5 missiles that could have been used by Syrian rebels to shoot down Russian Su-25

A Russian Su-25 attack aircraft was shot down during combat over Idlib province, northwestern Syria on February 3. The pilot managed to eject but died after a ground firefight with rebels.RTreport

The Russian and Syrian militaries are trying to determine the type of man-portable air defense missile (MANPAD) used by the rebels to shoot down the attack aircraft. Syrian rebel forces possess a variety of MANPADs of Russian, American and Chinese origin, mostly captured from the arsenals of the Syrian government army or the US-backed Kurdish militia.

9K38 Igla

9K38 Igla portable air defense missile systemKolomna Design Bureau (OKB) developed since 1972 andEntered into service with the Soviet army in 1983. This missile complex can be integrated with an identification friend or foe (IFF) system to avoid firing at friendly aircraft, along with an automatic guidance system to simplify firing.

Each Igla complex weighs 18 kg, of which the missile weighs 10.8 kg and is equipped with a 1.17 kg warhead. The missile is equipped with a seeker with two sensors, of which the main sensor is made of Indium antimonide (InSb) semiconductor material cooled by liquid nitrogen, used to detect and track the hot air stream from the aircraft engine. The secondary sensor is made of uncooled lead sulfide (PbS), which has the function of distinguishing between the real target and the heat decoy.

The missile can perform a maneuver just before hitting the target, destroying the fuselage instead of just hitting the engine exhaust. In addition, the missile is equipped with a 20g explosive charge to burn the remaining fuel, maximizing damage to the target. In addition to the impact warhead, Igla also uses a proximity fuse, used in case the missile misses the target.

Igla can shoot down targets with a speed of 1,300 km/h, a maximum range of 5.2 km and a ceiling of 3.5 km. The target destruction rate with conventional fighters is 30-48%. When facing aircraft equipped with self-defense measures, this figure drops to only 24-30%, showing the high resistance to jamming of the complex.

9K338 Igla-S

In the early 2000s, Russia began developing an advanced Igla variant called the 9K338 Igla-S, before entering service in 2004. Mass production was carried out at the Degtyarev plant in the city of Kovrov.

The Igla-S complex is larger than previous versions, equipped with a warhead weighing up to 2.5 kg. Similar to its predecessor, the Igla-S uses a directional fragmentation warhead, creating a conical beam of fragments to increase the ability to destroy the target. Moscow has not disclosed details about the Igla-S's seeker, but it is said to have superior sensitivity and resistance to jamming compared to the 9K38 Igla version.

The missile is equipped with a new engine and increased fuel capacity, increasing the range to 6 km while the ceiling remains at 3.5 km. Igla-S can shoot down aircraft with speeds up to 1,440 km/h.

FIM-92 Stinger

Stinger is a MANPAD line developed by the US in the late 1970s, put into service in 1981 and continuously upgraded until now. FIM-92 is designed to shoot down high-speed ground support aircraft, especially dangerous to helicopters and transport aircraft.

The Stinger is considered a major step forward compared to the previous FIM-43 Redeye series. The missile has increased range, the ability to intercept fast-flying targets and is equipped with an IFF system. The basic FIM-92 model has a range of 4.5 km, while the most modern variants of the US military can intercept targets from a distance of 8 km.

The Stinger system requires only one operator, but its use often requires an additional soldier to act as lookout for high-speed targets. The two-man US Army battery can carry six rounds and travel in a Humvee.

Each Stinger missile is equipped with a 3kg warhead that can create a circle of shrapnel that can damage aircraft. However, basic Stinger models are only equipped with a contact fuze, requiring them to hit the target to detonate.

The US has denied transferring Stinger missiles to opposition forces in Syria. However, Russia claimed in late 2017 that the US had secretly provided this type of anti-aircraft missile to Kurdish militias in Syria.

Türkiye is also a country capable of producing Stinger missiles. Some military experts do not rule out the possibility that the Free Syrian Army (FSA) received this type of weapon from Türkiye. The missiles could then be smuggled onto the black market or stolen, looted and eventually fall into the hands of radical Islamists..

FN-6

The FN-6 is a third-generation shoulder-fired missile developed by China and is also the most modern MANPAD exported by Beijing. This missile line is specially designed to shoot down low and extremely low-flying targets, with a range of 6 km and a ceiling of 3.5 km.

Analysts say the FN-6 is equipped with an electronic infrared seeker, which is highly resistant to interference and difficult to fool with decoys. The complex is also equipped with an IFF system, which looks similar to the AN/PPX-1 model on the US Stinger missile, to avoid accidentally shooting down friendly aircraft. The FN-6 has a target kill rate of about 70%.

The complete FN-6 complex weighs 16 kg, while the weight of the missile and warhead was not announced by Beijing. This weapon first appeared in Syria in 2013 in the hands of the Free Syrian Army (FSA). Rebels used the FN-6 to shoot down Mi-8 transport helicopters and MiG-21 fighters of the Syrian government army.

9K34 Strela-3

The Strela-3 complex was developed by the Soviet Union to replace the Strela-2 series, which had poor combat effectiveness. The use of the Strela-2 missile platform helped speed up the development process. This type of missile was put into service with the Soviet army in early 1974.

The Strela-3 uses a new type of infrared seeker, operating on the principle of frequency modulation (FM), similar to modern MANPAD models such as the Igla and Stinger. This method makes the seeker less affected by interference or thermal decoys compared to the Strela-2's amplitude modulation (AM) seeker. The missile is also equipped with an infrared homing head cooling system, increasing the ability to distinguish heat sources from the target and decoys, while helping the Strela-3 deal with highly mobile targets.

The Strela-3 complex has a range of 4.1 km and a ceiling of 2.3 km. The Syrian government army possesses an unknown number ofStrela-3 missile, most likely typeMANPADThis fell to rebel forces after battles in the early stages of the Syrian civil war.