The radio-electronic gun of the Harpoon-3 system as seen during the Indestructible Brotherhood-2021 exercise. Photo grab from a video released by the Russian Ministry of Defense.
Russia’s Harpoon-3 anti-drone electronic warfare (EW) system has been spotted with Russian troops in Ukraine for the first time.
On May 18, a photo showing the main jamming and detection station of the Harpoon-3 system deployed in an unspecified part of Ukraine surfaced online.
The Harpoon-3 main jamming and defection station in Ukraine. Click to see full-size image. Via Twitter.
The Harpoon-3 was developed by the Automation Technology and Programming in Saint Petersburg to counter the threat of light and ultralight drones with EW means. The system was presented for the first time during the 2021 MAKS Air Show.
The system comes with a radio-electronic gun that can suppress the communication and navigation channels of commercial drones.
The Harpoon-3 system operates in the frequencies from 433 to 5800 MHz and has three modes of jamming. The first mode jams the frequencies of 488, 868 or 1200 MHz, suppressing the drone radio control channels. The second mode suppresses the drone’s satellite navigation signals at the frequencies of 1575, 2400 and 5200 MHz. The third mode blocks the frequencies of 433, 868 and 5800 MHz of the drone’s data-link.
Depending on the jamming mode, the system can either force the drone to land or to return to the take-off site. The system has a maximum range of 2-3,5 kilometers.
Kiev forces have been using light and ultralight commercial drone to monitor and even attack Russian forces since the beginning of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine. The effectiveness of these drones was likely behind the Russian military’s decision to equip its forces in Ukraine with anti-drone systems like the Harpoon-3.
It’s worth noting that the Russian military operates several types of anti-drone EW systems, which were developed in the recent years.
