HIMARS is the hardest target we have worked on

MOSCOW ($1 = 60.32 Russian rubles) — A Russian anti-aircraft [AA] The machine gunner described to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti how difficult it is to counter the HIMARS MLRS. The agency does not mention his name but refers to him as “the officer” [most likely because of his rank as an officer in the army].

According to the Russian officer, gunners operating the Russian army‘s Buk-M3 anti-aircraft missile system in Ukraine are gradually learning to shoot down US M30/M31 missiles fired by HIMARS. “In addition to carrying out its factory-defined tasks, it also fired missiles, although this was not in accordance with its characteristics [declared]”, said the officer.

The Russian officer claims to have personally shot down an American HIMARS MLRS missile over Donbass, given to Ukraine. But he admits that this American weapon is a serious challenge for Russian gunners.

“The most difficult target we have worked on is the HIMARS rockets. These shells… fly at very high altitudes. We detect at least [missiles] up to 22,000 meters above sea level. The difficulty lies in the fact that the range is short, and the time to make a decision is minimal… Our combat crews valiantly perform the task of shooting down, literally in less than 10 seconds… The effective dispersion zone of these shells is very small, only zero. Therefore, the target is considered small in size and high in speed,” the source said.

The Russian officer who spoke to RIA Novosti said that the Buk-M3 is much more resistant to Soviet-designed or Russian-designed artillery shells, which are in service in the inventory of the Ukrainian army. As an example, he gives that the Donbass Buk-M3 was successfully intercepted and shot down [95%] Ukrainian Tochka-U missiles fired.

Ukraine already has 12 HIMARS deployed and expects to deliver eight more, according to US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Washington Mark Milley.

Last May, BulgarianMilitary.com reported that in Donetsk, Ukraine, it was noticed that the Russian Armed Forces had the latest version of the Russian Buk-M3 medium-range self-propelled surface-to-air missile systems. The Belgian online defense portal Army Recognition also confirmed this information, citing a video broadcast on the Telegram channel.

Russia seized GMLRS HIMARS rockets

The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have at least three seized or unexploded GMLRS M31 rockets. Their analyzes are pending, according to sources in Moscow. These missiles are used by the M142 HIMARS. Ukraine already has at least nine US-supplied HIMARS missile systems.

The procedure of the Russian Armed Forces after the capture of foreign weaponry has not been changed for years. That is, in the next few days, Russian engineers will make a full-size replica of the GMLRS M31. Of course, at least one of the three [the most conserved rocket] will follow the following path:

• once the full-size replica of the GMLRS M31 is ready, the rocket replica will go to Moscow in the Central Military District. This is where the chief air defense engineers of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation are located.
• The GMLRS M31 will be suspended from a specialized crane to hover in the air, surrounded by laser scanning devices. A full 360 degree scan of the rocket is performed.
• The resulting dimensions of the rocket and its design are uploaded as data to Russian radar networks, which continue to be connected whether they are deployed in Ukraine on the battlefield or on Russian lands. This means that the radar systems of the mobile and deployed air defense systems of the Russian army in Ukraine also receive the data from the rocket scan.

About Buk-M3

Buk-M3 is a Russian mobile air defense system from the Buk family of air defense systems. The Buk family of air defense systems dates back to 1972 when it was designed in the Soviet Union. In 1980, Buk-M1 entered service, and from then until today, Buk air defense systems undergo their upgrades, upgrades and new versions. At least 17 countries around the world operate primarily with the Buk-M1 and Buk-M2 versions, and Ukraine also has the Buk system in service.

Buk-M3 is the latest version of this family of air defense systems. The system operates 36 target channels simultaneously. It launches a 9K317E missile, which was developed during the Soviet era, but only entered mass production in 2007. The missile weighs 710-720 kg and has an operational range of 3-50 km. It can reach a maximum height of 25,000 meters. It flies at a speed of 4.6 Mach or 1,550 m/sec, maneuvering with air rudders and reactive rudders. The missile warhead is highly explosive by fragmentation [frag-HE], that’s to say. the shell of the rocket is dispersed by the detonation of the explosive magazine.

Buk-M3 can continuously launch missiles every two seconds. The missile was designed to be single-stage, with inertial guidance, a radio control mid-course update, and terminal semi-active radar guidance.

Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022

On February 21, 2022, the Russian government claimed that Ukrainian bombing had destroyed an FSB border facility on the Russian-Ukrainian border and claimed that it had killed 5 Ukrainian soldiers who were trying to cross into Russian territory. Ukraine denied involvement in both incidents and called them a false flag.

On the same day, the Russian government officially recognized the self-declared DPR and LPR as independent states, according to Putin, not only in their de facto controlled areas, but in all Ukrainian oblasts, and Putin ordered Russian troops, including tanks, to enter regions.

On February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an invasion of Ukraine by Russian armed forces previously concentrated along the border. The invasion was followed by targeted airstrikes on military buildings in the country, as well as tanks entering through the Belarusian border.

So far, Russia has not recognized the invasion of Ukraine as a “war”although that is exactly what it is, claiming that it is a “special military operation”. According to the UN, in which Russia has its permanent representation, for military action to be defined as “special military operation”, it must have a resolution issued by the UN. There is no such resolution, which automatically defines Russian military actions as an invasion and war against Ukrainian citizens.

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