Russia & Syria create joint air defense system

Russia’s air defense group in Syria includes a radio engineering battalion, a battery of Pantsir-S units and the S-400 air defense missile systems.

A unified air defense system has been set up in Syria thanks to efforts of Russian and Syrian military experts, Chief of Staff and Deputy Commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces Major-General Sergey Meshcheryakov told a round table dedicated to the Syrian experience at the Army-2017 International Military-Technical Forum.

“Today, a unified integrated air defense system has been set up in Syria. We have ensured the information and technical interlinkage of the Russian and Syrian air reconnaissance systems. All information on the situation in the air comes from Syrian radar stations to the control points of the Russian force grouping,” he said.

The Russian air defense group in the Hmeymim airfield area includes a radio engineering battalion, a battery of the Pantsir-S air defense missile and gun systems and the S-400 air defense missile systems.

“These air defense missile systems are capable of destroying targets within a range of up to 400 kilometers at an altitude of up to 35 kilometers,” Meshcheryakov said.

He added that the Russian Aerospace Forces had inflicted substantial damage on the Islamic State (outlawed in Russia) terrorist infrastructure by destroying their ammunition and fuel depots, weapons and military equipment repair plants and significantly worsening militants’ logistics support and their ability to quickly redeploy reinforcements.

“Thanks to regular airstrikes against the oil infrastructure and the destruction of oil convoys, substantial economic damage has been inflicted on the enemy as well,” Mescheryakov concluded.