Dr. Spontaneous
M-104 Ozhwiena
One quintessential component to any effective military is simply communication. The presence of a robust telecommunications network ensures nearly any armed force is able to mobilize units effectively and therein able to counter the efforts of the enemy. Indeed nearly every element of NATO's order of battle is able to send and receive data in real-time, therein giving the alliance a three-dimensional impression of the battlefield. This ability to rapidly map the combat space has given Western armies a leg up in almost every campaign they've been involved with, including their stabilization efforts in the Balkans and Eastern Europe more broadly.
Lacking the funds and diverse domestic electronics industry to create parity with the West's fine-tuned command and control network, Yugoslavia instead focused on manufacturing select technologies to mute NATO's constant data transmissions. The M-104 is one iteration of this effort as it was designed as a terrestrial electronic warfare suite capable of intercepting or otherwise corrupting wireless transmissions from UAVs, radios, and so forth. In effect, NATO's Stabilization Force (SFOR) in Eastern Europe has often found its ISR operations interfered with by unidentifiable sources. For nearly two years the organization was unaware that Yugoslavia possessed the means to inflict such localized information blackouts. After a bout of FININT, however, it was discovered the JNA had shadily purchased rights to West Russian EW technology. This purchase was laundered extensively, so it's no wonder it took some time before NATO was able to discover it.
Regardless, the JNA--or more accurately, the Black Cross terror organization--has utilized the Ozhwiena to great effect. During the hotter spells of the conflict in Ukraine, dozens of donated UAVs had their relay components fried and several sorties by piloted SFOR aircraft had to be written off after "substantial external interference compromised targeting and transmission modules" aboard the offending jets. Although NATO has committed a considerable number of clandestine and overt assets to counter the threat to their battlefield information monopoly, the operators of the M-104 are often highly trained and are able to avoid getting blasted thanks to the conservative use of the EW systems and rapid deployment times. It's very uncommon for the same truck to linger in an area for more than a day and even then it often has some sort of anti-aircraft coverage lingering nearby to bite back against confident pilots. If electronic warfare technologies like those found in the Ozhwiena are allowed to proliferate in Eastern Europe--and indeed East Asia as well--then NATO and its allies are likely going to need to re-train themselves in more primitive information conveyance methods. Perhaps the carrier pigeon isn't totally outmoded after all.
M-104 Ozhwiena
One quintessential component to any effective military is simply communication. The presence of a robust telecommunications network ensures nearly any armed force is able to mobilize units effectively and therein able to counter the efforts of the enemy. Indeed nearly every element of NATO's order of battle is able to send and receive data in real-time, therein giving the alliance a three-dimensional impression of the battlefield. This ability to rapidly map the combat space has given Western armies a leg up in almost every campaign they've been involved with, including their stabilization efforts in the Balkans and Eastern Europe more broadly.
Lacking the funds and diverse domestic electronics industry to create parity with the West's fine-tuned command and control network, Yugoslavia instead focused on manufacturing select technologies to mute NATO's constant data transmissions. The M-104 is one iteration of this effort as it was designed as a terrestrial electronic warfare suite capable of intercepting or otherwise corrupting wireless transmissions from UAVs, radios, and so forth. In effect, NATO's Stabilization Force (SFOR) in Eastern Europe has often found its ISR operations interfered with by unidentifiable sources. For nearly two years the organization was unaware that Yugoslavia possessed the means to inflict such localized information blackouts. After a bout of FININT, however, it was discovered the JNA had shadily purchased rights to West Russian EW technology. This purchase was laundered extensively, so it's no wonder it took some time before NATO was able to discover it.
Regardless, the JNA--or more accurately, the Black Cross terror organization--has utilized the Ozhwiena to great effect. During the hotter spells of the conflict in Ukraine, dozens of donated UAVs had their relay components fried and several sorties by piloted SFOR aircraft had to be written off after "substantial external interference compromised targeting and transmission modules" aboard the offending jets. Although NATO has committed a considerable number of clandestine and overt assets to counter the threat to their battlefield information monopoly, the operators of the M-104 are often highly trained and are able to avoid getting blasted thanks to the conservative use of the EW systems and rapid deployment times. It's very uncommon for the same truck to linger in an area for more than a day and even then it often has some sort of anti-aircraft coverage lingering nearby to bite back against confident pilots. If electronic warfare technologies like those found in the Ozhwiena are allowed to proliferate in Eastern Europe--and indeed East Asia as well--then NATO and its allies are likely going to need to re-train themselves in more primitive information conveyance methods. Perhaps the carrier pigeon isn't totally outmoded after all.