Categories: ANALYTICS

Kyiv’s air defense shows the world’s best results

Kyiv's air defense shows the world's best results

Why the Kyiv’s air defense is one of the best in the world nowadays? What challenges Ukrainian Armed Forces face round the clock while shooting down russian missiles and iranian drones? How the spited of the nation help our defenders to do their best?

On the night of May 30, the Russian invaders used 31 Shahed-136 kamikaze drones during another attack on Ukraine. 29 drones were shot down by air defense forces.

In fact, this was the third missile-drone attack on Kyiv in just one day, and all of them were repelled thanks to the successful work of air defense.

And in this context, it should be emphasized that now Ukrainian air defense shows the world’s best results in a number of indicators.

Ukrainian specialists have the richest experience in displaying unified, combined and wave-like attacks in real combat conditions.

No army in the world has such an experienced air defense personnel. It not only has experience in repelling missile attacks, but also did it for more than a year with technically and technologically backward means that were significantly inferior to the enemy weapons.

Literally on the eve of the war, a “treason” wave about the Ukrainian air defense system’s unreadiness and inability to repel a Russian attack swept through the information space of Ukraine. It was assumed that we urgently need the Patriot air defense system, “Iron Dome” and other high-tech miracles of foreign air and missile defense systems.

Then an article was published in which it was quite clearly explained to everyone that Ukraine has the most combat-capable air defense in Europe, if compared with each country separately and not within the framework of NATO. At that pre-war moment, there was no European country with the air defense potential comparable to ours.

But, despite the quantitative potential and echeloning, our air defense mainly consisted of morally and technically outdated means of the USSR era.

On February 27, 2022, the Russian Federation loudly announced that the Ukrainian air defense system was completely destroyed, and that the Russian Air Force completely controlled the airspace of Ukraine.

As of May 30, 2023, the Russian Air Force bears substantial losses in combat aircraft and manpower. Russian pilots refuse to carry out combat missions in Ukraine, cadets carry out them. Airstrikes on Ukraine are mainly launched from Russian airspace.

But apart from this, most importantly, the Ukrainian air defense forces did a titanic job of maintaining control over our airspace and developed unique countermeasures algorithms before receiving the entire range of high-tech means, such as the Patriot and SAMP/T air defense systems.

To date, the Ukrainian air defense system has developed algorithms to counter all types of Russian missiles, including Kalibr, Kh-47M2, Kynzhal, 9M723/9M728 OTK Iskander-M/K, Kh-22, P-800, Kh-101, Kh-55, Kh-555, Kh-59, Kh- 29, Kh-58 and so on. In addition, algorithms for the destruction of Shahed-136 have been worked out.

The vulnerabilities of each of these missiles have been studied and the most effective countermeasures to each type of launch and weapons have been worked out. But this became possible not only thanks to modern air defense means. Below is an explanation of why.

Saudi Arabia has one of the best air defense in the Middle East. The Saudi army is equipped with more than 100 Patriot air defense systems. However, during the confrontation with the Yemeni Houthi rebels, the missiles launched on the territory of Saudi Arabia were not always intercepted.

That is, the availability of high-tech anti-aircraft defense systems is not yet a guarantee of complete security, and much depends on both the professionalism of the operators and the general approach to the echeloning.

Now we can say with confidence that echeloning is in Kyiv and the region is exemplary.

The air defense system built in the capital and around it demonstrates the highest level of effectiveness in countering missile and drone threats.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of funds, it is not yet possible to create similar echelons in other cities with a population of over one million. But it is a matter of time.

Our partners continue to provide support to Ukraine and supply short, medium and long range systems. Gradually, step by step, but the sky over Ukraine will be completely closed from Russian threats. And not only the sky over Ukraine.

To remind, during this month Ukraine Air Defense did its best to intercept russian missiles and drones over Ukraine, but the most extraordinary night was on May 16, 2023 when Ukrainian defenders shot down 6 russian ‘unstoppable’ Kinzhal missiles just in an hour.

Ukraine Front Lines