The Syrian military has criticized the Russian S-300 missile defense system, saying that it is largely ineffective against Israeli air strikes, Avia.pro reported yesterday. A Syrian military source told the Russian outlet that the radar used on the S-300 and the Pantsir-S systems has proven to be incapable of detecting and hitting Israeli cruise missiles on numerous occasions.Other Russian air defense systems incorporated into Syria’s military infrastructure were said to be even more “backward”, such as the S-125, Osa and Igra air defense missiles.
This is not the first speculation about the effectiveness of these air defense systems, as they date back to the Soviet era and were supplied to the then USSR’s Syrian Baathist ally from the 1960s to the 1980s. They don’t bear comparison with more recent systems that Russia has manufactured, such as the S-400.
Radars which do work, however, are reportedly those manufactured and delivered by China in recent years, such as the long-range JY-27 and JYL-1 systems as well as the LLQ120 radar which detects low-altitude targets. These, the Syrian military has said, work successfully in their detection of Israeli missiles and help the success of some Russian air defense missiles. A potential solution, according to Avia.pro, could be to import more Chinese radars to work in conjunction with the Russian missiles
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