By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Russia is developing a fifth-generation air defence missile that is superior to S-400 Triumf systems and capable of hitting targets in space, the air force said Wednesday.
“While working on the S-400, we have been developing fifth-generation air defence systems, which will be more compact, more manoeuvrable, and will certainly have superior technical characteristics,” Air Force Commander Colonel General Alexander Zelin said.
Russia recently deployed the first S-400 missile chain to protect the airspace around Moscow, and is planning to equip over two dozen battalions with the air defence systems by 2015.
The post S-400 systems will combine elements of air, missile and space defence, and will be developed by the Almaz-Antei air defence consortium, which designed and built the S-400 system, Zelin said.
He said major enhancements would be made to the systems’ electronic components.
“The enhancement of electronics will allow the systems to see farther, higher and react quicker, which will significantly expand the range of their capabilities, including repelling strikes from space,” Zelin said.
The latest S-400 Triumf (NATO codename SA-21 Growler) has been designed to intercept and destroy airborne targets at a distance of up to 400 km or twice the range of the MIM-104 Patriot and 2.5 times that of the S-300PMU-2.
It is capable of destroying stealth aircraft, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles with an effective range of up to 3,500 km and a speed of up to 4.8 km per second.