The Russian Armed Forces have efficiently employed their latest fighter sort the Su-30SM2 to launch a strike on a Ukrainian Army MIM-104 Patriot lengthy vary surface-to-air missile system, in keeping with a brand new assertion by the state arms export conglomerate Rostec. “Plane of this sort have confirmed their effectiveness within the particular army operation. They’ve a file of lots of of destroyed aerial and floor targets, together with Patriot techniques,” the assertion revealed, highlighting the Su-30SM2’s “highly effective radar” and ensuing capability to “‘see’ farther and extra precisely,” in addition to its “superior digital warfare system” that allowed it it to counter enemy missile assaults. This makes the Su-30SM2 the world’s first multirole fighter sort to have been confirmed to have destroyed a Western lengthy vary air defence system.
The Russian fighter fleet has been extremely constrained in its capability to destroy adversary air defence techniques, leading to a heavy reliance on strikes by drones and Iskander-M and Kinzhal ballistic missile techniques to neutralise these targets. The Aerospace Forces have made restricted deployments of fighters armed with Kh-31P anti-radiation missiles, nevertheless, which though removed from innovative, are properly optimised for such operations. The Kh-31P isprized for its excessive velocity exceeding Mach 3, with its gentle weight permitting every Su-30 fighter to hold as much as six. The missiles house in on emissions by enemy radars to strike with excessive precision, and carry warheads weighing near 90 kilograms. The missile’s comparatively brief vary of roughly 130 kilometres, nevertheless, means it can’t be used towards longer ranged techniques such because the Patriot with out putting fighters at some danger, though the opportunity of plane just like the Su-30 approaching at low altitudes has the potential to make such operations doable.
Patriot techniques started to be delivered to Ukraine in April 2023, with america, Germany and the Netherlands having been the primary three to donate them. Questions have been on the time broadly raised by consultants relating to Ukraine’s capability to soak up the techniques, which required properly over a yr of personnel coaching, fuelling hypothesis that they might at the very least initially be closely reliant on Western contractors to perform. The primary report of a Patriot system being efficiently focused emerged on Might 16, 2023, after an air launched variant of the Iskander-M system’s 9K720 missile was launched towards the system in Kiev. Drone footage first confirmed a profitable strike on a Patriot system on February 23, 2024, with a subsequent strike destroying one other system close to the Sergeevka locality on March 10, which left floor forces within the area uncovered.
Within the second week of July 2024new footage confirmed the destruction of two Patriot launchers in Odessa, whereas on August 11 three extra launchers and an AN/MPQ-65 radar have been reported to have been destroyed. Additional profitable strikes towards Patriot techniques have continued to comply with, with the Iskander-M system having been accountable for almost all. An enchancment within the Russian fighter fleet’s capability to deal with superior lengthy vary air defence techniques has the potential to enhance the superior capabilities of the ballistic missile arsenal and additional speed up the erosion of Ukraine’s air defence community. The service entry of better numbers of Su-57 fifth technology fighters, which profit from stealth capabilities, a lot better digital warfare capabilities, and deployment of considerably extra superior missile varieties,is predicted to additional tackle present shortcomings within the Russian fighter fleet’s capability to dismantle adversary air defence networks.
