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Not sure why you are voted down. Came here to make the same joke.
Because we're not here for Reddit jokes.
Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
91–100 of 122 posts
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#92Earlier quoted context omitted.
The US spends much of its defense budget on building expensive high-tech toys and maintaining 11 carrier strike groups, because it's military priorities are, in decreasing priority: * Making sure everyone loses a MAD nuclear war * Maintaining undisputed naval dominance in five oceans. * Bombing people on its imperial adventures all around the world. * Offering security and protection in exchange for military and econ…
The US spends most of its defense budget on: * training, civilian salaries (where most veterans find jobs) * maintenance of existing "toys" (aka money injected into local manufacturing, cleaning, painting, etc) * Enlisted pay, benefits, housing Then we get to procurement and R&D (which is just guaranteeing a job to people who finish college) The whole active navy and world policing is just a side benefit. https://www…
Imagine if we were paying these people to improve the lives of US citizens and infrastructure instead of murder innocent people and cause massive ecological damage! Jesse Ventura had a very cool idea that the US should use its military to clean the world's oceans as reparations to the planet. Say what you will about him, but that is genuinely outside of the box thinking that can pull us out of our war culture death spiral.
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#93It also probably helps since Russia is now sanctioned that Germany is basically filling in the huge void right ?
Russia uses different ammo calibers and designs than Western / NATO armies. Small arms, machine guns, mortar and artillery sizes, etc.
US is the only one in NATO fielding any 6.8mm battle rifles to line infantry, but Russia and China both have equivalent calibers and rifles under development.
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#94Earlier quoted context omitted.
> the drone videos where they drop artillery shells from drones No, Ukraine does not drop artillery shells from drones. They typically drop VOG-17/25 grenade launcher rounds or RGD-5/F-1 fragmentation grenades, neither of which are considered artillery shells. > the vast webs of fiber optic cables strewn across crater filled Ukrainian farmland That's massive evidence for using drones over artillery. Why do we see fie…
> Only 15% is going into artillery and ammunition. That simply reflects, in part, the cost differential. It's difficult to find the most recent data, but as of mid 2025 and, AFAICT, still today, Ukraine and Russia were still exchanging 10,000+ shells every day . Moreover, Russia fires 5 shells for every 1 Ukrainian shell. It used to be 10:1. It's a huge reason Ukraine can't break through Russian lines, and during off…
155mm artillery (the type of ammunition discussed in the article) has a maximum effective range of 30km. This means the artillery gun and ammunition can only operate within 30km of the front line.
The FPV drone "kill zone", which used to be several km from the front line when the war started, has recently pushed to ~15–25 km. Some FPV drone strikes are now reaching 50-100km(!) past the front line. This means that artillery must operate at the edge of its effective range, and soon, will be completely enveloped by drones. I predict this will happen by early 2027.
Once the kill zone crosses 30km, artillery will be effectively unusable. Artillery needs a constant source of ammunition, and if this ammunition cannot reach the front, artillery is useless. Ukraine understands this, and that's why they're investing in drones over technology like artillery.
Germany, meanwhile ...
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#95Earlier quoted context omitted.
Precision manufacturing has been Germany’s thing for a while, but semiconductors is a completely different skill set. Making a car and tank has way more in common than making a car and a CPU.
And you won't get electric tanks for many decades. Where else could you hawk ICE at a premium without environmental regulations?
You won’t get electric tanks for the same reason you won’t get electric planes: energy density and supply chains.
An Abrams has a multi-fuel jet turbine that’ll take diesel, gas, and jet fuel; all of which are easy to transport and store in bulk, in any environment, compared to needing to generate and store the same quantity of energy.
The closest tanks will come any time soon is a diesel-electric hybrid, for noise and electric load purposes (EW, lasers, etc).
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#96Earlier quoted context omitted.
The US doesn't use that much artillery as a matter of tactics. A significant portion of their capacity exists to support other countries. Artillery is suited for combat with clear lines of confrontation. US doctrine actively tilts the battlefield so that these lines don't form, which plays to their strengths.
Ukraine is an excellent reminder that trench warfare sucks and is a manpower and resource drain for both sides. One guy in a fighter jet is probably 1000000x more effective than a guy in a trench. One guided munition has the capability to decapitate an entire government.
> One guy in a fighter jet is probably 1000000x more effective than a guy in a trench
A guy in a trench with a $25,000 electro-optical/thermal MANPAD can now snipe a $100+ million dollar 5th gen stealth fighter flying low and fast.
To decapitate a government you'd just need a roughly $500 drone you can make at home and some homemade explosives. Bonus points if you harden it from electronic attack and use INS and optical terrain recognition for navigation and image analysis for final targeting.
Basically a 13 year old with an afternoon and some time in the library.
It's a weird time.
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#97Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Only 15% is going into artillery and ammunition. That simply reflects, in part, the cost differential. It's difficult to find the most recent data, but as of mid 2025 and, AFAICT, still today, Ukraine and Russia were still exchanging 10,000+ shells every day . Moreover, Russia fires 5 shells for every 1 Ukrainian shell. It used to be 10:1. It's a huge reason Ukraine can't break through Russian lines, and during off…
155mm artillery (the type of ammunition discussed in the article) has a maximum effective range of 30km. This means the artillery gun and ammunition can only operate within 30km of the front line. The FPV drone "kill zone", which used to be several km from the front line when the war started, has recently pushed to ~15–25 km. Some FPV drone strikes are now reaching 50-100km(!) past the front line. This means that art…
Ukraine is still investing in artillery plants, and it's why several other NATO countries are building more capacity as we speak (for their own and Ukraine's use). Artillery isn't any more obsolete than bullets, it's just not sexy, and at the margins isn't as strategically important.
You can't win a war without controlling ground. It's why the US lost the Iran War, and Vietnam before it, despite having an unfettered ability to pummel forces from the air. To control ground, artillery is essential. Not sufficient, but absolutely necessary.
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#98Earlier quoted context omitted.
155mm artillery (the type of ammunition discussed in the article) has a maximum effective range of 30km. This means the artillery gun and ammunition can only operate within 30km of the front line. The FPV drone "kill zone", which used to be several km from the front line when the war started, has recently pushed to ~15–25 km. Some FPV drone strikes are now reaching 50-100km(!) past the front line. This means that art…
Ukraine is still investing in artillery plants, and it's why several other NATO countries are building more capacity as we speak (for their own and Ukraine's use). Artillery isn't any more obsolete than bullets, it's just not sexy, and at the margins isn't as strategically important. You can't win a war without controlling ground. It's why the US lost the Iran War, and Vietnam before it, despite having an unfettered…
Artillery is only viable on Ukraine's side because Russia is too incompetent to manufacture long-range (30-50km) FPV strike drones at scale. Currently only Ukraine has pushed the "kill zone" to the 15-25km mark. Russia is behind. But this situation will not last, drone technology will improve on all sides, China will innovate on drone range and Russia will buy those drones. The drone "kill zone" will surpass the range of artillery for all sides.
This is happening in a few years.
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#99German industry is changing a lot loosing against China, so they have been moving to war related stuff for the past years. Personally, I know a bunch of people who were offered get transferred from VW to a military drone company. On one side I understand that manufacturing a lot of weapons could be somehow a protection for the future, but also Germany provides a lot of ammunition to Israel that is killing thousands o…
Even nitrocellulose for ammunition is produced in Xinjiang. So still depends on China.
Re: Germany has become the largest ammunition producer in the world
#100I took a look and realized it was a Ukrainian website. They’ve been addled by the bombs—spouting such utterly disruptive, shit-stirring nonsense.