Thread by @sambendett

1/ Quick thread on the Russian May 9 Victory parade - quick because it was, in fact, over very quickly - the official video is less than 1.5 hours (1 hour 24 mins to be exact), compared to much longer parades of the past.

2/ Very few vehicles on display - just one T-34-85 tank leading the armored column, instead of several as in past parades. No other tanks at all, not even a single T-72. Several armored vehicles - Tigers, Kamaz, BTR-90, Boomerangs, plus Iskander, S-400 and Yars rockets.

3/ No aircraft flyover, usually one of the more interesting parts such parades. This time, the obvious empty spaces was filled with the military marching bands singing the song titled "Victory." (Btw, it was a BTR-82A and not the BTR-90 APC, correcting the previous post)

4/ President Putin spoke in person, and his speech did not offer any surprises, stating that victory will be Russia's against a global threat to his country. The short parade and the obvious absence of so many vehicles and systems indicated a nation under stress...

5/...that almost rushed through one of its key holiday celebrations. Other Victory parades across Russia were also greatly curtailed, and some cancelled altogether. Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Armenia and Uzbekistan leaders were present...

6/...displaying political and historical solidarity even as tensions simmer between Russia and some of these nations. This is usually one of the most-televised events in Russia, and tens of millions watching probably also noticed a very thinned parade lineup.

7/ A parade in Ulan-Ude in Buryat Region featured few vehicles as well - a few WW2 vehicles, lots of military trucks and some older armored cars, plus an Iskander unit. Buryat Region sent many of its fighters to Ukraine.

8/ Probably the more interesting parade was held in Verhnaya Pishma in Sverdlovsk Region - this annual historical parade featured only WW2 vehicles. Even here, there are major space gaps between each passing vehicle.

9/ Other useful threads about this parade, with data about previous parade lineups for comparison.

https://twitter.com/OAlexanderDK/status/1655831503882932224

10/ In contrast with Moscow, the parade in Kaliningrad featured a T-72BM tank, along with Pantsir-S1 air defense system, Bal and Bastion anti-ship missile batteries, and a Grad MLRS.

11/ The parade in Perm featured MSTA and Nona self-propelled howitzers, and 2S31 Vena amphibious self-propelled mortar system, which were absent in Moscow. According to official Russian media, "some of these systems went directly to Ukraine after the parade."

12/ The parade in Novgorod featured lots of historical WW2 vehicles and systems, including GAZ-67 - a mass-produced Soviet "Jeep" equivalent.

13/ The parade in St. Petersburg also lacked an air show, and had a similar vehicle and systems line up as in Moscow: T-34 tank, Tiger vehicle, Iskander and Bastion missiles, and a S-400 system.

14/ The parade in Samara featured a mix of WW2 and modern systems, as did a parade in Tula. The parade in Volgograd featured a T-90 tank, along with WW2 vehicles.

15/ The airspace over Moscow was closely guarded, with many police and law enforcement personnel fielding CUAS rifles such as the one in the photo.