Illustrative image.
The fate of Syria’s fleet of Pantsir-S air defense systems came into question on May 28 as one vehicle was spotted being moved in the coastal city of Latakia, in the first such sighting since the fall of the regime of president Bashar al-Assad last December.
Syria was among the first countries to purchase the advanced air defense system from Russia. The country is reported to have received at least 57 systems from the S1 and the upgraded S2 versions. The delivery began before 2011, and continued well into the war.
The main armament of Pantsir-S systems in service with the Syrian Arab Air Defense Forces (SyAADF) was the 57E6-E missile, with a range of 18 kilometers and altitude of 15 kilometers.
During the war in Syria, the system was credited with several kills against Turkish aircraft, from an F-4 fighter jet in 2011 to multiple Bayraktar TB2 and TAI Anka combat drones in 2020. It also played a key role in repelling hundreds of Israeli aerial attacks on the country, although losses were reported.
Just a few days before the fall of the Assad regime, a Pantsir-S system was captured by rebels, namely the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, near Aleppo city. This was the first time the country lost control over an air defense system of this type.
Click to see full-size image. Via Facebook.
Hours after the fall of the regime on December 8, Israel launched hundreds of strikes with the aim to destroy all of Syria’s combat capabilities in a large-scale aerial attack dubbed “Operation Arrow of Bashan.” At least 80% of the country’s air defense, including nearly all of the Pantsir-S systems, were reportedly taken out.
Still, some observers rushed to speculate that some of the systems had survived after photos showing a Pantsir-S being transported on a trailer in Latakia surfaced online.
While the front section of the system appeared to be intact in the vague photos, an eyewitness from Latakia who personally saw the system being transported on al-Thawra road told SouthFront that the rest of the system was completely wrecked. The witness speculated that the system was previously hit by an Israeli strike.
Later, it emerged that the system was moved by the new Syrian military to an air defense base located near the town of Sqoubin, right to the northeast of the city.
According to available information, the base, which witnessed several blasts in recent months, was recently turned into a center where air defense systems and anti-aircraft missiles are being decommissioned then turned into scrap metal for sale.
Click to see full-size image. Via Facebook.
Click to see full-size image. Via Facebook.
Former SyAADF officers who spoke with SouthFront also revealed that the Pantsir-S left behind in Aleppo was critically damaged from the inside.
All other systems abandoned on the night of the regime fall were also badly damaged, according to the officers, who said that some of the systems crashed in traffic incidents while being evacuated and others were hacked into pieces by civilians who attempted to steal copper wiring and other valuable materials.
Click to see full-size image.
Syria, which once operated one of the densest air defense networks in the Middle East, is now without any effective air defenses.
Aside from anti-aircraft guns, older man-portable air defense systems and some Soviet-made 9K35 Strela-10 short-range air defense systems that survived the last battle, the country has nothing to guard its skies, which are now completely open to both the Turkish Air Force and the Israeli Air Force.
The new military is still refusing to allow experienced air defense officers to return to service, despite the fact that nearly all of them had no involvement in operations against the rebels. Without these personnel and with no funds or ability to buy new air defenses, the country’s airspace will likely remain open for the foreseeable future.
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