Syrian conflict reveals the vulnerability of Russian arms
The overthrow of Bashar al-Assad's regime, the subsequent movement of Syrian fighters, and the intervention of some neighbouring countries have resulted in significant equipment losses for the Syrian army. Videos and photos circulating on social media clearly show that Syria was replete with Russian equipment and, contrary to assumptions, it was not just outdated Soviet-era weapons.
Collaboration with Moscow was very important for Bashar al-Assad's regime, as it ensured the delivery of valuable weapons and support from the Russian troops stationed in Syria. Social media videos show that systems like Buk-M1 and Pantsir-S1 were destroyed in Damascus. Interestingly, it remains unclear who carried out these attacks.
Valuable Russian weapons on the streets of Syria
Initially, reports suggested that the burning Pantsir-S1 seen in the footage was destroyed by retreating Syrian army units to prevent it from being captured by Bashar al-Assad's opponents. However, it is more likely that the Pantsir-S1 was destroyed by Israeli air forces, which conducted at least three air raids on the Syrian capital.
The Pantsir-S1 (SA-22 Greyhound in NATO code) is one of the most advanced Russian anti-aircraft systems. It came into service in the 1990s and is responsible for protecting many important facilities in Russia, as well as some of Putin's residences. It uses 57E6 or 57E6-E anti-aircraft missiles, capable of eliminating targets located up to approximately 19 kilometres away and at altitudes of up to roughly 14 kilometres. The additional armament in the Pantsir-S1 includes 2A38M 30 mm automatic cannons, which allow for the takedown of smaller targets at a distance of about 3 kilometres.
Scrapheap of Russian equipment
Surely, the destroyed example visible in the footage above was not the only one on Syrian territory. A few days ago, it was confirmed that a fully operational Pantsir-S1 was captured by Syrian fighters from the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group.
The Pantsir-S1 systems are some of the most valuable equipment destroyed and taken from the Syrian army in recent days. The radar Podlet-K1, captured by the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, is also highly valued.
Syrian armoured forces, which were heavily expanded, also suffered significant losses. Although most of the tanks destroyed or captured by opponents of Bashar al-Assad are outdated T-54/55 and T-62 models, there is no shortage of much newer T-72 family machines and even advanced T-90A tanks.
