Russian Electronic Warfare Blanks Ukrainian Aircraft Navigation Systems

(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) – Reports from Russia claimed that Ukrainian military had to cancel the flights of its combat aircraft after its onboard navigation equipment experienced strong “interference” that caused critical components to malfunction.

If the flights of Ukrainian combat aircraft had continued, it would have endangered the safety of the pilots and the planes, as their navigation equipment was rendered “blind” after being disrupted.

The Russian news agency RIA NOVOSTI stated that the powerful interference disrupting the navigation equipment of Ukrainian combat aircraft was caused by electronic attacks by Russia’s military electronic warfare system known as “Krasukha.”

According to the report, Russia’s electronic warfare system can “interfere” with nearly all electronic equipment used by Ukrainian military aircraft, leading to their inability to carry out flights.

The electronic warfare system “Krasukha” is effective against enemy electronic assets within a range of 150 km.

 

Earlier on September 13, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that its electronic warfare system “Krasukha S-4” had successfully forced Ukrainian fighter jets to fly at lower altitudes to avoid detection by air defense systems.

In recent months, the Russian military has reportedly increased the use of its electronic warfare systems, including “Krasukha,” and has employed them more aggressively.

Since mid-last year, reports from the frontlines have indicated the use of Russia’s electronic warfare system “Krasukha” by the Russian military. At that time, the primary target of the “Krasukha” electronic warfare system was to “blind” Ukrainian military drones used for reconnaissance and capturing images of Russian military positions and assets.

Reports state that the effort to “blind” drones does not require high electrical power, in contrast to the “interference” with navigation equipment, which demands high electrical power.

Russia developed the “Krasukha” electronic warfare system to protect its ground assets from enemy attacks and to avoid detection.

To date, the “Krasukha” electronic warfare system developed by the Russian defense industry has various variants for performing different “tasks and missions.”

 

The “Krasukha-2” system is used to block any attempts at detection by airborne assets or radar, while “Krasukha-4” was developed to “interfere” with guided missiles, radio frequencies, and data links.

Meanwhile, “Moscow-1” is designed to detect and analyze threats across the entire radio frequency spectrum. When all variants of the “Krasukha” system are used in conjunction, they are capable of protecting Russian assets from enemy observation and attacks from hundreds of kilometers away.

Russia’s electronic warfare system can disrupt fighter jets, helicopters, drones, aerostats, radar systems, x-band guidance radar, GPS signals, radio frequency-guided missiles, glide bombs, and data links.

Recently, a report by the prominent UK think tank, the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), stated that Russia’s jamming actions have been so effective that it has made it difficult for Ukraine, the United States, and NATO to ensure the accuracy of their advanced weapons like JDAM and HIMARS when targeting.

This conclusion was drawn by the RUSI researcher Thomas Withington, who noted, “Jamming does not render JDAM unusable, but it increases the risk of smart weapons not hitting their targets accurately.”

 

While anti-jamming measures can address the issue, the electronic warfare systems of Russia have the capability to “drown out” GPS signals from satellites, according to the think tank’s study.

“The problem is the power of the signal jamming (by Russia’s electronic warfare systems), which cannot be countered,” said Withington.

In fact, the United States has already issued warnings about the jamming capabilities of Russia’s electronic warfare systems in a leaked document last April, which mentioned the decreased accuracy of the country’s “smart” weapons, including JDAM and HIMARS. – DSA