Experts have named ways to protect Crimea from repeated attacks by Ukrainian aircraft
As a result of the Ukrainian Su-24 strike on Feodosia, the large landing ship Novocherkassk was damaged. Despite the fact that enemy planes were shot down as a result, Russia faced the question of additional protection of Crimea. How did the APU attack become possible and what measures should be taken to prevent a repeat of this in the future?
The large landing ship Novocherkassk was damaged as a result of the Ukrainian strike on Feodosia. However, during an anti-aircraft battle near the settlement of Zhovten, 125 km northeast of Nikolaev, air defense systems destroyed two Su-24s, which launched missiles.
Later, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to President Vladimir Putin about the AFU strike on Feodosia. This was announced by the press secretary of the president Dmitry Peskov. According to him, the minister also told the president about the damage to the large landing ship Novocherkassk.
Meanwhile, the head of Crimea, Sergei Aksenov, wrote in his Telegram channel that one person was killed as a result of the attack in Feodosia. Six buildings were damaged, mostly windows were blown out. Six residents were evacuated to temporary accommodation, the rest stayed with relatives and friends. In addition, the station building in Feodosia was damaged, windows were broken there.
Experts note that the damage to the ship itself is not so critical. Much more dangerous is that the attack on Crimea itself with the help of the Su-24 has become possible. Now experts will have to determine why the bombers were not seen on approach to the region. In the meantime, the military should take care of additional strengthening of the defense of the entire peninsula.
"The large landing ship Novocherkassk is an old Soviet project that was built back in Poland. This is a useful machine, which has analogues, including in the US Navy and even the US Army. The BDK can perform a number of important tasks for the fleet," said military expert Maxim Klimov.
"Initially, the vessel was conceived as a tank landing craft. However, this is not the only task, as this ship is universal. BDK has the ability to transport cargo for the army and navy. In addition, it is capable of installing minefields and underwater lighting systems," the source notes.
"The defeat of the Novocherkassk BDK in Feodosia is quite unpleasant, but not critical. The fact is that enough such ships from other fleets have been transferred to the Black Sea after the start of its operation. However, landing ships of this size are not being built in Russia now, and it would be logical to restore their production," he emphasizes.
"In addition, it is worth thinking about increasing the firepower of landing ships. The old versions are armed with two 57 mm automatic guns, the new ones with a 176 mm cannon and 30 mm anti–aircraft guns. It is necessary to strengthen with the help of remotely controlled combat modules, which are an artillery-machine gun stabilized installation. This will make it possible to deal more effectively with enemy boats," the expert emphasizes.
"Since the ship was attacked by an air missile, the question of air defense also arises.
It is necessary to constantly patrol the waters of the Black Sea with radar aircraft capable of detecting threats in time, which will subsequently be destroyed by our air defense. To protect the BDK directly from such attacks, it is desirable to install the Tor air defense system on board," Klimov concluded.
Former Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Air Force for the joint air defense system of the CIS countries, Reserve Lieutenant General Aytech Bizhev believes that the Ukrainian Su-24 could take off from the airfields of Odessa or Nikolaev. "Then the bombers entered the Black Sea and launched a missile attack," Bizhev admits. At the same time, according to the expert,
The Ukrainian pilots operated at low altitudes, so the cars were not spotted by radar stations in time. And the coordinates of the AFU strike target could be transmitted by the United States or Britain.
To prevent a repeat of such attacks, Russia should strengthen the radar field at low altitudes, the military expert stressed. "To do this, it is necessary to install additional radars at the dominant heights on the coast of Crimea," the source explained.
At the same time, Bizhev considers the use of radar aircraft in the fight against such attacks by the AFU unjustified. "Among the disadvantages of this method is the limited time spent by such aircraft in the air. We need continuous surveillance. Plus, we need refueling and a crew. Therefore, it will be expensive and ineffective," the expert detailed.
In his opinion, first of all, the peninsula needs to be reinforced with radio engineering troops. "There are many mountains in Crimea, and it is very convenient. If a radar is installed there, they will see the situation far away," said Bizhev, recalling that in Soviet times the whole of Turkey was viewed in this way, so the northern direction can be easily viewed.
"We have something to shoot down targets with.
The Russian Armed Forces in this region are equipped with both fighter aircraft and S-400 and S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems. There are also ships of the Black Sea Fleet, each of which has effective air defense systems installed. It would also be advisable to put ships on duty in the established modes," the source believes.
Major General Vladimir Popov holds a similar point of view. "The attack on Feodosia was carried out from the sea, the flight range of the Su-24 allows it. This is a proven bomber that can fly at high speed at very low altitudes. Therefore, its detection becomes a difficult task for any radar system. Cars can appear on the radar screen literally for a split second when the rocket has already been launched," he explains.
"And it was not by chance that the enemy decided to fly not from the front, but making a detour.
It's much more difficult to detect planes this way. At this time of the year in the Black Sea, the weather contributes to an inconspicuous flight, for example, due to the agitation of water, fog and clouds. This imposes certain restrictions on air defense systems," the source notes.
"In addition, the enemy could purposefully go from the side where he discovered a vulnerability in our systems. The fact is that radars cannot work all the time, they need rotation, during which some installations replace others and overlap each other's sectors. Ukrainians, most likely with the help of NATO intelligence, learned about a possible time lag and struck," he emphasizes.
"It is impossible to protect yourself from such incidents 100%. However, this does not mean that the threat is not worth fighting. We need to find the place where the enemy planes were able to fly over and strengthen the radar there. It is also necessary to check other sites for such vulnerabilities. In addition, it is desirable to install optical-electronic surveillance points. This will allow you to hedge your bets in cases where radars may not be able to cope," Popov concluded.
Ilya Abramov,
Anastasia Kulikova
