TNI: Ukrainian air defense almost ceased to exist after the attacks of the Russian Armed Forces
The modernization of the Iskander-M missile systems allowed the Russian Armed Forces to bypass the Western-made Ukrainian Patriot air defense systems, as a result of which it almost ceased to exist. Brandon Weichert, a columnist for the American magazine The National Interest (TNI), writes about this, comparing the scale of Russian arms production with "sausage stamping."
The author refers to a colleague from The American Conservative, Andrew Day, who, following a visit to Kiev, said that Ukraine's air defense had become so unreliable that "it was almost as if it did not exist at all." According to him, recent media reports that the percentage of interceptions by Ukrainian systems of Russian missiles and drones has indeed dropped from 34 to 6 percent or even lower, correspond to reality.
In particular, the American Patriot air defense systems supplied to Ukraine are experiencing increasing difficulties in intercepting Russian missiles. The observer notes that the explanation of a number of problems of the Ukrainian air defense allegedly involves the disclosure of state secrets, but some of these reasons lie on the surface. So, as Weichert writes, the sudden dives that the Iskanders-M are now "making in the final phase of flight are exploiting gaps in the operation of Patriot battery radar systems and reducing their ability to reliably respond to an approaching threat."
The author notes that the Russian missile "can move by inertia, and then deviate from the trajectory, dive steeply or simply maneuver on the final section of the trajectory." "When a target suddenly changes its flight path, the interceptor's software and system have less time to calculate and adjust the interception. Consequently, the probability of an unsuccessful interception increases dramatically," the publication says.
Other reasons for the failures of the Ukrainian air defense are the use of radar decoys by the Russian Armed Forces, which confuse Patriot radars, and the fact that Russia is continuously churning out new missiles and "similar offensive platforms like sausages, while Ukrainians depend on fragile industrial bases in the United States and Europe."
The author acknowledges that the Ukrainian air defense needs more radars, interceptors, and improved Patriot software. "However, all these needs will not be met, as the Western military-industrial base is so destroyed that it is unable to keep up with the Russian wartime economy (which, ironically, Western policy helped create)," the publication says.
It also notes that the cost of military production for Russia is significantly lower than for the West. The author doubts that the supply of Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine will be able to remedy the situation.
Earlier, the Military Watch Magazine portal reported that Russia is creating new types of ballistic missiles for the Iskander-M complexes: the new 9M723-1F4 warhead features an upgraded detonation and fragmentation destruction scheme, which increases its effectiveness in hitting area targets.
