Ukrainian Drones Punch Holes in Russia’s Air Defenses, Knocking Out Buk, Tor, and Rare S-350 Systems, Video

Ukrainian drone operators have struck a series of high-value Russian air defense systems, including a rare and modern S-350 Vityaz radar, in a coordinated wave of attacks in eastern Ukraine, according to footage released by Commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces Robert “Madyar” Brovdi on January 2.

The strikes were carried out by the Asgard Battalion of the 412th Nemesis Brigade, part of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces. Brovdi confirmed the attacks in a social media post, publishing video evidence of the hits.

Rare S-350 radar taken out

According to Brovdi, Ukrainian drones destroyed the multifunctional 50N6E radar of the S-350 Vityaz air defense system, along with a Tor surface-to-air missile launcher, on January 1 in Russian-occupied areas of the Donetsk region.

The 50N6E radar is a critical component of the S-350 system, which Russia presents as one of its newest medium-range air defense platforms. The radar is designed to automatically detect up to 100 aerial targets and engage up to eight simultaneously, Ukrainian defense outlet Militarnyi wrote.

Russian sources claim the S-350 can counter multiple aerial threats arriving from different directions at the same time.

“On January 1, the Birds of the Unmanned Systems Forces destroyed two air defense systems: a Tor launcher and the radar of the S-350 Vityaz system,” Brovdi wrote.

According to manufacturer specifications, the S-350 is capable of intercepting aerodynamic targets at ranges of up to 60 kilometers and altitudes of up to 30 kilometers, and is also advertised as having limited capability against ballistic targets at ranges of up to 30 kilometers.

Buk and Tor launchers Hit in rapid succession

In addition to the S-350 strike, Ukrainian drone operators reportedly destroyed multiple Buk-M3 and Tor air defense launchers on December 31. The systems were hit one after another within roughly an hour in the Huliaipole and Orikhiv sectors.

“Two air defense systems—Buk and Tor—were destroyed within one hour by drone operators from the Asgard Battalion of the 412th Nemesis Brigade,” the unit stated.

The Buk-M3 is a key element of Russia’s layered air defense network. It is used to protect ground forces from aircraft and cruise missiles and can engage targets from areas well behind the front line.

Upgraded missiles used by the Buk-M3 reportedly allow interceptions at ranges of up to 70 kilometers and altitudes of up to 35,000 meters.

The Tor-M2 system, meanwhile, is a fully autonomous short-range air defense platform capable of independently detecting and engaging aerial targets at distances of up to 16 kilometers and altitudes of up to 10 kilometers.

Each launcher carries 16 vertically launched missiles and is operated by a three-person crew.

The loss of such systems—especially the radar element of the S-350—significantly weakens Russian air defense coverage in the affected sectors, Militarnyi noted. Modern radar units are particularly difficult and costly to replace, making them high-priority targets for Ukrainian drone forces.

Earlier, Ukraine’s military intelligence said its special operations unit known as the “Prymary” struck multiple Russian air defense assets and other military targets in Russian-occupied Crimea ahead of Christmas.

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