Question for Russians/Russian speakers

[Black Angus McPherson]

I just finished watching a Russian series on Amazon Prime called "The Attackers".  That's the English translation, I have no idea what the Russian name is and I can't type out the Russian letters.  Subtitled, not dubbed.  It's a 2013(?) show about a WW II air regiment flying Yaks.  It's ok but I don't see it becoming a classic.  One of the first scenes showed a female Officer/Pilot.  I thought that was pretty cool.

 

As you might guess, the subtitles are sometimes odd translations but you can get the gist of the meaning.  Which brings me to my questions.

 

After being given instructions the subordinate officers are told "You may be free" or "Execute".  I figure that's the equivalent of "Dismissed" or "Get it done".  Is that a true translation of the Russian, or is that just the closest the subtitling translator could come?  What would be the true translation?

 

Also, the cigarettes they smoke are white on one half and gray on the other.  They always light the gray side.  I don't think they are filtered.  They never seem to take more than 2 or 3 puffs off a cigarette, so I figure they must be pretty bad.   Is/was that a normal thing for Russian cigarettes?  If so, why?

 

I also thought it odd that they referred to a person as being a "second wingman".  A pilot only had one wingman, so it seemed weird calling someone a "second wingman"  I figured that's just a Russian thing.  Second pilot flying as a wingman.

 

Thanks,

 

Angus

 

 

[Rip Snorter]

In my younger days, many eastern European cigarettes had a hollow cardboard tube at one end, and a relatively short tobacco portion.  I was primarily a pipe and cigar smoker but did not much care for the tobacco.  I think the tube was to cool the smoke a bit.

[Blackwater 53393]

Where’s Marshal Mo when ya’ need him ‘im??

[Subdeacon Joe]

Disclaimer,  my Russian is VERY  poor,  I can slowly stumble through text using online translators and can follow very simple spoken Russian.   

 

Available on YouTube. 

https://youtu.be/Yr-Zz5HbO7Q?si=ZVhxz-idbSY7fJj5

 

 вы все свободны

vy vse svobodny

 

"You're all free" (to go is implied)

 

I  couldn't make out what got translated as "Execute," but I  think "Do it!" or "Get it done!" is closer.   Although I  suspect that it was the imperative of the verb, so maybe in English "Execute!" catches the spirit better.

 

Re "Second Wingman,"  I THINK Soviet doctrine in The Great Patriotic War was fighters flying in pairs, and in flights of four.  So maybe the Wingman in the second pair? 

 

 

 

 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

Maybe I’ll watch it.  Russian cigs were hideous.  Now they are more slim, faster burning but more than three puffs.

 

screenshots are translatable.

 

i recall a few russki great patriotic war flicks.

 

a series ?  Ahhhh, this one?  There’s another on dvd which I won’t buy.

 

 

Edited February 15 by Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

Without knowing ‘feces’ about what second wing man really means, I’ll offer an analogy that only says “they count differently.”

 

your aunt’s or uncle’s kid are your first cousins. Yet cousins in Russian are dvayurodnii brat or dvayurodnaya cestra (двоюродный брат и двоюродная сестра)  which mean brother or sister twice removed ( dva is two). They will frequently just say brother or sister.  
 

similar thing with great aunt/uncle.

[Alpo]

So brat is Russian for brother.

 

Somehow I feel like I always knew that - that brat meant brother. Not specifically in Russian, but that's what it meant.

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

14 minutes ago, Alpo said:

So brat is Russian for brother.

 

Somehow I feel like I always knew that - that brat meant brother. Not specifically in Russian, but that's what it meant.

You need to roll that r, redneck.

[Alpo]

Something I've never been able to do.

 

When I'm attempting Spanish, you can't tell whether I'm saying for or bitch. Pera or perra, but you got to roll that double r and I can't.

 

Was listening to a video of some girl singing Matushka, and it seemed like about every third or fourth word had that rolled r in it.

[Rooster Ron Wayne]

Rrotuoukoʻkoff this is the only Russian word I ever learned. 

 

 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

Nada!

 

 

[Chantry]

3 hours ago, Black Angus McPherson said:

I also thought it odd that they referred to a person as being a "second wingman".  A pilot only had one wingman, so it seemed weird calling someone a "second wingman"  I figured that's just a Russian thing.  Second pilot flying as a wingman.

 

Thanks,

 

Angus

 

 

 

Don't speak Russian, but it's entirely possible that a pilot would have 2 wing men while flying in combat.  The Japanese used a three plane element and I believe the British and Americans might have done the same at the beginning of WWII.

[Eliphalet R. Moderator]

1 hour ago, Alpo said:

So brat is Russian for brother.

 

Somehow I feel like I always knew that - that brat meant brother. Not specifically in Russian, but that's what it meant.

 

братва (bratva, “brothers; brotherhood”).  Russian organized crime family.

[Rye Miles #13621]

I used to drink Black Russians, sometimes White Russians!😂

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

40 minutes ago, Rye Miles #13621 said:

I used to drink Black Russians, sometimes White Russians!😂

здоровье

[Subdeacon Joe]

I just watched it when I  could pay more attention. First time through I wasn't really attentive...half listening to my wife talking about a game she was pla.

 

The "second wingman" comment is a little joke.   The CO is telling the zampolit to stick to him like a wingman. 

 

 

ADDED:

 

I take that back.....watching other episodes and it's used in a  mission context. They didn't seem to be in flights of 3.  No idea. 

Edited February 16 by Subdeacon Joe

[Pat Riot]

4 hours ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said:

здоровье

Health?

[Alpo]

Zdorov'ye

 

It's a Russian drinking toast. Basically "to your health"

 

Like Skål, in Sweden. Same thing. To your health.

 

Never heard of anybody saying gesundheit in Germany though. They said prosit. I don't think that means health.

Edited February 16 by Alpo

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

1 hour ago, Pat Riot said:

Health?

Да

[Pat Riot]

4 hours ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said:

Да

Grazie 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

2 hours ago, Pat Riot said:

Grazie 

ласкаво просимо

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

I watched about half of the series, could really only pick up the common one or two word phrases that I know. I even caught tovarisch a few times. 😆

[Subdeacon Joe]

13 minutes ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said:

I watched about half of the series, could really only pick up the common one or two word phrases that I know. I even caught tovarisch a few times. 😆

 

Let me guess, voices too low, too fast, and too colloquial.

[Black Angus McPherson]

On 2/15/2025 at 3:08 PM, Subdeacon Joe said:

Disclaimer,  my Russian is VERY  poor,  I can slowly stumble through text using online translators and can follow very simple spoken Russian.   

 

Available on YouTube. 

https://youtu.be/Yr-Zz5HbO7Q?si=ZVhxz-idbSY7fJj5

 

 вы все свободны

vy vse svobodny

 

"You're all free" (to go is implied)

 

I  couldn't make out what got translated as "Execute," but I  think "Do it!" or "Get it done!" is closer.   Although I  suspect that it was the imperative of the verb, so maybe in English "Execute!" catches the spirit better.

 

Re "Second Wingman,"  I THINK Soviet doctrine in The Great Patriotic War was fighters flying in pairs, and in flights of four.  So maybe the Wingman in the second pair? 

 

 

 

 

 

That might make sense, except it didn't seem to matter if they were referring to which pair the wingman was assigned to.

 

Angus

On 2/15/2025 at 3:16 PM, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said:

Maybe I’ll watch it.  Russian cigs were hideous.  Now they are more slim, faster burning but more than three puffs.

 

screenshots are translatable.

 

i recall a few russki great patriotic war flicks.

 

a series ?  Ahhhh, this one?  There’s another on dvd which I won’t buy.

 

 

 

Yep, that's the one.

 

[Black Angus McPherson]

On 2/15/2025 at 5:07 PM, Chantry said:

 

Don't speak Russian, but it's entirely possible that a pilot would have 2 wing men while flying in combat.  The Japanese used a three plane element and I believe the British and Americans might have done the same at the beginning of WWII.

 

That was my first thought when I heard it, except they never flew in 3 plane groups.  Always 2, 4 or 6.

 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

Here’s an observation of differences in intent from translation.

 

when I say the price is steep I mean very high.  Translated into Russian,  отвесный, still meaning steep but in terms of prices it means exceedingly cheap.  I was speaking with a friend and realized we had a disconnect in meaning and clarified.

[Subdeacon Joe]

10 minutes ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said:

Here’s an observation of differences in intent from translation.

 

Sort of like this:

 

[Alpo]

If you tell a girl in America that she's a 10, even though she might pretend to be offended she will be pleased.

 

If you tell a girl in Japan or China or Vietnam that she's a number 10 she will be quite upset.

 

Here in the states the higher the number the better. In the Orient the lower the number the better. The best - numbah one!

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

29 minutes ago, Alpo said:

Here in the states the higher the number the better. In the Orient the lower the number the better. The best - numbah one!

That deserves a story.  GI  in Korea gave a kid a piece of exlax.  Later the kid said “number 28 chocolate very bad.”