The Russian Ministry of Defense spoke about how the Buk-M3 air defense system works. Among the complexes of its class, the Buk-M3 air defense system has no analogues in the world due to its technical characteristics. For several years that it has been on the balance sheet of the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Russian development of the Scientific Research Institute of Instrument Engineering named after V.V. Tikhomirov from the Almaz-Antey Air Defense Concern has not yet been surpassed.
This multi-channel highly mobile complex is designed to destroy aircraft of strategic and tactical aviation, helicopters of various types, cruise missiles, guided air bombs and other aerodynamic flying objects, missiles and other elements of high-precision weapons in flight.
In particular, it is capable of withstanding missiles from American M142 HIMARS MLRS and Turkish Bayraktar TB2 reconnaissance and strike drones - they are considered one of the strongest in their categories of weapons. Buk-M3 works, resisting electronic warfare and fire strikes from the enemy, and sees about three hundred targets at the same time.
The target detection zone of the Buk is 120 km: it finds and tracks targets at altitudes from 8 m to 25 km, and hits them at a distance of up to 71 km. At the same time, it can increase its capabilities by working in conjunction with long-range S-300 or S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems.
Such a tandem can find and destroy any target at a distance of 200 km. The Buk-M3 launcher has twelve missiles, the self-propelled firing unit has six missiles plus its own control and guidance radar. As a rule, one missile is required for one target, unless it is particularly large and high-speed targets.