Thanks. Very interesting. I read an account many years ago about a Soviet military exercise in which snorkel-equipped vehicles were supposed to cross a river by driving into it and going straight across. In practice, once the vehicle entered the water, they got turned around and confused and their re-emergence on the other side, if they made it there, was a mess. The solution was to put concrete blocks or slabs under the water creating lanes that would keep the vehicles from drifting off track. These were not visible from the surface. It was very important because the crossing had to be successful to impress high-level observers monitoring the exercise (and important, too, I gather, for the careers of the senior officers commanding the river-crossing units.) So being able to cross the river effectively didn’t seem to be important. What was important was APPEARING to be able to cross the river effectively. Sounds like nothing has changed.
Yes, those older books by 'Victor Suvorov' which I read as a young soldier tell much the same tales. Fortunately for us, the incompetence of the Red Army seems to have been inherited by the new regime.
It's amazing how many battles or even simply events have been undone by too much pride. And the story repeats itself, probably starting ten thousand years ago, and repeats and repeats and so few people learn…
Even while acknowledging the mistakes, the author of this post is so full of themselves, it's comical.
Good story if true
Definitely true!
Thanks. Very interesting. I read an account many years ago about a Soviet military exercise in which snorkel-equipped vehicles were supposed to cross a river by driving into it and going straight across. In practice, once the vehicle entered the water, they got turned around and confused and their re-emergence on the other side, if they made it there, was a mess. The solution was to put concrete blocks or slabs under the water creating lanes that would keep the vehicles from drifting off track. These were not visible from the surface. It was very important because the crossing had to be successful to impress high-level observers monitoring the exercise (and important, too, I gather, for the careers of the senior officers commanding the river-crossing units.) So being able to cross the river effectively didn’t seem to be important. What was important was APPEARING to be able to cross the river effectively. Sounds like nothing has changed.
Yes, those older books by 'Victor Suvorov' which I read as a young soldier tell much the same tales. Fortunately for us, the incompetence of the Red Army seems to have been inherited by the new regime.
It's amazing how many battles or even simply events have been undone by too much pride. And the story repeats itself, probably starting ten thousand years ago, and repeats and repeats and so few people learn…
Even while acknowledging the mistakes, the author of this post is so full of themselves, it's comical.