Ukraine could attack Russia with SA-5 Gammon missiles, which were originally designed to destroy US spy planes
The Russian media cannot be trusted, but they have recently made a very interesting statement. According to the propagandists, the Ukrainian Defence Forces struck several sites, including the Kerch bridge, with S-200 missiles (SA-5 Gammon according to the NATO classification).
Here's What We Know
Russian army forces have been using S-300 surface-to-air missile systems (NATO classification - SA-10 Grumble) to bombard Ukrainian cities since last year. The missiles fly on a ballistic trajectory, so they are difficult to intercept.
The SA-5 Gammon could give the Ukrainian Armed Forces capabilities similar to short-range ballistic missiles. The missiles would have to be modified for ground-to-ground use. The need to change parameters gives hope that experts can improve accuracy at the same time.
At the moment, the only evidence that Ukraine is using the SA-5 Gammon is a video of Russian propagandists. But again, we have to go back to the first paragraph, where it is written that Russian media cannot be trusted.
A video of what appears to be a missile of the Soviet-made S-200 air defence system impacting a sawmill in the settlement of Bytosh in Bryansk Oblast of Russia earlier on Sunday.
- Status-6 (@Archer83Able) July 9, 2023
Presumably, the Ukrainians started to covert these missiles for the use against ground targets. pic.twitter.com/yPSJPO5el2
The surface-to-air missile system was commissioned in the 1960s. The air defence system was designed primarily to destroy US spy planes at high altitudes.
The complex engaged 5B21, 5B21B, 5B28, 5B28M missiles with a launch range of 160-300 kilometres and a flight speed of 700-1200 m/s depending on range. The latest versions of the interceptor could shoot down air threats at altitudes of up to 41 km, while older versions could shoot down air threats at altitudes of up to 27 km. There were variants with a nuclear special warhead to destroy group targets.
Russians report that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have attacked the Rostov and Bryansk regions. In addition, they write about an attempt to strike the Kerch Bridge, which connects mainland Russia with the temporarily occupied Crimean peninsula, with SA-5 Gammon missiles. It is reported that air defence forces shot down the missile and the debris fell into the Sea of Azov.
Ukrainian S-200 missiles targeted Russian objects, including the Kerch Bridge; Ukraine's Mariupol commanders returned home; the US to supply Ukraine with cluster munitions; the Russian media claims that Putin has replaced his Chief of Staff, Gerasimov.https://t.co/wOG5ZQ0GID
- Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) July 10, 2023
Despite the Russian side's claim of a successful interception, authorities closed the Kerch Bridge. This caused long traffic jams on the roads in both directions.
It is unclear how many SA-5 Gammon surface-to-air missile systems, if any, were in service with the Ukrainian Air Force as of 24 February 2022. In any case, the complex includes stationary launchers, which severely limits mobility.
So far, we have not seen a single video from Ukrainian sources demonstrating the use of the SA-5 Gammon. And neither as a ground-to-ground weapon nor in the more traditional ground-to-air mode. Therefore, once again we return to the first words of this material - Russian media cannot be trusted.
Source: The War Zone
