US Weapons Accuracy Drops To 10% In Ukraine Due To Jamming

Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

Many high-tech US weapons systems in Ukraine are now useless due to jamming signals by Russia.

Useless Weapons

Please consider Russian Jamming Leaves Some High-Tech U.S. Weapons Ineffective in Ukraine

Russia’s jamming of the guidance systems of modern Western weapons, including Excalibur GPS-guided artillery shells and the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, which can fire some U.S.-made rockets with a range of up to 50 miles, has eroded Ukraine’s ability to defend its territory and has left officials in Kyiv urgently seeking help from the Pentagon to obtain upgrades from arms manufacturers.

The success rate for the U.S.-designed Excalibur shells, for example, fell sharply over a period of months — to less than 10 percent hitting their targets — before Ukraine’s military abandoned them last year, according to the confidential Ukrainian assessments.

Six months ago, after Ukrainians reported the problem, Washington simply stopped providing Excalibur shells because of the high failure rate, the Ukrainian officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive security matter. In other cases, such as aircraft-dropped bombs called JDAMs, the manufacturer provided a patch and Ukraine continues to use them.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine created a modern testing ground for Western arms that had never been used against a foe with Moscow’s ability to jam GPS navigation.

But even before the United States ceased deliveries, Ukrainian artillerymen had largely stopped using Excalibur, the assessments said, because the shells are harder to use compared with standard howitzer rounds, requiring time-consuming special calculations and programming. Now they are shunned altogether, military personnel in the field said.

Dense web of jamming
A web of Russian electronic warfare systems and air defenses menace Ukrainian pilots, the documents said, adding that some Russian jammers also scramble the navigation system of planes. The Russian defense is so dense, the assessment found, that there are “no open windows for the Ukrainian pilots where they feel that they are not at gunpoint.”

HIMARS launchers were celebrated during the first year of Russia’s invasion for their success in striking ammunition depots and command points behind enemy lines.

But by the second year, “everything ended: the Russians deployed electronic warfare, disabled satellite signals, and HIMARS became completely ineffective,” a second senior Ukrainian military official said. “This ineffectiveness led to the point where a very expensive shell was used” increasingly to strike lower-priority targets.

Another US Precision-Guided weapon Fails

Defense One reports Another US Precision-Guided Weapon Falls Prey to Russian Electronic Warfare

A new ground-launched version of an air-to-ground weapon developed for Ukraine on a rapid timeline failed to hit targets in part because of Russian electro-magnetic warfare, Bill LaPlante, the Pentagon’s acquisition chief, said at an event held by think tank CSIS.

LaPlante suggested that Ukraine may no longer be interested in the weapon. “When you send something to people in the fight of their lives that just doesn’t work, they’ll try it three times and they’ll just throw it aside,” said LaPlante.

The weapon LaPlante is referring to is very likely the Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB) based on his description, according to Bryan Clark, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute.

A Boeing spokesperson did not confirm that LaPlante was referring to GLSDB, but said the company is “working closely with the [Defense Department] on spiral capability improvements to the ground-launch SDB system.” Spiral capability improvements refers to an iterative software development process.

The GLDSB boasts a range of 90 miles—double the range of the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMRLS) missiles Ukraine previously used to wreak havoc on Russia’s logistic centers. Funding for the weapon was approved in February 2023, and Ukraine was reportedly using the weapon by February 2024.

GPS spoofers work by sending false location data to GPS navigation devices. Because GPS signals are weak, a stronger, false signal can be sent to override the correct inputs. Russia has used GPS spoofing in Ukraine since at least 2018. But advancements in technology mean spoofers can be created cheaply with just a software-defined radio and open-source software.

The weapons the spoofers are working against, meanwhile, are anything but cheap. A GMLRS missile costs around $160,000, while an Excalibur round can cost as much as $100,000. The GLDSB costs around $40,000.

Tactical Nuclear Weapons

Former CIA analyst Larry Johnson on Sullivan’s words about Russia’s plans to use nuclear weapons:

“His statement sounds like he had a meeting with Zelensky, where he was given some of Zelensky’s cocaine. Russia will not use nuclear weapons unless there is a real threat. If the… pic.twitter.com/aLY8XGBK2V

— S p r i n t e r F a c t o r y (@Sprinterfactory) April 9, 2024

Former CIA analyst Larry Johnson on Sullivan’s words about Russia’s plans to use nuclear weapons: “His statement sounds like he had a meeting with Zelensky, where he was given some of Zelensky’s cocaine. Russia will not use nuclear weapons unless there is a real threat. If the US deploys F-16s in Poland, then Russia will destroy them “with conventional weapons, because they do pose a nuclear threat. The Taurus missiles are the same situation. If they are deployed, then you know – Russia has admitted that they can be used to launch a nuclear strike.”

Use Nukes First

Idiots like @GeromanAt are itching for a nuclear war, proposing first use of “tactical” nukes in Ukraine. https://t.co/6PuP5XFy27

— Mike “Mish” Shedlock (@MishGEA) May 24, 2024

Would You Mind Not Shooting at the Thermonuclear Weapons?

“The neocons seem bent on testing Russia’s resolve and the MAD doctrine itself. They may view Russia as a rump state, but Russia does not so view itself…Russia has six thousand nuclear warheads.” – Dan Oliverhttps://t.co/wcgIGEnK2V pic.twitter.com/3Fbjqtx1xZ

— Rudy Havenstein, Senior Markets Commentator. (@RudyHavenstein) March 12, 2022

Get Russia to Strike First

“Thirteen days before Pearl Harbor, secretary of war Henry Stimson recorded in his diary a meeting with Roosevelt: “The question was how we should maneuver them into the position of firing the first shot without allowing too much danger to ourselves.””https://t.co/wcgIGEnK2V pic.twitter.com/92gpWSwE3E

— Rudy Havenstein, Senior Markets Commentator. (@RudyHavenstein) March 12, 2022

Using Nukes First Is a Risk/Reward Setup

The risk/reward of not believing Russia couldn’t kill tens of millions of us seems insufficient.

— Rudy Havenstein, Senior Markets Commentator. (@RudyHavenstein) March 15, 2022

Is Nuclear War Bullish?

Nuclear War is very bullish isn’t It? https://t.co/iWfSESoVQ9

— Mike “Mish” Shedlock (@MishGEA) May 24, 2024

What’s the Real Background Story Behind Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine?

On February 24, 2022 I asked, and answered the question What’s the Real Background Story Behind Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine?

What Happened in Ukraine?

The mess today in Ukraine has its roots in the 2014 when democratically elected Ukrainian President Yanukovych was toppled in a US-backed coup. 

Q: Why did the US want to get rid of Yanukovych? 

A: Because he was against Ukraine joining NATO.

The current comedian president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, repeated two days ago his desire to join NATO.

I use the term comedian because he literally is a comedian who ran for office and won.

McCain dined with Svoboda Party leader Oleg Tyagnibok. The Svoboda Party is a group of neo-Nazis. 

The citizens of Ukraine were used as pawns in yet another US mission that backfired. 

Well who cares about Neo-Nazis as long as they want Ukraine in NATO.

And that’s the rest of the story US media will not discuss. 

This no way absolves Putin, but US meddling backfires again, and again, and again.

Sometimes the Best Thing to Do Is Nothing At All

Please consider Sometimes the Best Thing to Do Is Nothing At All

After pointing out how much US and EU sanctions have backfired, someone asked me what I would do.

I responded, why do I have to do anything? 

The urge to do something should not be so intense that it overpowers analysis as to whether any actions can possibly work.

President Biden on Putin

On March 26, President Biden proclaimed “For God’s Sake, this Man Cannot Remain in Power”

The Wall Street Journal and perpetual warmongers agreed. But Biden’s staff quickly backtracked on his controversial statement.

On March 29 I pointed out all the loopholes in  sanctions on Russia, For discussion, please see Misguided Souls Still Do Not Understand This Simple Truth: Sanctions Don’t Work

I wrote that on April 8, 2022.

Also in 2022, I said the war would end in a negotiated settlement and nobody would win.

What did I get wrong?

It’s Time for a New Strategy

On March 16, I wrote Ukraine Won’t Win the War, It’s Time for a New Strategy

The sad thing is US meddling precipitated this whole sorry affair.

It’s time for a new strategy and a goal: Negotiated settlement.

If we supply Ukraine with anything, we should only do so if it aids that goal. For now, we still have no goals.

What’s the Goal?

On November 7, 2023, I asked If the US Has a Goal in Ukraine or Israel, What the Hell Is It?

We still don’t have a clearly defined goal or a clearly defined amount of money we are willing to spend.

Any Questions?

I have one:

Given US meddling in Ukraine precipitated this war, are we obliged to start a nuclear war to stop it, or is the lesson to just stop meddling?