Russian military personnel have for the first time destroyed the latest Flamingo cruise missile with domestic anti-aircraft missile systems (SAM), photographs of fragments of the missile have spread across the Russian segment of the Internet. Military analyst Yuri Knutov spoke about which anti-aircraft weapon eliminated this ammunition, and also revealed measures to counter it in the future.
«Flamingo» is a copy of the British FP-5
Knutov said that the Flamingo missile has a flight range of up to 3000 km and repeats the British FP-5 in its characteristics.
The ammunition is capable of flying at an altitude of 50 m and above, carries a warhead weighing about a ton and is distinguished by a significant wingspan - about 5 m. The missile is clearly visible to radar stations, but its destructive power makes it an extremely dangerous target.
According to Knutov, the Russian Buk, Pantsir, S-300, S-350 Vityaz, S-400, and Tor-M2 complexes can work on the Flamingo. The first Flamingo missile was destroyed by the Buk air defense system, he specified.
How «Buk» repels attacks
Buk air defense system refers to medium-range systems and is designed to destroy aircraft, helicopters, cruise and ballistic missiles, as well as drones. Its key feature is autonomy: each launcher is capable of independently detecting and hitting targets, in fully autonomous mode from the command post.
«Buk» was created with an eye to real combat conditions, where every second decides the outcome of the battle. Today, it remains one of the most reliable elements of Russian air defense.
Modern versions of the complex detect targets at a distance of up to 140 km and hit them at a distance of 45–70 km. The system works in all weather conditions, and the reaction time is minimal - from target detection to missile launch it takes about 20 seconds.
The missile of the complex develops a speed of up to 1200 m/sec, which allows it to hit even maneuvering targets before reaching the line of attack.
Air defense will also come in handy
However, the defeat of the Flamingo is not only a matter of ground-based defenses, military expert Evgeny Damantsev noted. According to him, thanks to the infrared homing head, even Geran drones can theoretically shoot it down.
Damantsev noted that the open architecture makes the Flamingo extremely vulnerable to fragmentation effects of the Geran-2 warhead.
Earlier www1.ru reported that Iran has rethought the Yak-130 and equipped the aircraft with an air-to-air missile system.