Forbes explains why Ukraine’s missiles are ‘failing’

05/05/2022 13:30 GMT+7

Accordingly, the author noted that the Ukrainian air force from the very beginning was in an extremely disadvantageous position compared to the Russian forces. A large number of older aircraft and more vulnerable military bases, along with a shortage of pilots. But the bottom line is that outdated missiles in a fighter’s arsenal put pilots at constant risk.

The difference in weapons was so great that during a direct appeal to foreign allies, Ukrainian pilots practically begged for better missiles. In a video shared on social media on April 26, Ukrainian Colonel Yuri Bulavka asked American F-15, F-16 or F-18 fighter jets to help level the airspace with drones. Russia’s newest Su-30 and Su-35 fighter jets.

Forbes explains why Ukraine’s outdated missiles are ‘losing’ to Russian fire. (Photo: Ministry of Defense of Ukraine)

“Ultimately, these planes have powerful air-to-air radars, technological equipment and most importantly, missiles with operational support,” Bulavka explained.

So far, however, donor countries have prioritized the supply of spare parts over new aircraft with modern missiles.

According to Forbes, the fact is that the fighters of the Russian Aerospace Forces are armed with R-77 air-to-air missiles with a range of more than 100 km. Simply put, at the top of the R-77 there is a very small radar installed. Before launching the R-77, the pilot directs the missile at the target, and after performing a launch, without even entering the area where the missile can be destroyed, the pilot can immediately immediately turned around and left.

Meanwhile, Ukraine only has older R-27s. It is worth noting that the radar is not in the missile. Instead, the missile is equipped with a passive receiver – an antenna that depends on the operation of the aircraft’s radar. If the pilot turns off the radar or even turns the plane away from the enemy, the missile loses signal and moves away from the target.

Currently, Ukrainian pilots have tried to close the gap in missile equipment by completely abandoning the radar-guided R-27ER and replacing it with the infrared-guided R-27ET. But there is a problem here. The R-27ET search head is outdated and has a relatively short acquisition range.

According to Forbes, several MiG and Su aircraft were shot down by Russian interceptors while trying to shorten their range and use R-27ETs.

In addition, Russian air defense systems also pose a great danger to Ukrainian fighters.

As a result, the surviving fighters are mainly engaged in patrolling in northern and western Ukraine, avoiding appearing in areas of active fighting.

Earlier, on May 4, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said that so far, Russia has destroyed more than 250 aircraft, including 112 helicopters, 712 drones, 287 air defense systems, 2,817 tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, 323 Ukrainian multiple launch rocket systems.

Peace (translation summary)