Buck,
"And as always keep in mind with a new system comes a new type of ammunition, training and most importantly, spare parts. Again, that $100 million won't go too far..."
And as you've later indicated the money is already allocated to further howitzers and tubes. Not an altogether bad thing. However, we seem well aware of the time lag existing between offering a new system and getting it downrange to end users. Three months after a war has started we're now concerned? That's running well behind the curve.
"Finally, is the HIMARS really what Ukraine needs?"
Ukraine has a lot of needs-many that could/should have been addressed well before now. Those needs certainly include weapon systems offering accurate fires out to 70K using conventional M30/31 munitions. Frankly, send them ATACMS and let's do some runway cratering up in Bryansk Oblast. Everybody in Russia should be hearing "BOOM!!" daily.
"Or would getting them more BM-21s and reloads for those be a better and quicker allocation of funding."
Wouldn't the rationale for conversion to 155mm based western howitzers apply here as well? What are the ammunition/parts issues of old Soviet stocks? Abundance? Evidently not for Soviet legacy howitzer ammunition that's apparently in short supply. Here's the cool thing, Buck-the Ukrainians won't say "NO" to anything.
"Regardless, I know a lot of this very much inside baseball but the hurdles are real."
We'd better re-explore those hurdles lest they stand in our own way when we need them instead of somebody else.
"...Perhaps the new Lend Lease law and $40 billion will knock down some of these barriers but time will tell."
I don't know the particulars of the new Lend Lease law but, Rand Paul be damned, the bill passed. Time? The Ukrainians ran out of time three months ago. Everything is needed and everything is late. This has become at WAB a budget discussion which is, btw, a great way for a compelling need to be bureaucratically assassinated through death by a thousand cuts.
At least we've moved away from the realm of "We mustn't upset Vlad the mad". Or, at least, I hope we have. Go Celts (retch...barf).
"And as always keep in mind with a new system comes a new type of ammunition, training and most importantly, spare parts. Again, that $100 million won't go too far..."
And as you've later indicated the money is already allocated to further howitzers and tubes. Not an altogether bad thing. However, we seem well aware of the time lag existing between offering a new system and getting it downrange to end users. Three months after a war has started we're now concerned? That's running well behind the curve.
"Finally, is the HIMARS really what Ukraine needs?"
Ukraine has a lot of needs-many that could/should have been addressed well before now. Those needs certainly include weapon systems offering accurate fires out to 70K using conventional M30/31 munitions. Frankly, send them ATACMS and let's do some runway cratering up in Bryansk Oblast. Everybody in Russia should be hearing "BOOM!!" daily.
"Or would getting them more BM-21s and reloads for those be a better and quicker allocation of funding."
Wouldn't the rationale for conversion to 155mm based western howitzers apply here as well? What are the ammunition/parts issues of old Soviet stocks? Abundance? Evidently not for Soviet legacy howitzer ammunition that's apparently in short supply. Here's the cool thing, Buck-the Ukrainians won't say "NO" to anything.
"Regardless, I know a lot of this very much inside baseball but the hurdles are real."
We'd better re-explore those hurdles lest they stand in our own way when we need them instead of somebody else.
"...Perhaps the new Lend Lease law and $40 billion will knock down some of these barriers but time will tell."
I don't know the particulars of the new Lend Lease law but, Rand Paul be damned, the bill passed. Time? The Ukrainians ran out of time three months ago. Everything is needed and everything is late. This has become at WAB a budget discussion which is, btw, a great way for a compelling need to be bureaucratically assassinated through death by a thousand cuts.
At least we've moved away from the realm of "We mustn't upset Vlad the mad". Or, at least, I hope we have. Go Celts (retch...barf).
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