This year's Russian May Day parade only has 1 tank, and it's from WWII

[ilikegunspdx]

Russia Victory Day parade: Only one tank on display as Vladimir Putin says country is going through 'difficult period'

On 9 May every year, Russia celebrates Victory Day, putting on a large parade in honour of the country's victory over Nazi Germany 79 years ago - in what remains an important symbol of the country's national identity.

news.sky.com

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[Alexx1401]

While this is funny it also worries me a little. We keep backing them into a corner but then the people at the top here seem to be trying to show everyone we are a joke.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

Idk. Russia has a massive stockpile. I think many are making it out to seem as if they are completely zapped of ammunition, vehicles and weapons.. but I somehow doubt that's the case. Even if they sold a bunch.. the pure amount of stuff they have stockpiled was staggering.

 

[gmerkt]

Idk. Russia has a massive stockpile. I think many are making it out to seem as if they are completely zapped of ammunition, vehicles and weapons.. but I somehow doubt that's the case. Even if they sold a bunch.. the pure amount of stuff they have stockpiled was staggering.

A lot of what they stockpiled has been sitting since at least the 1990's. It wasn't always stored under ideal conditions. So to some extent, it isn't combat ready. We've thought they had a lot of ammunition stored away, but for them to have to buy/trade for quantities from North Korea means it isn't unlimited.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

A lot of what they stockpiled has been sitting since at least the 1990's. It wasn't always stored under ideal conditions. So to some extent, it isn't combat ready. We've thought they had a lot of ammunition stored away, but for them to have to buy/trade for quantities from North Korea means it isn't unlimited.

True. I don't think they are fully depleted as outlets are stating though. Something has been fishy with Ukraine and Russian information ever since the conflict started.

 

[CamoDeafie]

True. I don't think they are fully depleted as outlets are stating though. Something has been fishy with Ukraine and Russian information ever since the conflict started.

They can't all be staging/in locations, ready for the West while some are actively in Ukraine?

 

[Knobgoblin]

True. I don't think they are fully depleted as outlets are stating though. Something has been fishy with Ukraine and Russian information ever since the conflict started.

I could see either side of this scenario.
Just because something was stashed, doesn't mean it's showroom ready. Somebody might have stolen all the green paint years ago.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

I could see either side of this scenario.
Just because something was stashed, doesn't mean it's showroom ready. Somebody might have stolen all the green paint years ago.

Makes one wonder how many contracts for arms actually just go into oligarch's pockets. I recall one giant contract (can't recall what it was for) 94% of the contract went directly to Putin, leaving 6% to actually build whatever it was.

 

[CamoDeafie]

Big difference in storage/conditions

Bovington tank museum, vehicles waiting to be repaired/restored

Abandoned tank graveyard, supposedly somewhere in Ukraine

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Article on storage from Moscow times.

Russia Pulls Thousands of Soviet-Era Military Vehicles From Major Storage Facility - The Moscow Times

Russia’s largest known military equipment storage facility has been stripped of nearly half of the Soviet-era tanks and armored vehicles that were stored on its grounds before Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, The Moscow Times’ Russian service reported, analyzing satellite...

www.themoscowtimes.com

 

[Retired Guy]

Russia is dipping deep into their reserves.

From a recent article in the Institute for the Study of War (ISW):

"Recent satellite imagery of depleted Russian military vehicle and weapon storage facilities further indicates that Russia is currently sustaining its war effort largely by pulling from storage rather than by manufacturing new vehicles and certain weapons at scale. Newsweek reported on May 8 that a social media source tracking Russian military depots stated that satellite imagery indicates that Russia's vehicle stores have significantly decreased from pre-war levels by nearly 32 percent from 15,152 in 2021 to 10,389 as of May 2024. The military depot tracker noted that Russia has pulled most from its stores of MT-LB multipurpose armored fighting vehicles (AFVs), which are down from 2,527 prewar to 922 remaining; BMD airborne amphibious tracked infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs), which are down from 637 prewar to 244 remaining; and BTR-50 armored personnel carriers (APCs), down from 125 prewar to 52 remaining. The military depot tracker noted that Russia no longer has newer model BTR-60s, 70s, and 80s in storage and that only 2,605 remain — likely referring to vehicles currently fielded — from its prewar stocks of 3,313. The military depot tracker noted that Russia is currently fielding 1,000–2,000 of its remaining MT-LBs in Ukraine. Another open-source account on X (formerly Twitter) cited satellite imagery dated May 27, 2020 and March 26, 2024 and concluded that Russia has pulled roughly 60 percent of its artillery systems at an unspecified towed artillery storage base, reportedly one of Russia's largest. The source reported that about half of the remaining artillery systems at this base are likely unusable due to degradation while in storage and because many of the remaining systems are Second World War era artillery systems incompatible with modern ammunition."