This weapon could be the next dangerous threat to Ukraine

The Ukrainian Armed Forces are facing a number of dangerous threats as they defend against the Russian invasion of their country, but few might be as worrying as Moscow’s S-350 surface-to-air missile system. 

A weapon designed to knock fighter jets and cruise missiles out of the sky may not seem like it would pose an immediate danger to Ukrainian personnel beyond the pilots risking their lives in the air, but it has the potential to hurt Kyiv’s war effort. 

By Dave_S. from Witney, England - Ukrainian Air Force Sukhoi Su-27P Flanker, CC BY 2.0

The Ukrainian military news website Militarnyi reported that Russia’s S-350 Vityaz could create new challenges for nearly every combat aircraft, attack drone, and cruise missile close to the line of contact. But why is it so dangerous?

Photo Credit: Wiki Commons By Zumlik - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

One explanation for why the S-350 could be one of the next big weapons Ukrainians should be worried about is because of the air defense system's advanced automatic targeting capabilities, capabilities that may have already been seen on the battlefield in Ukraine. 

In May 2023, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed it destroyed a Ukrainian MiG-29 with one of its S-350 systems, and an unnamed source later revealed to Russian media news outlet Vzglyad that it did so using its autonomous target mode. 

The S-350’s automatic mode is just one of the many terrifying abilities of this rather new surface-to-air missile system. The Vityaz only began its development in 2007 to replace a number of aging Russian systems, so the S-350 is quite modern. 

Photo Credit: Wiki Commons By Vitaly V. KuzminBy Vitaly V. Kuzmin

Military Today noted in its review of the S-350 that it was first demonstrated in 2013 and the first deliveries of the Vityaz to the Russian military only took place in 2019. The first operational use of the system is believed to have happened in 2022. 

The design of the Vityaz’s is similar to South Korean Cheomale 2, which makes a lot of sense since the corporation that manufactures the S-350, Almaz-Antey, also took part in the development of the South Korean surface-to-air missile system. 

When it comes to armaments, the S-350 was developed to be a short-to-medium range, which means it comes packed with 12 of Russia’s 9M96 vertical-launch missiles. These can reach an altitude of 15.5 miles and a distance of nearly 25 miles.

The S-350 uses the same missiles as Russia’s more long-distance surface-to-air missile system the S-400, which means use of the long-range variants of the 9M96 is possible for the Vityaz, making it rather dangerous and useful for air defense. 

Photo Credit: Wiki Commons By Соколрус - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

The S-350 was designed to provide the Russian military with defense against precision attacks and defense suppression weapons but the system's ability to fire both short and long-range gives it the versatility to hit targets 18.5 to 74.5 miles away. 

“It is similar to the US Patriot PAC-3 design,” Military Today explained, adding that the Russian military has claimed that the Vityaz has a “kill probability is 90% against aircraft and 70% against Harpoon anti-ship missile.”

Photo Credit: Wiki Commons By U.S. Army

However, what really makes the S-350 a dangerous weapon is its ability to lock onto a lot of enemy targets at one time. The Vityaz can engage between 12 and 16 targets at one time while the command post can lock onto 32 different targets at once.  

Such capabilities are a boon to Russian operators facing a mass drone attack, a type of tactic that Ukraine has employed more often as the war has progressed in order to hit major targets in Crimea and the occupied territories. 

“It is especially effective against low-flying missiles and air targets that try to merge their radar pattern with the terrain to evade detection,” explained Arsenal of the Fatherlands editor-in-chief Viktor Murakhovsky to Russian Beyond in 2020.

The S-350 Vityaz was first in what could be considered combat operations in August of 2022 when one of the systems was seen in the background of official video footage that was released by the Russian Ministry of Defense.