The chief of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU), Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, named the weapon with which the Ukrainian military attacks strategic aircraft of the occupation army of the Russian Federation.
What is known about weapons for the destruction of Russian strategic aviation?
Different systems are used. This time we applied what we made from scratch from the old components. Somewhat modernized. The engineers did a good job, believe me, Budanov emphasised.
What systems does Ukraine use to destroy strategic aircraft of the Russian army?
According to the information of the publication "RBK-Ukraine," with reference to sources, the destruction of the Russian strategic bomber Tu-22M3 in the morning of April 19 became possible thanks to the modernized missile systems of the S-200 air defense system.
S-200 is a long-range anti-aircraft missile system. Its first versions were developed back in the 1960s in the USSR. At the beginning of development, they had a radius of 160 kilometres.
The complex is equipped with a 5V28 anti-aircraft guided missile. It runs on toxic liquid fuel and has gigantic dimensions — the length of the rocket is almost 11 meters, and the weight is 7-8 tons. For comparison, the MIM-104 Patriot anti-aircraft missile is 5 meters long and weighs about a ton.
Ukraine had five, and according to other sources, six S-200 divisions that protected the skies over the country's entire territory.
Each division usually includes one battery of six launchers.
But in 2013, during the presidency of Viktor Yanukovych, SAMs were removed from the Ukrainian army's arsenal due to their "moral and physical obsolescence".
It is noted that DIU specialists modernized the S-200 missile system.
It is known that the enemy plane was shot down at a distance of about 300 kilometres from the territory of Ukraine.
At the same time, the GUR noted that the Tu-22-M3 was destroyed by the same means used to attack the Russian A-50 long-range radar detection and control aircraft.
