Much has been said lately about the effectiveness of advanced Russian military equipment, which has proved its highest effectiveness in actual combat situations.

Among the best Russian-made military products mentioned, inter alia, in the “Syrian” context, the Pantsir-S self-propelled anti-aircraft gun/missile (SPAAGM) system is routinely referred to.

Speaking at an expanded meeting of the RF Defense Ministry Board held in late December 2017, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu listed the Pantsir-S SPAAGM system among the systems that provided complete superiority of the Russian Aerospace Force in the Syrian airspace. He stressed that, due to these types of military equipment, “there have been no violations of the security zones established around Russia’s bases in Tartus and Khmeimim."

This opinion is shared not only by foreign customers, among which the SPAAGM system is in high demand, but also by representatives of the expert society and specialized mass media.

For example, The National Interest, an American bimonthly international affairs magazine, recently published an article titled “Russia Just Might Have the Perfect Weapon to Crush 'Swarm' Attacks.” The article is about the Pantsir-S SPAAGM system and concludes that “the U.S. military doesn’t have a short-range air-defense system nearly as capable as the Pantsir.”

It also stresses that the Pantsir has proved effective against enemy drones in Syria and that neither the U.S. nor other countries will have any such short-range air defense system in service in the short term.

According to The National Interest reporter, “the Pantsirs in Syria have attracted less attention than long-range weapons like the S-400. However, this system serves as a final line of defense of multi-layer integrated air defense system, as well as a counter to low-flying planes and helicopters, drones and missiles.” This capability, according to the author, is becoming crucial in today’s conditions.

Indeed, the Pantsir-S1SPAAGM system fully meets all the requirements for countering current air threats at present and in the near future, due to the following design features:

• combined gun/missile armament, which makes it possible to create a continuous target engagement zone up to 20 km in range and up to 15 km in altitude;
• a jam-proof multimode and multispectral radar/optical control system operating in decimeter, millimeter and infrared wavebands;
• automatic operation;
• capability to fire on the move and at short halts;
• short reaction time of 4-6 seconds due to automatic tracking of up to 40 targets by a target acquisition radar and accurate data acquisition providing for fast fine search and target lock-on by a multifunctional tracking radar and an electro-optical system;
• stand-alone operation and coordination of actions at the battery level;
• simultaneous firing against four targets within a sector of ± 45 deg in azimuth and elevation.

Owing to an innovative modular design approach for the Pantsir-S1 system, this weapon system can be integrated into the Customer’s existing maintenance, training and logistics support systems with minimal costs. Also, this approach enables the development of versions of the system, taking into account specific geographic and topographic conditions in which the Pantsir is to be used by the Customer.

The incorporated design solutions and the high performance of the Pantsir system have been substantiated by acceptance and official tests, more than 500 launches of SAMs have been conducted, and large-scale production is currently underway within State Defense Order and to meet demand from foreign customers.

Owing to its high performance, the Pantsir-S1 SPAAGM system gives the air defense system equipped with it a significant advantage over foreign-made short-range air defense systems.

The system is exported and enjoys high demand among foreign customers.

Figures 1-4 show the results of missile and gun fire on ground and air targets, at halt and on the move (photo is provided by JSC High Precision Systems press service).

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