Russia has reinforced a large air-defense base in western Syria, where an S-400 long-range air-defense system was deployed a few years ago.
New satellite images released on October 9 revealed that the base, which is located near the town of Masyaf in Hama’s western countryside, had been reinforced with three Pantsir-S1 short-range air-defense systems.
Russia has placed now a total of three Pantsir-S to protect its S-400 mountain site in Syria.
In the same compound the Syrian S-300PM2 with another Pantsir-S pic.twitter.com/mROo27EbLG— Tajo Takoya (@TajoTakoya) October 9, 2020
Russian forces have been guarding its air base in Hmeimim and naval base in Tartus with Pantisr-S1 systems for a few years now. The system proved to be effective against armed drones as well as small projectiles, like Grad rockets.
Click to see full-size images
The new satellite images also revealed that a 48Ya6-K1 Podlet K1 low-altitude radar was deployed in Masyaf base. The 3D, S-Band, low-altitude radar has a range of 200 to 300 km.
A Syrian air-defense base hosting an S-300-PMU-2 is located right next to the Russian base. The base is also protected by a Pantsir-S1 system.
Click to see full-size image
Masyaf air-defense base cover the entire Syrian coast as well as large part of the country’s central and northwestern region. The S-400 system deployed in the base can also reach targets flying over Lebanon’s airspace.
Earlier this year, Russian began working to expand its military presence in Syria. Reinforcing key facilities like the base in Masyaf is crucial for the security of Russian troops in the country.
