Russia ramps up missile blitz as Ukraine's air defenses strain
Russia continues its relentless missile bombardment and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities. While Ukrainians have successfully intercepted many drones and cruise missiles, ballistic missiles still pose a significant threat to vital targets.
During the summer, Russia stockpiled Shahed drones along with cruise and ballistic missiles to target Ukraine during the winter months. In the most recent attack on November 26, 2024, Ukraine's defense forces successfully neutralized 76 out of 188 Shahed drones but were unable to shoot down any of the four Iskander-M ballistic missiles.
The weakness of Ukrainian anti-ballistic defense — lack of replacement for Soviet-era systems
Ukraine's air defense has depleted its missile stock for the medium-range S-300P and S-300W systems Russia originally produced. Although Western countries have supplied Patriot and SAMP/T batteries, they are too limited in number (a total of eight) to make up for Ukraine’s lost capabilities since Russia's full-scale invasion. Bulgaria and Greece are the only possible sources of missiles compatible with the S-300 systems.
These systems can engage ballistic missiles at distances of up to about 25 miles from their launch point, but the eight batteries supplied by the West are insufficient to replace what Ukraine had before the invasion.
Elusive Iskander-M missiles — their secret
Iskander-M missiles, powered by solid fuel, initially ascend into space before descending back to earth, reaching speeds exceeding Mach 7 (over 6,600 ft/s). This makes them extremely difficult to intercept, and only a few air defense systems worldwide can effectively target such missiles.
Combined with satellite and inertial navigation, this capability enables them to deliver a warhead weighing roughly 1,100 pounds up to 310 miles with a precision of just a few feet. Variants of these missiles include fragmentation-blast types for demolishing buildings or fortifications, penetrative types intended for destroying bunkers, and cluster types capable of targeting large areas with bomblets.
