You might have a shiny new plane on the runway but that does not always make it a success. It may work with good runways, clean fuel, expert pilots, maintenance crews with access to the factory but out in the conflict area you really want something to: a) never go wrong and b) when it does, you need to be able to fix it easily.
Russia has ironed out many difficulties in Ukraine. The US has not even started that process yet.
Thinking back to WW2, Germany had the Junkers 87 "Stuka" dive bomber. It was devastating in Spain prior to WW2. The UK was still using biplanes at the time but by 1939 the RAF had Hawker Hurricanes and suddenly the Stukas became easy prey.
Then again, we just had the 80th commemoration of D-Day. it took the combined allied a year to get from France to Germany which is just next door. If you start in Crimea you can fly for 5,000 miles in a straight line and still be over Russia.
Russia is hard to defend because of its shear size and length of border. However, that also means it is hard to defeat.
Apart from Korea, Vietnam and Afghanistan there was the time that the British RAF nuked the USA twice.
You might have a shiny new plane on the runway but that does not always make it a success. It may work with good runways, clean fuel, expert pilots, maintenance crews with access to the factory but out in the conflict area you really want something to: a) never go wrong and b) when it does, you need to be able to fix it easily.
Russia has ironed out many difficulties in Ukraine. The US has not even started that process yet.
Thinking back to WW2, Germany had the Junkers 87 "Stuka" dive bomber. It was devastating in Spain prior to WW2. The UK was still using biplanes at the time but by 1939 the RAF had Hawker Hurricanes and suddenly the Stukas became easy prey.
Then again, we just had the 80th commemoration of D-Day. it took the combined allied a year to get from France to Germany which is just next door. If you start in Crimea you can fly for 5,000 miles in a straight line and still be over Russia.
Russia is hard to defend because of its shear size and length of border. However, that also means it is hard to defeat.
Conventional Defeat is not hard, but conquer would be extremely hard and not worth it.