21st-Century Visual Aircraft Recognition
Spotted on a Ukrainian coastal craft recently:
Besides the normal MiGs and Sukhois, note the assorted drone silhouettes.
Of note, the U.S. has donated 62 “coastal and riverine patrol boats” to Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict with Russia. Presumably, these are all small enough to be carried in via Eastern Europe from Poland and Romania via rail (under 89 feet) and truck (under 53 feet).
Last year, it was disclosed that at least 20 of those were 36-38 foot aluminum hulled boats from Metal Shark in Alabama.
Speaking of which, the Department of Defense this week quietly posted the latest, 34th, drawdown from DoD inventories for Ukraine since August 2021 which is valued at up to $350 million. Big ticket items include HIMARS rockets, 155mm artillery rounds, 25mm cannon ammunition, 81mm and 60mm mortar rounds, grenade launchers, demo equipment, more riverine patrol boats, thermal sights, and other gear. Also included were additional small arms– classified as .50 caliber BMG and under– along with associated ammunition.
Overall, this brings the total of American military assistance to Ukraine to more than $33.2 billion since the beginning of the Biden Administration took office– roughly the cost of three new Ford-class supercarriers. By comparison, Ukraine spent just $5.9 billion on its entire military in 2021.
When it comes to the running tally of equipment transferred from U.S. stocks to Ukraine this year, more than 150 million rounds of small arms ammunition have been allocated along with 232 pieces of artillery and over 2 million shells. Add to this over 1,600 Stinger anti-aircraft missile systems, 8,500 Javelin tank killer missiles, and 58,000 “other anti-armor systems.”
The full list, as of March 20, is below:
laststandonzombieisland 