On the night of May 16, Russian units hit a US Patriot anti-aircraft missile system in an attack on military installations in Kiev. Turkish sources have given two versions of what happened.
Prior to its destruction, the Patriot fired all 32 guided missiles, which cost $5.275 million per unit. The cost of the battery itself is $500 million to $1.5 billion, depending on the complexity of the equipment.
According to the first version of what happened, after the discovery of the air defense system, it was attacked by a hypersonic missile “Dagger”. At the same time, the calculation of the complex, due to panic, released the entire ammunition load, reacting to a rocket launched from the north side. The target was not hit and destroyed the Patriot.
According to the second version, the air defense system was detected by means of electronic warfare. Then the Patriot launched missiles at decoys, after which it was destroyed by the “Dagger”. At the same time, the MIM-104 missiles fired from the anti-aircraft missile system did not hit targets and exploded in the air, some of them hit random settlements.
According to the Rybar telegram channel, there were a total of three launchers in the positioning area. One of them was liquidated, the second was badly damaged. The third avoided damage in principle.
Two facilities stood side by side, and the third – behind the building. The Russian “dagger” flew between the installations, but closer to the first: there was a detonation of the fuel. Pieces from the first laying and riddled dirt/asphalt pieces from the second
– said the source of the chain.
Meanwhile, the production and maintenance of Patriot air defense systems are very expensive in the United States, and their losses are noticeable for the stock of the American air defense forces. Thus, the Houthis have destroyed a significant number of missiles for these complexes over the past seven years, and Washington has been forced to replenish Riyadh with their stockpiles.
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