F-16 Ukraine fighters are equipped with many defense measures, but the shot on April 12 shows that Russian missiles are still a major threat.
BBC On April 13 quoted unnamed sources in the Ukrainian army confirmed that the F-16 fighter was hit by Russian missiles a day earlier. “A total of 3 bullets have targeted the F-16. It could be a missile of the S-400 air defense system or the R-37 air bullet launched from the fighter,” a source said.
This is Ukraine’s second F-16 fighter from the time the country received the first ones in August24. In both incidents, the pilot was killed.
Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium in 2023 pledged to aid a total of 85 US-made F-16 fighters to Ukraine, of which nearly 20 units were handed over. The F-16 fighter is considered to have superior capacity compared to the Soviet fighters in the current Ukrainian Air Force.
Weapons on F-16 Ukraine fighter in the photo posted on February 17. Graphic: Defense Express
The image posted on social networks in February shows that an Ukraine F-16 carrying “electronic shield” An/ALQ-131, equipment cluster specializing in detecting enemy radar signals and implementing measures to disturb and fake targets to cope.
This fighter model also carries the integrated bait system on the suspension rack (PDIS) specializing in dropping traps to deceive the rocket bearing the radar or infrared probes, and the hanging rack with the built -in electronic battle system (ECIPS) containing passive defensive complexes to supplement the trap bait.
A US Air Force official once asserted that the combinations helped the F-16 Ukraine dominate in a certain area in a short time, thereby “completing tasks of importance and strategic impact”.
However, the shot on April 12, as well as the ambush of the S-400 air defense system and the Russian Su-35S fighter last month, showed that the Ukrainian F-16 squadron was still very vulnerable.
“F-16 is an old design, not equipped with stealth technology, so it is vulnerable to facing modern air defense weapons. There is an increasingly reason to worry about the ability of the vehicle to not own stealth capacity, especially in the environment that the missile can attack targets at the vision,” the Army Recognition military analysis group has the headquarters in Belgium.
The core of the Russian air defense is now a S-400 Triumf air defense missile complex with a maximum range of 400 km. It is equipped with many types of bullets suitable for different goals, besides the radar capable of clinging to many objects at the same time.
The S-400 complex of Russian fires missile at the field in Astrakhan region in 2020. Photo: Ria Novosti
Rybar, an account with 1.3 million followers on the Telegram and is often used as a source to replace Moscow’s official statements, last month said the Russian forces held an ambush after detecting F-16 Ukraine fighter operating in Sumy province adjacent to Kursk.
“A S-400 complex has been maneuverable to the border, ready to coordinate with the Su-35S fighter when detecting signs of the F-16,” the account revealed.
Sonyashnik, the Telegram account operated by Ukrainian Air Force soldiers, then admitted that a F-16 plane was locked by the target Russian missile but promptly dodged the bullets that were rushing.
“Ukraine fighters can fly close to the ground to hide before the S-400, but the contractuality of the Su-35S or the early warning aircraft A-50U will make them more vulnerable. This means that the F-16 Ukraine can only operate outside the operating radius of the S-400, unless neutralized or weakens the capacity of this complex,” ARMY Recognition said.
The threat is different from the F-16 Ukraine fighter being an increasing appearance of R-37M long-range surface-to-air missiles.
R-37M long-range air-to-air missiles, also known as RVV-BD, has been developed by the Vympel Institute and has been put into the Russian Air Force since 2014. Each bullet is longer than 4 m, the body diameter is nearly 0.4 m, weighing 510 kg. RVV-BD missiles are said to reach a range of up to 300 km and have lowered the target at a distance of 304 km in the test.
The rocket is equipped with proactive radar probes and proactively applies the principle of “shooting and forgetting”, which can find the goal after being fired without pilots.
Russian Su-35S fighter launches R-37M rocket in a test. Image: Russian Management Board
The Russian Defense Ministry has repeatedly announced the Video of Ukrainian aircraft intercepting with R-37M missiles, announcing the Su-35S squadron that once shot down the enemy fighter jet from a distance of 200 km thanks to this weapon. The R-37M can also equip MiG-31BM interceptor fighters and Su-30SM fighters.
“R-37M allows Russian aircraft to shoot down the target from the range of AIM-120C AMRAAM missiles, the Ukraine’s most main and most modern surface-to-air weapons.
Belgian experts believe that the Ukraine F-16 fighter still has some ways to maintain the ability to do tasks. “The bait, mobility and interference can reduce the ability to hit the target of R-37M missiles, especially when detecting bullets early,” ARMY Recognition said.
Another option is to actively destroy the Russian air defense system before they promptly fire. The options include AGM-88 Radar destroyer, GBU-39/B or JDAM bombs, as well as taking advantage of the Himars or drone (UAV) jet (UAV).
“These competencies are essential to ensure that the F-16 fighter can survive, especially in the environment where Russian long-range weapons are dominating. However, the level of efficiency depends very much on the ability to cognize the situation, planning and support from electronic warfare, things that Ukraine is in shortage,” the analytical group in Belgium stated.