What the Russian aircraft in Syria can?

The USA and their partners in a coalition already put on dzhikhadist of «The Islamic state» in Syria and Iraq more than seven thousand airstrikes, but even by the most optimistical estimates the result of bombings is very modest.

Advance of YOKES managed to be constrained, but it is not necessary to speak about defeat of Islamists. What we have a basis to believe, what Russia will cope with a task better?

Russia does not hide that the military intervention also pursues the aim to help regular army of president Bashar Assad in fight against insurgents. It follows from this that the list of targets of the Russian pilots will not be limited only to positions of YOKES.

So what possibilities Russian have in Latakia? They apply what weapon? Than their aircraft differs from the western? And that Russia can really achieve in Syria?

Russian Drying

The Russian forwarding armies directed to Syria are a microcosm of the Russian air armed forces.

The American analyst Michael Kofman notes that 34 planes are deployed in Latakia at Russia, among which 12 Su-25, 12 Su-24M2, four Su-30CM and six Su-34.

«It is a set consisting as from even of Soviet, enough vulnerable fighting vehicles, and from new, ultramodern, multipurpose planes», – the expert speaks.

«Su-25, for example, is used for direct support of land forces over a battlefield, and also for destruction of the purposes with the set coordinates. Russian use this plane in all the wars, including the Chechen war and the Russian-Georgian conflict of 2008, – Kofman explains. – It can support from quite short distance, but is vulnerable – especially for PZRK which in the Syrian conflict it is involved much».

«Su-24M2 – the classical tactical bombers improved from Soviet period. Can carry out a number of fighting tasks, but frankly old, being in operation too long», – my interlocutor continues.

The greatest attention, according to Kofman, Su-30CM and Su-34 deserve: «Su-30СМ – the heavy, multi-purpose fighter, capable to carry out the operations connected with big range and duration of flight».

Finishes the Su-34 list. «It too the heavy multipurpose strike fighter which has come to replacement of Su-24M2 and capable of multi-purpose and high-precision bombing attacks. These planes still never participated in operations, and Russia wants to use not simply them, and to test in fighting conditions», – the expert believes.

Defects of the Russian arms

Also that all these planes can?

«The Russian military aircraft does not suffice today a variety of the ultraprecise weapon and systems of prompting what their western colleagues have on arms. This problem is not new, it became obvious during the Russian-Georgian conflict in 2008», – considers Douglas by Barry, the leading analyst concerning military use of air space of the London International institute of strategic researches.

«Since then the Russian Air Force and all military industrial complex renewed efforts on completion of development and introduction in a system of arms and systems of prompting of similar subjects which are been armed at the same USA and the leading European countries. This problem arose after disintegration of the Soviet Union owing to insufficient investments into development and improvement of system of defense», – tells Barry.

There are also other considerable technological divergences.

Russian have operated bombs and rockets with semi-active laser and optikoelektronny system of prompting and laser system of a targeting on Su-25 to "Frog leg" (Frogfoot on NATO classification) and Su-24 "Fencer" (Fencer), but they do not possess aim pendant system of container type which the western aircraft has, allowing to define the purpose and guide at it the weapon.

In spite of the fact that at Syria there is any quantity of the Russian thrones, Barry notes that at Russian «not enough pilotless systems for air reconnaissance, supervision and detection are more whole, which are used widely by the USA and their allies in Afghanistan. As well as experience in data transmission system air earth».

Syrian mission

The Russian military and air forces, maybe, on any parameters also lag behind the most advanced western analogs, but they absolutely definitely can carry out effective aviation campaign. So what their mission in Syria?

Here the most considerable distinctions between the Russian and American missions, perhaps, lie.

The biggest weakness of the USA and their allies consists in lack of convincing forces on the earth. The aircraft can reach much in capture and territory deduction in the union with land armies, but in lack of the last its efficiency is limited.

For Russian of business are differently. The Syrian governmental armies, having suffered serious defeats and having lost a part of the forces because of desertion, probably, and not that were once, but at local level all of them still represent force which should be taken into consideration.

Having received the new Russian equipment, and now and with support from air, they can resist forces of opposition.

Russia has no developed arsenal of collecting a military information which the USA possess, however the most part of their tselenavedeniye will be based on the tactical military information extracted by the Syrian divisions on the earth.

It also is a key of the Russian strategy, namely: to strengthen Assad’s mode, to remove stress from painful points and to secure with promises that her ally will be included in any future diplomatic agreements.

That it to achieve – and it is visible already on the very first Russian airstrikes, – Moscow will beat on any opponents of the Syrian mode where they were.

The Russian aircraft is in Syria not to crush opposition forces and to help Assad to return under the control considerable territories which it lost.

It is there to win time for Assad and to change rates in regional and diplomatic game, and for achievement of this purpose presence of the Russian aircraft can appear a determinant.

Johnathan Marcus