexander directed people to the nearest Vegas shopping center and called Lisa. They met, crossed the bridge and went home Source: Lizka Blednaya / Vk.com Source: Lizka Blednaya / Vk.com - When I returned home, at first my dad and sister didn’t believe me. Then, when they saw the news, they realized it was true. The parents were crying, everyone was simply in shock. “Now they are proud,” the girl added. The teenagers said that they went to work at Crocus to save up for New Year's gifts for each other. They worked there for almost six months. Now employers offer schoolchildren part-time work at the Oceanarium, located next to Crocus City Hall. “He was walking around the lobby, I don’t know why.” After the terrorist attack, 16-year-old Alexander realized that he had seen one of the terrorists in Crocus two weeks before the tragedy. On March 7, he coordinated people near the escalator. Spectators came up to him and asked how to get to the wardrobe or to the hall. Among them was Shamsidin Fariduni." He came up to me and said something incomprehensible. I didn’t understand what, I simply answered that he needed to go down to the wardrobe, leave his outerwear there, and then enter the hall. Half an hour later he returned to me again and asked something - to be honest, I don’t remember what, because he spoke very incomprehensibly. He was still in his clothes, walking around the lobby, it’s unclear why,” the student said. The day after the terrorist attack, Alexander remembered the strange man and asked himself: what if it was one of the terrorists? And then I saw publications in Telegram channels that a photo of one of the shooters had appeared, and I recognized him. Source: Regions/T.me “Then, of course, I was in complete shock,” the guy admitted. Lisa studies at college, Alexander - in the 10th grade at school at the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics. After graduation, he plans to enter a technical university. He has been studying English for about ten years, playing music and playing the guitar. According to teenagers, the first day of school after the tragedy was not easy: classmates constantly approached the children with questions, and teachers thanked them for their heroism. Source: City portals Source link Source link
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Crocus City Hall – latest news, which stars were in Crocus during the terrorist attack, victims of the terrorist attack in Crocus – March 28, 2024 – Russia today Posting in CHAT: Russia Source: Daria Maslakova/MSK1.RU Actor Sergei Burunov was supposed to be at the “Picnic” concert at Crocus on the evening of March 22. He was saved by the decision to stay a little late: the artist was sure that the performance would not start on time, and planned to arrive at the concert hall only at 20:20. He told reporters about this at the New Radio award ceremony. "It was supposed to be a concert." [«Пикника»] with an orchestra. I was late: I knew that our concerts start not at 20:00, but at 20:15–20:20. With this expectation, quickly sneak up and take your place just in time for the beginning,” said the actor. — And when I approached Krok, I saw that some people were running across the Moscow Ring Road, through the barrier. Cars with flashing lights drove out from the entrance to Crocus. At that moment, my director Anastasia called me and said: “The news says that something is happening there.” I called Sergei (Svetlakov), I heard a shot there. He says: “Here, we are being evacuated, stay where you are, or better yet, turn around.” Sergei Burunov, actor According to the artist, his assistant was already waiting for him at Crocus. She said over the phone that a man had just fallen next to her and shots were fired inside. Burunov asked her to run to the Moscow Ring Road, and then put her in the car: “She had a white face.” “I saw smoke coming out, people running, the smell of gunpowder in the air,” the artist recalled the events of that night. “A flame had already appeared on the roof of the Crocus, a traffic jam had already formed. Burunov noted that he immediately realized that something terrible was happening, but he was collected inside and did not feel panic. He also emphasized that terrorism is a terrible thing and this should not happen in the 21st century. Let us remind you that on the evening of March 22, shots were fired in the Crocus City Hall concert hall near Moscow. Four attackers in camouflage opened fire on people gathered for a performance by the Picnic group and then set the building on fire. Identification of bodies found under the rubble is still ongoing. Source link Source link