Syrian War update -- Assad is on a roll.

a reply to: nwtrucker

lol I really do not know why you are reaching to make this report believable... occams razor the simplest explanation is often the most true.


US is so behind on EW tech, they rely on their nato counterparts. Plus you say you have been following aircraft development, but have you checked SAM development? The russians are very appropiately set up to defend against most EW attacks, and the US is the least of their concerns in that department. Take a look at s-200 to s-400 sam resilience against EW.

You would be hardpressed to jam one of those.

So you think Israel conveniently placed refuel spots along the way to Iran... really man? Have you seen google maps and what's in between?

Anyways, it's no secret that the F-35 is limited by its combat range.

Stealth is camouflage, it just means it takes longer for radar on a sam to pick it up. But IT WILL get picked up at some point depending on the cross section and the range.

a reply to: nwtrucker

Yeah but every plane is different? Every plane requires different training. They all fly differently, and you are damn well going to learn the ins and outs before flying a combat mission or anywhere near your number one foe (IRAN).

Let's be real. F-35 is a buggy aircraft, and it doesn't matter if you are the greatest pilot in the universe, if you put Han Solo in an f-35 it's going to take him a while before he figures out what all the different features are and how to fly a combat mission.

Israeli pilots are good, maybe same level as US. But they fly F-16s... they know F-16s... it's their bread and butter. In every moment of a combat situation they know how to handle their F-16.


They won't know jack about their F-35 till they learn enough. And going straight to Iran won't help them.

a reply to: ISeekTruth101

Russian S400s? Seeing I don't know what level the EW is in fifth Gens, lets assume that technology is as much a leap as the fifth Gen was , itself.

I do know that the F-22, and I assume the F-35's, EW has never been used even in the U.S. during blue on blue exercises. That's how paranoid the USAF is on the subject. So forgive me for laughing at Russian claims on their SAM systems. I will grant them on legacy aircraft, but they have zero idea what they face in fifth gens.

Please note the equal assurances of Putin and his promise to defend Syria from attack right along with his nuclear missiles and the rest of his claims.

There's an old U.S. 'saw'. It reads, "honor the threat". You want to underestimate The Israelis? That your call. I do not.

a reply to: ISeekTruth101

The Russians would be a bit clueless to the EW capabilities of the US, I imagine anyone who doesn't need to know would be clueless too. So when it comes to Israeli capabilities and foreknowledge of an enemy state of such measures... Yeah, me and you can't call anything.

Israeli pilots are good, maybe same level as US. But they fly F-16s... they know F-16s... it's their bread and butter. In every moment of a combat situation they know how to handle their F-16. 

Apple's and oranges, an F-16 in 2018 is completely different from one built in say the 80's, it's as you said the bread and butter of the Israeli air force. For all we know the Israelis might never need enter Iranian airspace and shot their loads 300 miles out from the target with 'pathfinders' lining up the final delivery.

I wouldn't assume too much when it comes to Israeli offensive capabilities, it's not like such things are advertised. They're super silent on such things and we/I don't hear too much on the cases we know for definite that Israelis have penetrated hostile airspace.

a reply to: nwtrucker

It's my understanding that the F-22 has a smaller RCS than the F-35, not the other way round. Both would be very difficult to track effectively. To the point of being almost impossible, even with the most powerful Radar systems in the world.

Until a foreign power actually manages to shoot one down with a Radar guided missile, we can assume that the new generations of Stealth aircraft are as good as invisible to Radar. I mean really!

Obviously, stealth aircraft could still get unlucky and be brought down by AA rounds. If this were the case, I'm quite certain that Russians would claim it was 'missile technology' that brought them down. Far too good a propaganda opportunity to miss!

a reply to: horatio321

Just to add to the post above, the whole Radar subject is massive and quite 'geeky'. Getting one's head around the basics of RCS is just one part of the equation. When 'dealing' with stealthy aircraft (and bear in mind, it's not just the west that has stealth aircraft) 'seeing' the aircraft is one thing. Setting your radar so that it can detect things as small as a Seagull opens up a whole world of false positives. Especially when what you're looking for is even smaller than that!

Your typical surveillance radars or ATC 'might' theoretically be able to get returns from stealthy aircraft, but you'd have to have a very experienced radar operator to pick through the returns, with all the computer help in the world, let alone be able to say 'yep, right, that's an F-22 incoming' - even if they knew one was there. Which they won't.

Low frequency band Radars have the best chance of seeing a stealthy jet, but do they have enough resolution to steer a missile travelling at Mach 3+ onto an aircraft travelling at Mach 1+? Nope, they don't.

Electronic warfare works in conjunction with Stealthy warfare hand in hand. Reduce the signal, increase the noise. The Americans are at least 25 years ahead of anyone else in terms of reducing the the signal. Certain things have been released to the public due to criticisms raised about the costs involved with the F-35. So we have hints as to how effective F-22 stealth is. It's obviously sensitive/secret information. The next generation of stealth will be even better, RCS = -70dB, or 0.0000001 m2 class.

Basically, if you're a naughty boy and they know where you're at, they will have the capability to punch through, undetected, and deliver a very unpleasant surprise.

In the meantime, when you hear people saying that they can use fancy SAMs to bring them down - photos or it didn't happen.

I suspect at some point we may see Zaphod with something to add - this would be right up his street!

For those interested in following the war, this is my favorite website to track recent developments.

Thank you for this link, I have been looking for a good source for updates on the conflict without having to use Twitter. Good insight on what’s going on right now as well, keep it up.


-Guava

originally posted by: Guava

For those interested in following the war, this is my favorite website to track recent developments.

Thank you for this link, I have been looking for a good source for updates on the conflict without having to use Twitter. Good insight on what’s going on right now as well, keep it up.

-Guava

liveuamap is not the best one out there IMO. It is a Ukrainian website so it is biased. I think this one is the best live map for the Syria war.

syriancivilwarmap.com...

a reply to: AndyFromMichigan

Hey Andy, good to see your continuing to keep us updated in WW3 Syria front. I have not been able to login to the web much recently so I am glad you have been keeping abreast of happenings. I decided to search for some video of the recent fighting in South Damascus from your op, and have discovered a Chinese media report in English of recent front line fighting in the South Damascus. As we can see, it looks just like WW2, but with updated equipment.

Appears to be T-90 MBT's just slamming daesh positions, and Russian mine clearing UR-77's have been re-purposed for terrorist clearing, according to Al-Masdar News. Another video shows the Syrians slamming the terrorists with what appear to be some BM-21 clones as well as pickups tricked out with Grad type launchers.

a reply to: horatio321

I think we see some radar calibration support action in Deir ez-Zor today.

syria.liveuamap.com...
syria.liveuamap.com...,40.10435

Only foreign and independent press will bring us front line battle footage of world war 3. Here Syrian troops and Holy Jihadists are allegedly fighting IS terrorists outside Yarmouk Mortuary.

Interesting thread. Thank you OP.

a reply to: AndyFromMichigan

Im going to throw in a weeks worth of Damascus updates from SouthFront and R&U video, as these seem to be the only ones giving comprehensive updates on the front lines lately.

R&U Video:
Battles for Syria | May 15th 2018 | Images from the anti-ISIS operation in South Damascus

Updates from the anti-ISIS operation in South Damascus | May 14th 2018 | Syria

Celebration in the liberated districts of South Damascus | May 12th 2018 | Syria

The Battle of South Damascus | May 11th 2018 | anti-ISIS operation Yarmouk Camp, Syria

Battles for Syria | May 10th 2018 | Images from the anti-ISIS operation in South Damascus

a reply to: worldstarcountry
South Front
Israel, U.S. Prepare For Further Attacks On Syria

Syrian War Report – May 16, 2018: Syrian Army Liberates Dozens Of Villages In Rastan Pocket

Syrian War Report – May 14, 2018: Battle For Southern Damascus Enters Its Final Phase

The big rebel pocket north of Homs is now back under government control. Idlib has been quiet lately, and the Syrian army has been taking advantage of that to mop up some of the smaller pockets elsewhere. They're still trying to stamp out that little ISIS-held pocket just south of Damascus.

Interestingly, the big Isreali airstrikes don't seem to have made any noticeable difference.

Latest update: the ISIS pocket south of Damascus is now back under government control. Reports are that the ISIS fighters were being sent to the deserts in eastern Syria. I suspect (rather strongly) that they'll get dumped on the far side of the Euphrates river, to harass the Kurds for a while. That's essentially what happened to the ISIS fighters when the pocket in northern Syria was eliminated, except then they were sent to Idlib to cause problems for the Rebels.