The US army during the tests held on December 19 at the Yuma training ground in Arizona, on the third attempt, destroyed the target-the Soviet-made KUB anti-aircraft missile system (SAM). The corresponding video is published by DVIDS.
The user of Genghis Dambaev on YouTube notes that this 155-mm self-propelled howitzer ХМ1299 used three shell — ХМ1113 RAP with the new "supercharged" ХМ654 (deviated from target by 200 metres), the upgraded driven active-reactive projectile M982A1 Excalibur (missed due to hardware issues) and regular controlled rocket-assisted projectile M982A1 Excalibur (hit the target).
According to Defense News, the target was 70 kilometers away from the howitzer. "The army seeks to increase the range of artillery fire on the battlefield in order to take away the advantages of high-class opponents like Russia," writes the American edition.
In September, Breaking Defense reported that during a demonstration of the advanced combat management system (ABMS), an adapted 155-millimeter M109 Paladin howitzer shot down a BQM-167 Skeeter air target that mimics a Russian cruise missile. Thus, the United States conducted exercises simulating a military conflict with Russia.
The KUB air defense system was mass-produced in the USSR from 1967 to 1983. Currently, these systems are not used on the territory of modern Russia, but, according to open sources, they may be in service in foreign Russian bases, in particular, in Gyumri (Armenia).
