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• Russia and Ukraine have turned to improvised armor solutions to give their tanks extra protection.
• But Moscow, in recent weeks, appears to have taken this a step further with an innovation.
• Its new "turtle tanks" may look silly, but there are indications they may be effective.

Facing a myriad of deadly threats on the battlefield, exploding drones being a particularly serious threat, Russia and Ukraine have both taken extra steps to safeguard their tanks and vehicles by outfitting them with extra layers of protective armor.

This improvised armor, sometimes little more than a chain-link cage welded around the outside of a vehicle, is essentially an effort to provide a last-ditch defense against inbound munitions like artillery, anti-tank missiles, or small drones packed with explosives, especially the latter.

While both militaries have used such tactics, Russia, in recent weeks, has unveiled a strange-looking — albeit apparently effective — innovation that has been referred to by some Ukraine war observers as the "turtle tank."

Videos of the Russian turtle tank design, shared by open-source intelligence accounts and experts often pulling from the accounts of Ukrainian service members, have become increasingly common on social media since first appearing earlier this month.

The tank is aptly named, as it's covered by what appears to be metal armor on all sides except the front, where the gun not-so-inconspicuously sticks out — kind of resembling the head of a turtle.

Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, identified the turtle tank participating in a mid-April assault carried out by Russia's 5th Motor Rifle Brigade on the eastern Ukrainian town of Krasnohorivka, a hotspot in fighting as Moscow pushes west of the Donetsk city. In one video, it appears to drive through a cluster munitions strike and keep going.

Lee suggested the unusual tank, at least some of which are suspected to have a mine-clearing role, might not be as crazy as it seems.

"I know people are laughing at this, but I don't think it is a crazy adaptation. The Russians are adapting to the particular conditions of the battlefield in which Ukraine has a lot of FPVs, but not enough ATGMs, anti-tank mines, and artillery," Lee said in a follow-up post, referring to the weapons first-person-view drones and anti-tank guided missiles.

"So sacrificing observation and the ability to rotate the turret on one tank per platoon that can jam many FPVs frequencies at once makes sense," Lee added.

Some OSINT pages highlighted the turtle tank's role in the assault on Krasnohorivka. Some of the vehicles appear to have fared better than others.

The turtle tank has also been spotted farther north along the front line in Russian assaults against Chasiv Yar, a Ukrainian town just west of Bakhmut that has become a critical battleground due to its elevated position overlooking the surrounding areas.

These tanks, however, appear to be at least somewhat effective. One Ukrainian Telegram channel, which published footage of a turtle tank in action over the weekend, noted that Ukraine had to expend "a lot" of FPV drones just to take out one vehicle.

"Everyone laughs at their construction of barns, but, in fact, they work like hell," the Ukrainian channel, which appears to belong to a Ukrainian service member, wrote, per a translation.

The Russian turtle tanks are a clear step beyond the widely documented "cope cages" both sides have relied on to try and shield their heavy armor throughout the war. These new defensive structures come as the Ukrainians increasingly turns to FPV drones packed with explosives to go after Moscow's vehicles.

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• Fisker warned staff of potential layoffs in the next two months, according to 3 employees and an email viewed by BI.
• The company is exploring options, including prospective buyers and restructuring.
• Fisker had previously announced a 15% staff cut.

Fisker sent staff a notice on Monday telling them they could be laid off from the company in two months, according to 3 employees and an email viewed by Business Insider.

"Fisker is diligently pursuing all options to address our operating cash requirements, including maintaining discussions with prospective buyers and investors and exploring various restructuring alternatives," the company said in an email to staff. "There is a possibility, however, that these efforts will not be successful."

The letter, which was sent by the company's new restructuring officer, says if the efforts fail, impacted staff will be terminated effective June 28 "and the facility will be closed." The letter was sent in compliance with the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, which requires companies that have more than 100 workers to provide 60 days of notice before a large-scale layoff.

Earlier today, Fisker CEO Henrik Fisker said the company was making "further reductions" to its workforce. The CEO had said earlier this year that the company would make a 15% cut.

Last week, Business Insider reported that the company had told workers it was in talks with four automakers regarding a potential buyout.

Do you work for Fisker or have a tip? Reach out to the reporter via a non-work email at gkay@insider.com

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• Many lawmakers on Capitol Hill have been pushing for long-haul flights at National Airport for years.
• But the senators from Virginia and Maryland are firmly against the provision, pointing to safety concerns.
• The provision was included in a FAA reauthorization bill being negotiated in Congress.

For many members of Congress, the allure of adding long-haul flights to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is impossible to resist. The Arlington, Va., airport is easily accessible by car and public transit, and its proximity to Capitol Hill makes it a favorite of lawmakers.

National Airport, which served nearly 26 million passengers last year, has long had to abide by a 1,250-mile perimeter restriction, effectively boxing out long-haul flights that would greatly benefit lawmakers from Western states.

But on Monday, congressional negotiators put forward a Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill that would add 10 long-haul slots to the already-strained airport, which led the US senators from both Virginia and Maryland to quickly blast the move.

In a joint statement, Democratic Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine of Virginia and Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland criticized the proposal, arguing that passenger safety could potentially be put at risk by such a decision.

"We are deeply frustrated that Committee leadership with jurisdiction over the FAA Reauthorization Act — none of whom represent the Capital region — have decided to ignore the flashing red warning light of the recent near collision of two aircraft at DCA and jam even more flights onto the busiest runway in America," they said, referring to a near miss at the airport earlier this month.

"It should go without saying that the safety of the traveling public should be a higher priority than the convenience of a few lawmakers who want direct flights home from their preferred airport," the senators continued. "We will continue to fight against this ridiculous and dangerous provision."

While Delta Air Lines has thrown its support behind the long-haul provision, United Airlines has opposed the push.

The quartet of senators from Virginia and Maryland have voiced their opposition to the proposed provision since last year.

However, for many lawmakers, a trip from Capitol Hill to National Airport reigns supreme. Washington Dulles International Airport and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, while fully equipped to handle long-haul flights, are miles outside of Washington, DC. And missing a flight due to a delayed vote can mean waiting until the next day to travel back home.

Still, Kaine, Warner, Cardin, and Van Hollen remain opposed to the potential provision in the FAA reauthorization.

"The senators representing the region and the people who most use this airport stand uniform against a provision negotiated without us that will guarantee more unacceptable delay and compromise passenger safety," they added.

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• Target CEO Brian Cornell received total compensation of $19.2 million last year.
• The median compensation for associates was $26,696, according to Target's annual proxy statement.
• Cornell's pay is behind Walmart CEO Doug McMillon and ahead of former Costco CEO Craig Jelinek.

Brian Cornell has come a long way since his days of scrubbing Tropicana trucks and coaching high school football to pay his bills.

The Target CEO received total compensation last year of more than $19.2 million, up $1.6 million from the year before, according to the company's annual proxy statement filed Monday with the SEC.

The pay package consisted of $1.4 million in base salary, $14.7 million in stock awards, and about $3.1 million in other compensation.

Cornell also made $303,197 worth of use of Target's company-owned airplane "for security reasons," the filings say.

The 65-year-old New York native is now in charge of 415,000 workers across 1,956 retail stores across the US, and annual revenues of $107.4 billion.

Of those 415,000 workers, the median employee was paid $26,696 last year, up 2.7 percent from the previous year. Cornell's compensation is 719 times that amount.

By comparison, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon's most recently disclosed compensation package was $26.9 million, while Craig Jelinek made $16.8 million in his final year as Costco CEO. Their pay ratios were 976 and 336, respectively.

Under a new calculation that companies are required to disclose as of last year, Cornell saw his net worth grow by nearly $10.7 million last year after adjustments to recognize the gains and losses of his stock awards.

Do you work for Target? Contact Dominick Reuter via email or text/call/Signal at 646-768-4750. Responses will be kept confidential, and Business Insider strongly recommends using a personal email and a non-work device when reaching out.

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• Trump's New York hush-money trial starts its second week of testimony on Tuesday.
• Each day, jurors file back and forth past the most famous person on earth — without looking at him.
• That's actually a good sign for the justice system, veteran trial attorneys say.

Reporters at Donald Trump's New York hush-money trial watch him continually.

They crane to glimpse the back of his head. A few aim little binoculars at the courtroom's overhead screens to better gauge his expressions — and his alertness.

But the 12 jurors and six alternates hardly look at Trump at all as they file back and forth past the defense table. At most, the eyes of one or two jurors may dart in Trump's direction as they enter and leave for breaks or for the day.

Trump, likewise, does not appear to pay his jurors much attention at all as they pass within six feet of him.

He'll stand, like everyone else, at a court officer's cry of "All rise! Jury entering." But he'll either whisper with his lawyers or scowl indistinctly into space as they pass by.

It seems remarkable. Trump is the most famous person on the planet, and the jurors hardly look at him, even from the jury box. Meanwhile, the jurors hold his potential criminal record in their hands, but Trump doesn't watch them much, either.

Business Insider described this strange-seeming, mutual coyness to veteran Manhattan trial attorneys. They didn't find it terribly strange at all.

In fact, they said, this may be a sign that, at least where the jury is concerned, the wheels of justice are turning as they should.

"My guess is that they're not looking at him because everyone on the jury has heard of Donald Trump, and they understand that this is a case that is being given worldwide attention," said Diana Florence, a former Manhattan financial crimes prosecutor.

The jurors don't want to be seen as gawking at him, Florence and other attorneys said.

"They've all taken an oath to judge the case solely on the evidence," said Florence, who is now in private practice.

"So I think the fact that he is such a bold-faced name and they're not staring at him is probably a good sign for our jury system," she added.

"You especially don't want to look like a fan boy or fan girl" with a room full of reporters watching, agreed Jeremy Saland, another former Manhattan prosecutor.

"As a juror, if you nod your head at Trump, you're in the papers," Saland said.

And if you nod at the prosecutors?

"You have Jesse Watters saying liberals have infiltrated the jury," he added.

Jurors did look at Gotti Jr. and El Chapo

Jeffrey Lichtman has repped many mobsters and drug lords in his career. He wondered if jurors might be too intimidated to look at Trump.

"I had John Gotti Jr., and El Chapo, and it doesn't get any more intimidating than that," Lichtman said of two of his more famous clients.

"Jurors looked at both of them," he said. Gotti's federal racketeering charges were dropped after a third mistrial in 2006, and El Chapo was convicted of drug trafficking and conspiracy in 2019.

"But I think they looked at them as if they were animals in a zoo," Lichtman conceded.

Still, it's not uncommon for jurors not to look at the defendant, said Lichtman and other trial-practice veterans.

More potentially significant, they said, was that Trump was failing to look at his jury, at least not with anything approaching respect and appreciation.

"It's imperative that he stop with the 'Blue Steel' stare," Lichtman said.

"You want them to like you, and you don't want to intimidate them," he said.

"You think you're being inconvenienced by being there? So are the jurors. This is an inconvenience for them, too."

It's not enough for defense lawyer Todd Blanche to say in opening statements that Trump is "a person, just like you and me." They have to try to show the jurors this, not just tell them, Lichtman said.

"It's very important that the jury see the defendant and the lawyers laughing and smiling together throughout the trial," Lichtman said.

"I was very clear on Gotti and El Chapo that I would go up to them during the summation and put my arm around them," he said.

"You touch them, you humanize them," he said.

"I don't think anyone wants to look at a guy's face who's scowling."

No 'resting scowl face'

Trump's defense team is doing him a disservice by not convincing him to look a little friendlier, other lawyers told Business Insider.

"They should be telling him that a 'resting scowl face' doesn't help him at all," said Saland, the former prosecutor, now in private practice.

The lawyers should also be "reeling him in outside the courtroom," Saland said.

Prosecutors have alleged Trump has violated his gag order at least 14 times in the past month by making statements targeting his jury and witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels.

A hearing on Manhattan prosecutors' most recent contempt-of-court allegations is set for Thursday morning.

For each violation, Trump faces fines of up to $1,000 and, less likely, jail of up to 30 days.

A lawyer for Trump declined to comment for this story.

"They're letting him do his thing," Saland said of the defense team, noting that Trump has turned the trial into a stop on his campaign trail, where he rages against his political enemies.

"After all, it's a heck of a lot cheaper to run afoul of the gag order at $1,000 a pop," Saland said, "than to run a 30-second spot on national news."

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• Israel showed it can take out a key part of Iran's air defenses with a single missile.
• The S-300 damaged is the most advanced air defense system Iran has acquired from Russia.
• Iran must field better air defenses like Russia's S-400 to stand a chance against a barrage.

In the early hours of April 19, Israel sent a message to Iran with an air-launched ballistic missile that took out a critical part of its air defense network: a radar belonging to one of its advanced Russian S-300 missiles.

The Israeli missile scored a direct hit, and the next day Iran tried to cover up the damage with an inferior replacement radar, according to images obtained by the Economist. The incident in the city of Isfahan may force Tehran to upgrade its air defenses, possibly from more advanced Russian systems, to defend itself from the possibility of larger Israeli missile attacks.

"I think it's quite clear that Iran is woefully unprepared for such attacks unless it receives significant help from Russia, which it has failed to do so far," Arash Azizi, senior lecturer in history and political science at Clemson University and author of "The Shadow Commander: Soleimani, the US, and Iran's Global Ambitions," told Business Insider.

"The attacks will also have given valuable operational information to the Iranians in charge of missile defense in that they'll have a better sense of their limits," Azizi said.

Israel is known to possess ballistic missiles it can launch from fighter jets. One example is its 15-foot-long Rampage missile. Weighing 1,200 pounds, the supersonic missile can hit targets up to 186 miles away. Britain has shown interest in buying it.

Freddy Khoueiry, a global security analyst for the Middle East and North Africa at the risk intelligence company RANE, believes it's possible Israel used the Rampage on April 19. However, he noted that missile debris uncovered in neighboring Iraq suggests it was more likely Israel used Blue Sparrow missiles, which have a purported 1,250-mile range.

"Either way, the debris in Iraq and local reports of fighter jet activities over Iraqi airspace that same night suggest Israeli fighter jets possibly fired the missiles from a distance closer to the Iranian borders," Khoueiry told BI.

While Iranian air defenses failed to stop Israel's strike they have hugely improved in recent years. In the early 2000s, Iranian radars couldn't detect American and Israeli drones operating inside Iranian airspace. Even bulky US tankers supporting missions in Afghanistan and Iraq flew over parts of Iranian airspace undetected.

That's all changed. Iran shot down a sophisticated American RQ-4A Global Hawk surveillance drone flying at high altitude in 2019, claiming it used its indigenous 3rd Khordad system.

"For the past few years, Iran has heavily invested in its air defense capabilities but simultaneously knows that it might not be enough against the technologically advanced Israeli or US weapons in a potential conflict," Khoueiry said.

That's one reason Iran has placed its most sensitive installations in mountainous regions.

"I believe the April 19 Isfahan strike will likely make the Iranians think more in terms of countering Israel's radar-evading systems by improving their radar capabilities while continuing to improve their air defenses, especially because we did not see Iran's best air defense equipment on display," Khoueiry said.

The S-300PMU-2 is the most advanced air defense system Iran has acquired from Russia. Following the Isfahan strike, it's likely Tehran will conclude it needs more advanced Russian systems, such as the S-400 they've by some accounts been asking for.

Khoueiry doesn't rule out the prospect of Iran seeking the S-400, given its "more advanced stealth capabilities" and ability to track aircraft at lower altitudes. These capabilities are "crucial" for defending vital Iranian installations, especially given the S-300's failure to intercept Israeli weapons on April 19.

Clemson University's Azizi believes an S-400 acquisition remains "crucial" for Iran and one of its "best bets." Therefore, he anticipates Tehran will continue pushing for it.

"I think the April episode will certainly have convinced Iranians that they need to be more serious about getting help from Russia," Azizi said. "But I think they ultimately have very little leverage unless Moscow wants to play Israel and the West by giving help to Iran."

Iran has a strong card to play. It's become a major supplier of Russia's war against Ukraine via thousands of Shahed loitering munitions and hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles. But this may not be enough.

"Moscow will be the key decision-maker here, not Tehran," Azizi said. "The drone help is important for Moscow but not indispensable."

Iran could have a local solution in the form of indigenous systems, such as the 3rd Khordad that felled a Global Hawk and the Bavar 373.

"Theoretically these Iranian systems should do better than the S-300 given that the Iranians upgraded the Bavar 373 in 2022, claiming that it's now a competitor of the S-400," Khoueiry said. "In practice, this could go either way, depending on the amount of Israeli missiles that would be hypothetically launched and from where."

Khoueiry anticipates that early detection by Iranian air defenses could give these Iranian-made systems "more chances" against Israeli missiles.

Conversely, Azizi believes these systems are "quite unlikely" to fare any better than their Russian counterparts.

"These are impressive systems for Iran to have devised on its own but they are ultimately no match for Israel's significant offensive capabilities," Azizi said.

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• WeWork has a new plan to get out of bankruptcy — and it doesn't involve Adam Neumann.
• Neumann is seeking to acquire the company he created for more than $500 million.
• "We anticipate there will be robust objections to confirming this plan," a Flow attorney told BI.

WeWork has a new plan to get out of bankruptcy — and it doesn't involve Adam Neumann, who wants to acquire the flexible office provider he created.

WeWork announced Monday that it has raised $450 million in equity funding, which it could use to emerge from Chapter 11. The company also said it has a plan in place to "eliminate all of its $4 billion of outstanding, prepetition debt obligations."

A vote on the plan — which has support from the owners of most of WeWork's debt — is scheduled for May 30, according to Bloomberg.

The majority of the funding — $337 million, to be exact — would come from Cupar Grimmond, and SoftBank would still own a stake in the company, according to the outlet.

But Neumann, who has recently expressed interest in purchasing WeWork for more than $500 million, doesn't plan to go down without a fight.

"After misleading the court for weeks, WeWork finally admitted it is trying to sell the company to a group led by Yardi for far less than we are continuing to propose," Susheel Kirpalani, an attorney for Neumann's new real estate startup Flow Global, told Business Insider in a statement, adding, "so we anticipate there will be robust objections to confirming this plan."

WeWork parted with Neumann five years ago following its failed IPO. The company filed for bankruptcy in November 2023 after the pandemic dealt a massive blow to its business model.

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• Russian forces are poised to advance toward the "fortress belt" of four eastern Ukrainian cities.
• The cities are a stronghold for Ukraine in Donetsk Oblast just northwest of Avdiivka.
• Russia has been making gains in area, forcing Ukrainian troops to withdraw. 

Russian troops appear to be making tactical advances just northwest of Avdiivka toward a so-called "fortress belt" of Ukrainian cities, war analysts report.

Though it remains to be seen whether Russian command will turn its focus its troops on that area, they're setting the stage for offensive operations in that direction. And they've long aimed to capture these four cities.

With Russian forces continuing to solidify their positions northwest of Avdiivka, a war-torn town they captured in February, they now have choices on which objectives to pursue. Ukraine has repeatedly warned that Russia seeks to capture Pokrovsk, southwest of Bakhmut.

But according to a new assessment from The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington DC-based think tank that has followed the conflict closely, Russia has the option "to conduct possible complementary offensive operations" around Chasiv Yar, a city near Avdiivka that "is operationally significant because it would provide Russian forces with a staging ground to launch offensive operations" near two of the "four major cities that form a fortress belt" for Ukraine in the Donetsk Oblast.

Chasiv Yar, another town under tremendous pressure, is close to Duzhkivka and Kostyantynivka, the two southernmost cities in the belt. The other two, Slovyansk and Kramatorsk, are located a bit more north, but still along the same highway.

"The Russian military command could decide that advances north along the H-20 highway would allow Russian forces to conduct subsequent complementary offensive operations from the east and south against the southern edge of the Ukrainian fortress belt in Donetsk Oblast," ISW wrote.

But the effort wouldn't be rapid or easy for Russia, the analysts added. And they may still yet decide to prioritize advancing toward the west, going after the borders of Donetsk Oblast, rather than heading northwest out of Avdiivka towards the fortress belt.

At the moment, ISW reported, Ukrainian officials say Russia has deployed as many as four brigades, "roughly a reinforced division's worth of combat power," northwest of Avdiivka to stabilize sections of the front and support penetration operations.

The Russian situation is not without its challenges though.

Ukraine appears to have slowed down Russian gains near Avdiivka with reconstituted reinforcements in the area, despite facing a severe manpower shortage and disadvantages overall. That said, in recent days, Ukrainian military officials have acknowledged Russian tactical gains in the area, reporting a dire situation as they wait for the arrival of US aid.

The potential for advances in this sector comes ahead of an expected Russian offensive this summer, when Moscow's troops could have the opportunity to make significant gains in the Chasiv Yar area and beyond.

At this time, it remains unclear what weapons packages and security assistance Ukraine will have received by then and whether the country's forces will be able to sufficiently defend against a Russian offensive.

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• Business Insider is compiling its first list of rising stars in the US sports-betting industry.
• We're looking for early-to-mid-career staffers behind key efforts at operators, suppliers, and more.
• Submit nominations through the form below by May 13, 2024.

We're seeking nominations for our inaugural list of rising stars in the US sports-betting industry, and we want to hear from you.

As the industry expands in North America, we've highlighted the leaders shaping it, from DraftKings' Jason Robins and FanDuel's Amy Howe to sports-betting executives at the major leagues, media companies, and industry suppliers to top investors.

Now we're spotlighting up-and-comers who are working behind the scenes to solve some of the industry's toughest problems and making waves in the sector. We're looking for early-to-mid-career staffers focused on the US market at operators, industry suppliers, or media companies in sports betting. These people also have big ambitions to be the future leaders in the industry.

Please submit your nominations here or through the form below by Monday, May 13, 2024, at 6 p.m. ET.

Criteria and methodology

We will consider several factors to determine who to spotlight in this list, including the nominee's specific role and responsibilities and the person's impact on the industry. We will also consider what leadership efforts the person has demonstrated.

Please include as much detail as possible about the nominee's role when submitting a nomination below.

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Paramount announced Monday that its president and CEO Bob Bakish is stepping down and getting replaced by a trio of execs.

Bakish is exiting the entertainment studio as major shareholder Shari Redstone inches closer to a sale of her controlling stake in the company.

David Ellison's Skydance Media has been angling to buy Paramount.

For the time being, three executives — CBS head George Cheeks; Chris McCarthy, the president and CEO of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks; and Nickelodeon boss Brian Robbins — will run the company as an "Office of the CEO."

"The Office of the CEO is working with the Board to develop a comprehensive, long-range plan to accelerate growth and develop popular content, materially streamline operations, strengthen the balance sheet, and continue to optimize the streaming strategy," Paramount's board said in a statement. "The Board has great confidence in the leaders comprising the Office of the CEO, all of whom are senior creative executives and business leaders with a track record of success running meaningful businesses within Paramount Global."

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