Two Miniature Air Launch Decoys (MALD) sit side-by-side in the munitions storage area on Barksdale Air Force Base, La., March 21. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Micaiah Anthony)
Ukraine used ADM-160 MALD decoys secretly supplied by the United States during the missile attack on Luhansk city on May 12.
The attack targeted the Machine Building Plant 100, which specializes in the production of equipment for the electronic engineering industry and the Poly-Pack polymer production facility. A fire broke out as a result of the attack and casualties were reported, including six children who sustained wounds.
The Russian Ministry of Defense that the attack was carried out with two air-launched, long-range Storm Shadow cruise missiles, which were recently supplied to Ukraine by the United Kingdom, as well as one American-made ADM-160 MALD missile decoy that was used to trick Russian air defenses.
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- The remains of a MALD decoy Click to see full-size image. Via Twitter.
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- The remains of a Storm Shadow missile. Click to see full-size image.
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- The remains of a Storm Shadow missile. Click to see full-size image.
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- The remains of a Storm Shadow missile. Click to see full-size image.
The MALD, or Miniature Air-Launched Decoy, was especially developed for use in SEAD [Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses] operations. The decoy is equipped with a Signature Augmentation Subsystem (SAS) which is composed of various active radar enhancers which cover a range of frequencies. The SAS can therefore simulate any aircraft, from the B-52 Stratofortress to the F-117 Nighthawk.
The newer version of the decoy that was used by Ukraine, the ADM-160B, is powered by a Hamilton Sundstrand TJ-150 turbojet engine. It has a range of 920 kilometers and an endurance of over 45 minutes.
Just like the Storm Shadow, the MALD is air launched. The Ukrainian Air Force may have modified some of its Soviet-era fighter jets, the Su-27s or MiG-29s, to carry and deploy the missile decoy.
The MALD is highly effective. However, a single ADM-160B could cost as much as $322,000, which likely means that Ukraine will not be able to employ these decoys on a large-scale.
The Storm Shadow is an Anglo-French low-observable, long-range, air-launched cruise missile. It features a GPS-aided inertial navigation system with a terrain profile matching system. For terminal guidance, the missile is equipped with an imaging infrared scene-mapping area correlator system.
The maximum range of the Storm Shadow is 560 kilometers. However, it is thought that Ukraine received the downgraded export version with a range of 250 kilometers.
On May 13, Ukraine launched another attack on Luhansk city, targeting the old internal affairs academy building with at least one Storm Shadow missile. However, the MALD was not used. The attack also resulted in material losses and some casualties.
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- Click to see full-size image.
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- Click to see full-size image.
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- Click to see full-size image.
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- Click to see full-size image.
The U.S. supplied tens of billions worth of weapons, ammunition and military equipment to Kiev forces since the start of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine last year. However, the supply of the MALD was not announced by the Pentagon beforehand.
The decoys were clearly supplied for use along with British Storm Shadow cruise missiles in standoff aerial attacks. This shows how the U.S. and the UK are closely cooperating to provide Ukraine with long-rang attack capability to threaten Russian territory.
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