Author: Michael

Summary and Key Points: When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the Black Sea Fleet had 74 vessels, a Slava-class flagship cruiser, and overwhelming superiority against a Ukrainian Navy that had almost no operational warships.

Four years and three months later, approximately 30 percent of the fleet has been destroyed or seriously damaged.

Russian Navy Kirov-Class. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

How the Russian Navy Fell Apart in the Ukraine War
Nothing has gone right for Russia during the Ukraine war, especially when it comes to Putin’s Air Force.

In service since 2009, the MK17 SCAR-H is being

Key Points and Summary: The Russian Aerospace Forces entered Ukraine in February 2022 with approximately 1,400 frontline combat aircraft and a plan to establish air superiority within 72 hours. Four years and three months later, Russia has lost approximately 361 combat aircraft to confirmed visual tracking, with actual losses likely substantially higher.

-The Su-34s and Su-35s that survived the war are now being cannibalized for parts because the production pipeline cannot keep pace with attrition.

Wojskowe Zaklady Elektroniczne (WZE), a Polish government-owned defence company, has received a purchase order from L3Harris Technologies to produce Attitude Control Motors (ACMs) for the US Army’s Patriot (PAC-3) missile system.

Norway has signed the Framework Agreement under the Patria-led Common Armoured Vehicle System (CAVS) programme, clearing the way for the country to begin serial procurement of Patria’s CAVS 6×6 armoured vehicles.

Nine of the 18 countries participating in a Czech-led initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine have now withdrawn from the effort.

The number of countries has been falling since Prime Minister Andrej Babiš returned to office in December, having campaigned on a pledge not to make Czech citizens pay for Ukraine’s weapons.

Ukraine Has Artillery Shell Problems Now

An ATACMS missile being launched from an M270 MLRS.

Reports today state that Russian President Vladimir Putin will close Moscow and most of the airspace of European Russia to all private planes and helicopters. The closure comes from his fear of both Ukraine’s long-range drone strikes and increasing rumors of possible assassination plots against him internally.

The boundaries of this restricted area extend over most of central Russia. It begins at the border with Belarus in the west, extends north to the St.

Two years after the United States military pulled out of Vietnam in 1973, the Communists moved ever closer to overrunning South Vietnam.
Before Saigon fell, President Gerald Ford threw a supposed lifeline to children in Southeast Asia that the war left without parents. So on April 3, 1975, he authorized Operation Babylift—a bold endeavor that resulted in the evacuation of roughly 3,300 Vietnamese orphans from the embattled country.

D.

Jay Rogers, RCD
Memorial Day 2026 should have centered on flags at graves and the quiet dignity of remembering Americans who died in uniform. It didn’t.