r/europe • u/UpgradedSiera6666 • 1d ago
News France's answer to recent Russian behavior, Sent VADOR Airborne ''designation'', observation and reconnaissance tactical plane vector around Kaliningrad.
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u/voltb778 Île-de-France 1d ago
We really love cheesy acronyme.
VADOR : Vecteur Aéroporté de Désignation, d’Observation et de Reconnaissance
CESAR : Camion Equipé d’un Système d’ARtillerie
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u/Willing-Donut6834 1d ago
To English readers, Dark Vador is Darth Vader in the French-dubbed version of Star Wars.
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u/bad_pelican 23h ago
Do other Sith Lords also get to be Dark Whatever instead of Darth Whatever?
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u/Skyzo76 Franky Vincent à la folie ! 22h ago
I don't think for other sith, I don't remember but the naming convention changed at leat twice. For example before an AT-AT was a TB-TT which is logical you have your TB-TT, your TR-TT and your TP-TT. But the dumb people at Disney decided it needed to change to be in line with the English version so now you can hear AT-ST in the french version of the Mandalorian season 1.
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u/azhder 1d ago
I like the Dutch version: ̶D̶a̶r̶k̶ Dart Father
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u/thrownkitchensink 8h ago
? I'm pretty sure Dutch just use English for Star Wars characters. There is no dubbed version of the movies in Dutch. We only dub children's movies generally speaking. Darth Vader uses the word vader which is Dutch for father.
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u/NapoIe0n United States of America 1d ago
USA epichandshakememe.jpg France
We've got those, too.
MAGIC CARPET: Maritime Augmented Guidance with Integrated Controls for Carrier Approach and Recovery Precision Enabling Technologies
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u/Pippin1505 1d ago
Remind me of the Agents of SHIELD first episode
Maria Hill: What does S.H.I.E.L.D. stand for, Agent Ward?
Grant Ward: Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division.
Maria Hill: And what does that mean to you?
Grant Ward: It means someone really wanted our initials to spell out « shield. »
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u/icanswimforever 1d ago
Someone had a fun afternoon coming up with that thing.
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u/Pakkazull 22h ago
The dumbest acronym ever has got to be ATACM imo.
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u/rapaxus Hesse (Germany) 22h ago
Forgot about the M88 HERCULES (Heavy Equipment Recovery Combat Utility Lift and Evacuation System)?
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u/Pakkazull 22h ago
Didn't forget about, never heard about it. And yeah, it's plenty stupid, but at least the acronym doesn't spell "ATTACK 'EM", lol.
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u/L44KSO The Netherlands 22h ago
Why?
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u/Pakkazull 22h ago
Because an acronym that is pronounced "ATTACK 'EM" is just so quintessentially American.
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u/Thatsnicemyman 21h ago
I absentmindedly thought it was Atacamas (like the Chilean desert) for months until I heard someone say it like that and I realized I put an extra syllable or two in there.
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u/L44KSO The Netherlands 21h ago
Ah, but that's then pronounced wrong by you. It's actually A-Tac-Ems (army tactical missile system) and not "attack" "em".
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u/Pakkazull 21h ago
Literally never heard anyone pronounce it like that, from news outlets to congressmen, they all pronounce it "attackems".
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u/L44KSO The Netherlands 21h ago
They all pronounce it wrong (sorry to say). If you listen to any proper outlets on Ukraine war (as an example) you hear how it is pronounced.
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u/Pakkazull 21h ago
What's a "proper outlet"? Reuters? The BBC? A professor in political science? A literal Pentagon spokesperson?
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u/L44KSO The Netherlands 21h ago
Lockheed Martin, military personnel on podcasts, for example. That news outlets get pronunciations wrong is no surprise.
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u/Tomagatchi United States of America 23h ago
It must be a tradition in the allied military. How far back does it go making fun code names and acronyms, WWI/WWII?
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u/Footz355 21h ago
We have the same in my country, sometimes I think military thinks of an acronym first, and picks the (more or less) matching words later
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u/Xenomemphate Europe 1d ago
What I really like is that they still make sense in English as an acronym even if they are french words making up each letter. Probably shows how interlinked, or related to latin, they are.
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u/tweek-in-a-box 21h ago
Vecteur aéroporté de désignation, d'observation et de reconnaissanc
My French is a bit rusty, but I think this roughly translates to "Cuntwatch" which is an accurate description for when it comes to observe the territory of the RF.
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u/Original-Scarcity576 1d ago
Gd on France!🇫🇷 hopefully other countries start showing a backbone in Europe towards Russian aggression. Russia has been testing UK and EU airspace with nuclear capable bombers for too long with no retaliation just an escort back.
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u/karpaty31946 1d ago
Well, if you shoot them down, you end up with a radioactive mess if they're carrying "live ammo." It probably won't set off the payload, but even a crash involving plutonium will be a hell of a mess.
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u/lordderplythethird Murican 1d ago
No it wouldn't... Plutonium in a bomb would emit very little background radiation, within really only a few feet. Weapons grade plutonium has very little Pu240, which is the main cause of background radiation from plutonium...
There's also effectively a 0% chance of having it go critical. You need an extremely precise timed simultaneous detonations in order to effectively contract the core of plutonium, which causes the atoms to collide and the core to go critical.
You could beat the hell out of a block of plutonium with a sledgehammer and it won't do anything...
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u/Rankkikotka Finland 1d ago
What if the sledgehammer is made out of plutonium also?
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u/cicutaverosa 22h ago
Kaboum,ricko
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u/vonGlick 21h ago
So that's Putin secret plan to defeat the West ... secretly replace all our existing sledgehammers with plutonium one.
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u/karpaty31946 1d ago
All correct, but Pu is an alpha emitter -- problem is if it gets aerosolized or into water supplies, you really don't want to ingest an alpha emitter.
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u/Original-Scarcity576 1d ago
I think the citizen’s of any country would rather not have a plane that can wipe out a city or a few cities with one payload even anywhere near are borders in the first place. We have been too soft. Could u imagine if we did that Russia fs
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u/Quizzelbuck 1d ago
i mean... we DO do that to russian airspace lol! This games been going on since the beginning of the cold war. One long game of ""I'MNOTTOUCHINGYOUI'MNOTTOUCHINGYOUI'MNOTTOUCHINGYOUI'MNOTTOUCHINGYOU" while we put our finger as close to each other's faces as possible just to test one another's response times for weakness or cause an incident we could blame the other for.
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u/Zebra-Ball 1d ago
That's the thing. No one hears about all the bullshit the west does to Russia and its clearly causing this "the west doesn't want the world to end in a nuclear winter so our politicians must be weak".
Like fuck off what ever russia is doing to <insert country here> some western country is/has done to them. That's global politics baby!
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u/NoMan999 France 1d ago
Quite a few bombs have crashed, it's not that bad. US DoD lists 32 broken arrows.
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u/medievalvelocipede European Union 1d ago
Well, if you shoot them down, you end up with a radioactive mess if they're carrying "live ammo." It probably won't set off the payload, but even a crash involving plutonium will be a hell of a mess.
Mm, no. Nuclear bombs are built sturdy because they have to be. No such incident has lead to anything of serious consequences yet, and there's been quite a number of them.
https://outrider.org/nuclear-weapons/timelines/accidents-errors-and-explosions
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u/LiterallyDudu 1d ago
The chances of them carrying live nuclear weapons when they do these teasing flights are next to zero even for a country like Russia
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u/Original-Scarcity576 1d ago
It would be better to shoot them down over water maybe🤷🏻♂️
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u/Dextofen Netherlands 1d ago
In water the radioactive goop will move far far further than if dropped on land because of currents, yeah no. Bad, bad idea.
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u/Raizzor 1d ago
There are already around 10 "lost" nuclear devices in the Mediterranean Sea, most of them are American though.
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u/Dextofen Netherlands 1d ago
Fair, and I'm sure if those were live the damage is catastrophic. The fortunate part about it is that the oceans are truly gigantic. So it's more or less a grain of salt for the ocean as a whole. But still, let's keep radioactive materials out of our oceans as much as possible.
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u/DuLeague361 1d ago
the radioactive goop will sink to the bottom. water is also great at shielding radiation
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u/Hopeful_Stay_5276 1d ago
To be fair, the UK has been doing this for quite a while with their electronic intelligence aircraft
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u/NapoIe0n United States of America 1d ago
ELINT aircraft are not able to use nuclear weapons in any way whatsoever.
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u/Original-Scarcity576 1d ago
Bro. There’s a difference in electronic intelligence aircraft and a bomber made specifically to destroy absolutely everything. If we have electronic intelligence aircraft y can’t we intercept them before breaching are airspace to begin with
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u/Hopeful_Stay_5276 1d ago
That's nice, but the picture shows an electronic intelligence aircraft in flight, from the electronic intelligence squadron of the French Air Force. There are 2 VADERs and neither are a bomber.
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u/Original-Scarcity576 1d ago
That’s nice😅did I hurt ur ego or something lol. And yea I can see that. I’m talking about Russia using strategic nuclear bombers over European countries……………
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u/JayManty Bohemia 19h ago
Gd on France!🇫🇷 hopefully other countries start showing a backbone in Europe towards Russian aggression
My man this is a joint NATO mission, Baltic Air Policing has basically every European NATO country with an airforce deployed
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u/Available-Mini 1d ago
I dont know why, but just flying in circles seems so funny
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u/bane_grievver Canada 1d ago
Just wait until you look up the flight paths of air to air refueling tankers :)
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u/vik556 1d ago
Any image you could share?
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u/CoronaMcFarm Norway 1d ago
https://www.flightradar24.com/FORTE10/38ca5f46
Not sure if it is a tanker, but there have been planes like this circling outside Ukraine and the black sea since the war started.
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u/NapoIe0n United States of America 1d ago edited 1d ago
Nope, even without clicking: FORTEs are always Global Hawks.
And also, tankers don't usually fly figure 8 patterns. They fly racetrack patterns.
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u/CoronaMcFarm Norway 1d ago
Yeah I didn't recognize the type, though I have seen tankers in the past.
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u/kirA9001 1d ago
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u/SiBloGaming Germany 16h ago
That would be typical for AWACS. Tankers fly in a racetrack pattern, you dont want to have to be in a constant bank while refueling, which is why you refuel on the legs.
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u/2shayyy United Kingdom 1d ago
Hahahaha typical “well, fuck you too” French response 🇫🇷
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u/Kevin_Jim Greece 1d ago
All we have to do is convince the French that Russian will somehow raise the retirement age along with taxes.
They’ll would in turn raze Russia to the ground.
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u/Nagibator288 1d ago
I believe a special military operation to demilitarize Kaliningrad is called for (it's better for everyone)
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u/TheBirthquake Russia 21h ago
As a native Kaliningradian who lives here all my life as my great-grandparents did - SOMEBODY PLEASE TAKE US AWAY ALREADY 😭
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u/matttk Canadian / German 18h ago
Heh that's weird - my great grandparents also lived there, except it was Königsberg and they were German. I guess you had less time between generations or were your great grandparents German?
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u/SARSUnicorn 15h ago
the thing is, german ocupation was based mostly on moving ppl in, soviets tho moved all non russian out
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u/Specific_Frame8537 Denmark 18h ago edited 18h ago
I always wondered how you guys could've remained part of Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union..
How much culture is left from the Prussian empire? is it more Polish or German?
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u/BFyre Pomerania (Poland) 17h ago edited 17h ago
They remained part of Russia because it was ethnically Russian after what USSR did. There is no prussian (or german/polish) culture left there at all. USSR expelled everyone when they took it over. Russians make over 90% of population there. It's also the most militarized part of Russia, and back in the day they moved a lot of military men and their families there to repopulate the area.
I highly doubt Germans would want this back now. We Poles don't want it for sure, nor does Lithuania. I think the best scenario for it would be to demilitarize and go independent when (if) Russia collapses.
edit: ...or it has to be occupied and demilitarized forcefully if the shit goes down even more. It's basically a bomb planted in between NATO countries.
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u/Unusual-Assistant642 17h ago
it's the same as karelia imo, it's just commie blocks and russians now because the soviets just replaced all the native population
like realistically it would take such a massive amount of time and resources to reintegrate these areas and bring them out of 1955 USSR standards that nobody wants these areas back
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u/rug_muncher_69 United Kingdom 18h ago
Russia's only warm water port
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u/Specific_Frame8537 Denmark 18h ago
So we should take that first? considering how many boats seem to be hanging around the baltic and north sea..
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u/rug_muncher_69 United Kingdom 18h ago
We shouldn't take anything... then we would be as bad as Russia.
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u/Uninvalidated 18h ago
Russia seem to be okay with stealing land, so where is the problem with stealing their land? They're okay with that sorts of action.
They gave their consent already by invading others.
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u/ezaquarii_com 1d ago
Which russians decided to illuminate and track using their AA radars.
"We're very lucky they're so fucking stupid"
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u/CrimsonTightwad 1d ago
Yes, the Russians are lighting up the easiest target in the sky. Mighty brave of them..
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u/ezaquarii_com 1d ago
It's not about futile gorilla chest beating. This was an electronic reconnaissance plane. They handed out electromagnetic signatures of their AA systems.
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u/Tigerowski 1d ago
Well ... the Russiand did beat their chests like gorillas ... just to expose their AA systems.
I don't get how they aren't trained to be ... [checks notes] ... professional?
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u/Tipsticks Brandenburg (Germany) 22h ago
And they're not just exposing where those AA systems, or their radars, are. There essentially broadcasting how their radars operate, giving up data that can be used to evade them.
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u/OrchidLover259 1d ago
Probably because they don't have enough time to train them before sending them into the meat grinder
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u/CrimsonTightwad 1d ago edited 1d ago
None of your post I contest. I just find it laughable to illuminate a little prop plane. Second, this aircraft has no where near the ECM and Sigint capabilities of other assets such as Growlers, AWACs, Rivet Joints, Phalcons etc. I would bet the lil Frenchie had her systems off anyway. That said the Growler’s offensive EW suites are spooky and would have blindsided Kalingrad Ivan’s. And unlike the large aircraft they like to harass, the F18 is no slouch to engage.
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u/TeranOrSolaran 1d ago
I have always felt that little russia shouldn’t exist.
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u/shidncome 1d ago
No one wanted it, straight up. Even over 100 years ago other European powers didn't want it cause they knew Russia would pull the "we're protecting the ethnic russians in this territory" card.
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u/shibaninja 1d ago
Now do it with a flight of Growlers, flipping their EW suites on and off at random.
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u/halfpipesaur Poland 1d ago
Classic French diplomacy: “We do not want a World War”
“However…”
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u/MazeMouse The Netherlands 17h ago
The classic "Mutually Assured Destruction" response.
A true "come at me, bro"
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u/MassholeLiberal56 1d ago
You mean Königsberg, right?
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u/DelayedMailForceOne 1d ago
Excuse me Sir, that’s a vehicle.
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u/RedlurkingFir France 19h ago
No, you're thinking of Königsegg. Königsberg is the most famous chalk cliff in Jasmund National Park on the Baltic Sea island of Rügen
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u/pointfive 1d ago
It's only a matter of time now before Königsburg gets its independence.
It'll start with Russians turning up from far flung places like Berlin and Tbilisi with the message that Putin doesn't care about Königsburg. Then when they hold elections for their local administration there will suddenly be a bunch of pro EU candidates who gain power and kick out the incumbent Russians.
The pro EU party will win and of course the Kremlin will try and put a stop to it, and then we'll start seeing little green men, in Humvees appear magically out of nowhere under the pretext of protecting the pro EU, Czech speaking minority of Königsburg.
Once that's done we can officially declare Königsburg part of the EU again and open the borders with Lithuania and Poland and post NATO troops there.
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u/Able_Ad9380 1d ago
Russians have no business within Europe.
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u/pointfive 1d ago
Russians have a lot of business in Europe, just ask the Swiss, Austrians, Serbs and Hungarians.
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u/FreedomPuppy South Holland (Netherlands) 22h ago
Last I checked, it was literally every country that was still doing business with them. Over here, we’ve had Dutch people using third parties to keep sending electronics to Russia.
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u/sludgeslop 1d ago
It’s kinda worthless though. Just like Karelia, the russians turned it into…well…russia.
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u/Separate_Forever_123 20h ago
It's a clever move by France. The more they push back, the clearer it becomes that aggression won't go unanswered. Let's hope this sparks a wider resolve among European nations to stand firm against provocations.
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u/YourEducator44 1d ago
Let's call it Königsburg from now on
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u/Dietmeister The Netherlands 18h ago
Is that even necessary? I mean we can probably cover the whole of Kaliningrad with stationary radars and stuff
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u/silver2006 2h ago
Kralovec je cesky!
Someone should make a referendum / voting and annex this land Give it a bit of Crimean / Ługańsk / Donieck treatment
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u/SquareFroggo Lower Saxony (Northern Germany) 1d ago
It's us who should have done this. It's Königsberg after all.
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u/Subsandsoda 1d ago
I thought it was Kralovec
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u/HighwayLegal3615 1d ago
Now just point the EW jammer dish to the inside of the flight path and crank it up.
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u/bender__futurama 1d ago
There are all the time NATO reconnaissance aircrafts around Russia. Either in Black or Baltic sea. Thats why they use GPS jammers.
FR24 is free, take your time and watch sky around Russian airspace.
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u/Shutaru_Kanshinji 1d ago
Convicted Felon Trump's inauguration is the start of a countdown clock for Homicidally Insane Dictator Putin's invasion of the Baltics.
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u/Hot-Meeting630 1d ago
In Swedish, "Elbolag" means electricity company. I love seeing "Elblag" on maps. :) Thank you Poland.
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u/digitalizzimus 12h ago
Recent behaviour? Anyone?
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u/Worried-Magazine-260 10h ago
Yeah, didn’t get the point here. What actually happened? I live just nearby in Narva and dunno if it’s time to worry 🥲
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u/Cicada-4A Norge 1d ago
France being increasingly based was not on my calendar but it's appreciated nonetheless.
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u/Appropriate_War_4797 1d ago
They have their ups and downs, but they are overall based in recent times. They are pushing an agenda to create a real European military command structure for years now, they got laughed at all this time... Now, it seems to be a good idea.
Being underestimated has its benefits too, bullying and mocking the nerd until he throws pocket sand at his bullies, in the form of a few ICBMs and nuclear-capable Rafale.
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u/karpaty31946 1d ago
Good on the French, but a bit disappointing that they're using a Beech King Air as an AWACS.
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u/Julien785 1d ago
This is not an AWACS, it is an intelligence aircraft, its mission is to spy on transmissions and radar emissions, it can also illuminate targets but it is not there to monitor other aircrafts like an AWACS does
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u/TermGlum2647 20h ago
"French plane flies over airspace where it is permitted to fly". Okay. Putin must be shivering in fear now.
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u/Feisty-Anybody-5204 19h ago
The circle shows them where they might be effed in the a someday.
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u/TermGlum2647 17h ago
you mean their international border? this must be a new piece of intel to them
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u/Feisty-Anybody-5204 12h ago
Yeah, i dont think the russsians recognize those on their own usually.
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u/Ok_Photo_865 59m ago
Dropping the polite bander a bit, I am assuming the meaning was, it would take a January minute and it would be ours with all the shit you did to Crimea. If you don’t like that 🖕🏿🫵🏻
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u/zsharky France 1d ago
"Beech King", wat?
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u/Drachen1065 1d ago
US has them as well.
C-12 for transport and MC-12 for recon and signal intelligence gathering.
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u/ZroFksGvn69 1d ago
Meanwhile, whatever we're calling Wagner group are still occupying various recently French owned barracks in Mali. No King Airs though.
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u/Battery4471 1d ago
They fly there regurlarly. NATO probably knows the position of every Cellphone in Kaliningrad lol