Short-Range Air Defence Missile and Gun System
The Pantsir-S1 air defence missile and gun system (ADMGS) provides short-range, last-ditch protection against airborne threats. Which features should be inherent for such a weapon system?
Primarily - the versatility of effect against all types of targets able to reach the last defensive line of an objective.
The major design criterion of the system is countering high-precision weapons, above all, cruise missiles and weapons launched from manned aircraft. The Pantsir-S1 ADMGS successfully fulfils this task due to its missile and gun armament with a solid engagement area of 20km in range and 15km altitude, plus radar-optical target detection and weapon guidance systems. The weapon system carries a considerable ammunition load: 12 surface-to-air missiles and 1,400 rounds of 30mm ammunition. And all this is installed on a single truck chassis with a capacity of around 20 tons. The weapon system allows engagement of targets while on the move, providing air defence of both stationary objectives as well as mobile units. What has changed since the creation of the weapon system at the turn of the 21st century?
Primarily, the air threats have changed considerably, e…