ISW: Ukrainian strikes on Russian military targets demonstrate ineffectiveness of Russian air defence

Repeated Ukrainian strikes on legitimate military targets far in the Russian rear demonstrate the ineffectiveness of Russian air defences against drones.

Ukrainian forces attacked Engels Airbase with an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) on December 29, within three days of reports that air defence shot down a Ukrainian UAV over Engels and killed three Russian servicemen. the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported on December 29.

The United Kingdom Ministry of Defense (MoD) stated on December 29 that it is “increasingly clear” that Russia “is struggling to counter air threats deep inside [its territory].”

The United Kingdom MoD assessed that Russian air defences probably are struggling to meet the high demand for air defence for field headquarters near the front line in Ukraine while also protecting strategic sites, such as Engels Airbase.

The repeated strikes on Engels Airbase will likely exacerbate military blogger critiques that Russia cannot defend its own territory from Ukrainian strikes. A prominent Russian milblogger questioned how Ukrainian UAVs and missiles cross such distances and enter Russian territory with “such impunity” and questioned the honesty of the Russian Ministry of Defense’s response.

The milblogger joked that an undetected pilot landing in Red Square (referencing Matias Rust’s 1987 flight from Helsinki to Moscow) would certainly generate a response longer than a single sentence from the Russian government.