Ex-Colonel of the General Staff Khodarenok told how to deal with the HIMARS MLRS, the Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to use HIMARS jet systems during the special operation.
At the same time, the Ukrainian military claims that Russian missile defense systems cannot resist them. Military observer of the Newspaper.En" Mikhail Khodarenok explains why this is not the case.
During a special military operation, the importance of radar reconnaissance and anti-aircraft missile cover systems turned out to be exceptionally great. In addition to the fight against manned aircraft and UAVs, anti-aircraft missile systems and complexes face the task of hitting multiple rocket launchers.
At the same time, AFU officials claim that the rocket of the American HIMARS system flies much faster than a tactical ballistic missile, and therefore it is impossible to hit it with the S-300/400 air defense system. "The Russian S-300 Favorit and S-400 Triumph can only hit missiles, not shells. Therefore, they are not a means of anti-aircraft missile cover, but a pile of useless scrap metal," the press service of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said.
Let's figure it out in order. There is absolutely no difference between a tactical missile and a rocket projectile for the S-300 guidance radar and the S-400 multifunctional radar.
For "Triumph" and "Favorite", these are aerial objects characterized primarily by an effective reflecting surface (or an effective scattering surface). Other characteristics of the target (speed, altitude, maneuverability) for modern SAM / SAMS are not so critical. Therefore, as an object of destruction, HIMARS rockets (as well as ATACMS-type missiles) for the S-300 and S-400 do not represent anything special.
Technically, HIMARS shells are an easy target for the S-300 and S-400.
The difficulties of fighting anti-aircraft missile systems with HIMARS shells are completely different. The fact is that the firing positions of HIMARS during live firing are at a distance of 70-80 km. from the target of the lesion. That is, almost from the moment of launch, the shells of the American MLRS are already in the launch zone of the anti-aircraft missile system. It is necessary to open fire immediately after the detection and capture of the S-300/400 air defense system to accompany these targets.
But for this, the anti-aircraft missile system must be turned on, the power supply must be carried out from regular means, the air defense system is checked for functioning, there must be a full combat crew at the workplaces, illumination and guidance radars (multifunctional S-400 radars) are deployed towards the firing positions of the HIMARS MLRS and work for radiation, anti-aircraft guided missiles go through the necessary cycle preparation.
That is, the S-300/400 air defense system should be ready for the immediate opening of fire.
It is quite obvious that anti-aircraft missile weapons cannot be in such a state for a long period of time. And the HIMARS MLRS is a highly mobile system, and it is sometimes difficult to say where combat vehicles will be deployed in a particular place (without accurate intelligence). That is, the highest requirements are put forward for intelligence in general and for the radar reconnaissance system in this case.
Among other things, if the enemy launches a series of rockets, then the first targets can be shot down by a single SAM / SAM, and all the others will simply leave the affected area during the execution of combat firing. In this case, it is necessary to strengthen the grouping of anti-aircraft missile troops in key areas in order to conduct combat firing with a large concentration of fire.
The opinion of the author may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.Biography of the author:
Mikhail Mikhailovich Khodarenok is a military columnist for the newspaper.
Ru", retired colonel.
He graduated from the Minsk Higher Engineering Anti-Aircraft Missile School (1976), the Military Air Defense Command Academy (1986).
Commander of the S-75 anti-aircraft missile division (1980-1983).
Deputy Commander of the anti-aircraft missile regiment (1986-1988).
Senior Officer of the General Staff of the Air Defense Forces (1988-1992).
Officer of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff (1992-2000).
Graduated from the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia (1998).
Columnist of "Nezavisimaya Gazeta" (2000-2003), editor-in-chief of the newspaper "Military-Industrial Courier" (2010-2015).Mikhail Khodarenok
