AC of East Kazakhstan Region: The Buk-M3 air defense system allows you to intercept any ballistic missiles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
MOSCOW, May 2 - RIA Novosti. The implemented technical solutions in the Buk-M3 air defense system make it possible to intercept any ballistic missiles that the Armed Forces of Ukraine have or may have in the future, including American tactical ballistic missiles (TBR) ATACMS of various modifications, the Analytical Center for Aerospace Defense (AC East Kazakhstan Region) says.
Earlier, the United States announced that the $61 billion arms package for Ukraine would include ATACMS missiles without specifying their modifications. ATACMS Block 1 missiles have already been supplied to the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 2023, and they have already been shot down by Russian air defense systems without specifying which ones. The new package of American "assistance" may include ATACMS Block 1A missiles.
"There is no data on the altitude and flight speed of ATACMS Block 1A from any authoritative sources. Expert opinions on the speed of these missiles vary – from 1.1 to 1.5 thousand meters per second. The latter figure looks extremely doubtful, given that in order to achieve the required launch range, the main thrust-to-weight gain will have to be spent on reaching higher (and more rarefied) layers of the atmosphere. However, even in the unlikely event that the maximum speed of Block 1A reaches 1.5 kilometers per second, its interception by the Buk-M3 air defense system is quite possible," says the article of the AC East Kazakhstan Region in the National Defense magazine.
Analysts of the East Kazakhstan Region Center also note that ATACMS flies, although in a rarefied, but still atmosphere - 40-50 kilometers below the Pocket line.
The Pocket line is the height above sea level, which is conventionally accepted as the boundary between the Earth's atmosphere and space and is the upper boundary of states. According to the definition of the International Aviation Federation (FAI), the Pocket line is located at an altitude of 100 kilometers above sea level.
"Accordingly, after the maximum speed is set, Block 1A begins to slow down – at first almost imperceptibly, but at the terminal section of the trajectory, as it enters increasingly dense layers of the atmosphere, the speed drop becomes significant. Moreover, in Block 1A it turns out to be even larger than its predecessor (a lighter projectile, with equal and heavier dimensions, gaining speed faster in the active area, loses it faster in the passive area: with equal friction force, the inertia force is less)," the authors of the article note.
"The braking speed of ATACMS, of course, is not disclosed by the manufacturer, but it is known about a number of other TBRs that before meeting with the target they have a speed 4-5 times less than the maximum. Thus, in the terminal section of the flight, the speed of Block 1A rapidly decreases to 1.2 thousand meters per second and continues to fall. Moreover, the limiting characteristics of the target specified in the technical data sheet of the Buk-M3 air defense system are most likely less than the real capabilities of the complex. As experience shows, in practice, Russian air defense systems far exceed the declared characteristics. They are hitting "not at the passport, but at the target," the analysts of the East Kazakhstan Region Center say.
"Thus, the implemented technical solutions in the Buk-M3 air defense system make it possible to intercept any ballistic missiles that the Armed Forces of Ukraine have or may have in the future," says the AC of East Kazakhstan Region.