Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov said that serial deliveries of the S-500 Prometheus anti-aircraft missile system to the Russian military will begin this year.
"They will start this year, "he told Interfax at the MAKS-2021 air show.
According to Borisov, Russian leader Vladimir Putin paid special attention to this topic at meetings in Sochi.
Earlier in the day, the Russian Defense Ministry published a video recording of tests of the latest S-500 anti-aircraft missile system. The tests were held at the Kapustin Yar training ground. The defense ministry noted that the S-500 system performed test live firing on a high-speed ballistic target.
The shooting confirmed the tactical and technical characteristics and high reliability of the Russian air defense. The Ministry of Defense indicated that upon completion of the full test cycle, it is planned to deliver the first S-500 to the Air Defense-missile defense association near Moscow.
In early June, Izvestia reported that the S-500 Prometheus anti-aircraft systems would be armed with the latest interceptors. Their arsenal will include special ammunition that will be able to destroy the warheads of enemy ballistic missiles. The development of a system capable of hitting aircraft and hypersonic aircraft should be completed this year.
S-500 "Prometheus "(ROC" Triumfator-M") belongs to the new generation of ground-to-air air defense systems. This is a universal long-range and high-altitude interception complex with an increased missile defense potential, which is capable of intercepting ballistic missiles. The system strikes not only ballistic, but also aerodynamic targets, as well as cruise missiles. The radius of destruction of the S-500 is about 600 km.
