Pantsir hits cruise missile target

Pantsir-S gun and missile air defense systems – a new development from Russian weapons makers – have taken part in drills near Astrakhan. According to the training scenario, a Pantsir-S was to destroy a target missed by S-300 missile crews.
The Pantsir was to hit a Strizh imitation target mimicking the flight of a cruise missile. The target was travelling at a speed of 250 meters a second.
The mock attack scenario was complicated by a command order to quickly move the field officers to new coordinates. They were allowed to fire only after they had chosen a more suitable firing point. The Pantsir-S complied with the new parameters in a matter of minutes.
Following the counter attack, the Pantsir-S’ developers went to the test range to look for fragments of the demolished target. These will be carefully examined to make the air defense system more effective.
For the first time, the Pantsir-1 combines two combat functions: a single military vehicle is fitted with both missiles and cannons. Pantsir-1 missiles are capable of destroying any modern attack delivery vehicle. The cannons, in addition to air targets, can also engage land based targets.
The main purpose of the system is to protect industrial plants, military units and mobile air defense systems. This year, the first run of Pantsir-S systems joins the Russian army. The general public will see the new weapon at the Victory Day Parade on Red Square on May 9.