"Russia's air defenses may pose a more significant threat to NATO air forces than they would have before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a top air defense analyst warned in a recent report. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukraine has been able to destroy numerous Russian air defense systems. Justin Bronk, an air power expert at the UK's Royal United Services Institute, warned that not only does Russia still maintain a large arsenal,"
"Systems have been upgraded, crews have more experience, and Russia has become better at coordinating their use with surveillance aircraftto accurately extend their reach. Russia's surface-to-air missile systems, Bronk wrote, "not only remain numerous, but are also likely to perform better against NATO aircraft and munitions in a hypothetical direct conflict than they would have before 2022.""
"He told Business Insider in an interview about the report that Russia's forces are "much more experienced" and have "learned quite a lot through trial and experimentation." A strictly air-to-air clash pitting Russian air forces against NATO aircraft likely wouldn't go well for Moscow, Bronk predicted, but a war wouldn't only take place in the air."
Russia retains a large, actively produced inventory of surface-to-air missile systems alongside hundreds of batteries, despite Ukrainian strikes. Systems have been upgraded and crews have acquired combat experience, improving coordination with surveillance aircraft and extending engagement ranges. These improvements increase the likelihood that Russian air defenses will perform better against NATO aircraft and munitions than they would have before 2022. NATO would likely struggle to achieve air superiority without first suppressing or destroying dense, layered ground-based air-defense networks. A purely air-to-air clash favors NATO, but integrated ground defenses complicate Western operations.
Read at Business Insider
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