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The Russian army is moving its most modern air defense system to Ukraine – and is said to have shot down several HIMARS missiles.
Donetsk – Is this the next propaganda smokescreen from Russia about the war in Ukraine? The Russian armed forces say they have sent their most modern air defense system, the S-350 Vityaz, to Ukraine.
Losses in the Ukraine war: Did Russia really shoot down ATACMS missiles?
According to the regime in Moscow, the air defense unit immediately fired several Ukrainian missiles from HIMARS multiple rocket launchers. As a commander with the pseudonym “Lev” told the Russian state news agency Ria Novosti reported that ATACMS missiles were allegedly among the intercepted targets.
“Recently, we worked on a large salvo of HIMARS missiles, about 12 to 16 targets. The system successfully intercepted them all and prevented them from reaching their intended targets,” explained Lev Ria NovostiThe information cannot be independently verified, but it may well be questioned.
Vladimir Putin’s air defense: Russia’s army relies on S-350 Vityaz
What makes one suspicious is that Lev, who was quoted, does not want to commit to an exact number of missiles allegedly fired. Nor does he want to say in what order the missiles were allegedly intercepted. In addition, there is no video on social media that would document the interception. According to the manufacturer Almaz-Antei from Moscow, the air defense system can theoretically combat supersonic fighter aircraft at all altitudes, low-flying cruise missiles and ballistic missiles.
The 9M96 guided missiles used to do this use active radar homing to find their targets. The 5.35 meter long missiles with a diameter of 27.3 centimeters are said to have an impact fuse and a proximity fuse that are designed to explode the 24 kilogram fragmentation warhead, the fragmentation effect of which is designed to capture enemy missiles within the largest possible radius. However, there are no concrete examples of allegedly successful launches in the Ukraine war.
Weapon type | Air defense missile system |
Commissioning | 2021 |
Length and diameter rocket | 5.35m / 27.3cm |
Combat weight 1x rocket | 449 kilograms |
Range | 120km |
Service ceiling | 30km |
Russia positions S-350 Vityaz: Vladimir Putin’s weapon against F-16 fighter jets?
What is striking is that the report from Russia that at least one S-350 Vityaz has been moved to the front comes at the same time that the Netherlands announced the “immediate” delivery of the first F-16 fighter jets to the Ukrainian Air Force. Due to a lack of experience, it is not possible to determine in advance of the expected battles whether the S-350 Vityaz will pose a threat to the F-16 fighter jets.
Nor is it clear whether the Russians’ 9M96 guided missiles are actually fast and effective enough to intercept the massive ATACMS medium-range missiles (four meters long) from the Ukrainians’ HIMARS. However, both the F-16 deliveries and the Russian claims about the S-350 Vityaz show how much of a struggle there will be for air supremacy over Ukraine in the summer of 2024. (pm)
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