Four Russian Iskander-M ballistic missiles were not intercepted during the combined attack launched by Russia on the night of February 16 to 17, confirmed the spokesperson of the Ukrainian Air Forces, Iuri Ignat.
According to him, the anti-aircraft defense systems were not “in the right place, at the right time” to engage the ballistic targets. The missiles hit regions in eastern Ukraine.
The Role of Patriot Systems
Typically, the interception of ballistic missiles – which follow a high trajectory and descend at a very high speed on the target – falls to high-performance systems like the MIM-104 Patriot. These are designed to detect and destroy such threats, but their efficiency depends on their location and coverage radius.
“To intercept a ballistic missile, you have to be exactly where the enemy is targeting. This time, unfortunately, it was not possible,” Ignat stated.
Previously, certain regions had been protected by such systems, but during the attack on February 17, the installations were not in the area targeted by the ballistic missiles.
How F-16 and Mirage Acted
On the other hand, the Ukrainian Air Forces announced that all cruise missiles launched by Russia were intercepted. According to officials, Ukrainian pilots operating Western F-16 Fighting Falcon and Dassault Mirage 2000 aircraft actively participated in repelling the attack.
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