Secret air defense system destroys UAVs attacking Khmeimim
The Russian military has deployed a new low-altitude air defense missile system Morpheus at the Khmeimim air base to counter UAV attacks.
A new secret air defense missile system has appeared at Russia's Khmeimim air base in Syria.
Based on satellite images, experts confirmed that this is Russia's latest 42C6 Morpheus air defense missile system.
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| Satellite images reveal new Russian air defense system in Syria. |
The 42C6 Morpheus air defense system is a short-range air defense missile system. However, very little information about this system is disclosed.
Experts say the reason Russia decided to deploy this system at Khmeimim airbase is because recently this Russian base has been frequently attacked by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
According to some sources, this system began development in 2007, researched and manufactured by the Experimental Design Bureau of the Almaz-Antey Air Defense Corporation.
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| Russian Morpheus air defense missile system. |
The Morpheus system was created to protect important Russian military targets. It is equipped with both active and passive means of attack. This type of anti-aircraft missile system can eliminate any target operating at a distance of no more than 6 km.
Regarding the control and guidance system, this Russian system is equipped with a 29YA6 multifunctional radar system, which is mounted on a 70N6 combat vehicle. In addition, an infrared station is also installed on this combat vehicle, and the system control center will be mounted on a BAZ or Tiger combat vehicle.
As for the launchers, they are also mounted on the 70N6 combat vehicle. The missiles are launched from vertical launch tubes. Each launcher can carry up to 16 missiles.
The type of missile used is the 9M338K with a maximum range of about 6 km and a high range of about 3.5 km.
According to military analysts, the Morpheus complex will function almost like Israel's Iron Dome air defense system, to deal with airborne weapons such as artillery, mortars, missiles and airborne vehicles.
Therefore, the reaction ability is very fast, even faster than the Top-M1 and Top-M2 complexes, so the Morpheus complex will be quite effective when performing the task of shooting down UAVs.
In fact, this system was equipped for the Russian army in 2015, but the deployment location as well as information about it is almost not public.
However, with this appearance, experts say it is clear that Russia is very concerned about threats aimed at their airbase in Syria.
Earlier on July 30, the Russian Defense Ministry said that the rebel drone targeting Khmeimim airbase in Syria was shot down by the airport's defense system.
The Russian air base in Syria has been a frequent target of drone attacks, especially recently as Russia prepared to launch an offensive in northern Syria. Similar attacks were reported by the Russian military on July 21, 22 and 27.
