The Ukrainian Special Operations Forces (SSO) reported via Telegram the destruction of the Russian Buk-M1 anti-aircraft missile complex, valued at approximately $100 million before it fired its very first missile.
“The Buk-M1, which was preparing to launch missiles, was destroyed,” the caption to the released video read.
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The Russian anti-aircraft missile complex was discovered by operators of Ukraine’s 3rd Separate Regiment of the SSO during reconnaissance missions “in one of the most active areas.”
SSO operators relayed the target coordinates to the missile artillery unit of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
“The Buk-M1 didn’t have time to launch a single missile – it was promptly destroyed,” the statement said.
Drone camera footage showed the Russian anti-aircraft missile complex, followed by a powerful detonation, accompanied by a notably large explosion, likely indicating its destruction.
While the time and location of the footage could not be independently verified by Kyiv Post analysts, there is a high probability that the moment of the Buk-M1’s destruction was captured, despite the low video quality.
Special Ops officials did not specify which weapon was used to inflict the damage.
According to information from open sources, the cost of the latest modern version of this air defense system – the Buk-M1-2 – is approximately $100 million.
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This medium-range anti-aircraft missile system is designed to destroy strategic and tactical aircraft, cruise missiles, helicopters, and other aerial objects (depending on modernization).
It can be used for air defense of troops, military facilities, important administrative-industrial areas, and other territories during mass air attack scenarios, and can also serve as a module of an integrated tactical anti-missile defense network.
According to the statement of the Russian Ministry of Defense, during the war in South Ossetia in 2008, Buk-M1 complexes of Ukrainian origin in Georgia shot down all four Russian combat aircraft officially recognized as lost, including a Tu-22M long-range strategic bomber and three Su-25 attack aircraft.
The SSO earlier reported the destruction of several pieces of Russian heavy equipment during the week, including a T-72 tank, 2S6 “Tunguska” anti-aircraft missile gun complex, along with the elimination of 11 Russian soldiers.
The Ukrainian Special Ops also announced the destruction of a Russian Hyacinth-S 152-mm self-propelled gun 2S5 using an American HIMARS system.
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