Ukrainian Recon Unmasks and Destroys Russia’s $45M Buk-M3 Air Defense System, Video

Soldiers from Ukraine’s 15th Black Forest Artillery Reconnaissance Brigade have located and helped destroy a modern Russian Buk-M3 surface-to-air missile system.

The brigade published footage of the operation on May 1.

According to the report, Russian forces appeared to detect Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance and attempted to conceal the system. The Buk-M3 circled forested areas before retreating into nearby brush—where it was ultimately struck by a precision strike from a partnered unit.

The hit triggered a detonation of the system’s ammunition.

The brigade noted that the Buk-M3 is one of Russia’s key air defense assets, with an estimated value of around $45 million.

The Buk-M3 is Russia’s most advanced version of the Buk family of medium-range surface-to-air missile systems. Introduced in the mid-2010s, it's designed to intercept a wide range of aerial targets—including aircraft, cruise missiles, and some types of ballistic missiles—at altitudes up to 35 km (about 22 miles) and ranges of around 70 km (about 43 miles) or more.

Key features:

• Missile system: Uses the 9R31M missile, which is more precise and powerful than earlier Buk variants.

• Target capacity: Can track and engage up to 36 targets simultaneously, with faster reaction times than previous models.

• Mobility: Mounted on a tracked chassis, it’s designed for front-line deployment with Russian ground forces.

• Radar: Comes with an improved phased-array radar system, offering better resistance to electronic countermeasures and stealth aircraft.

Earlier, drones struck a secret Russian military base in the Stavropol region known as “Zvezda,” a key hub of Russia’s space-based signals intelligence operations, according to Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation on May 2.

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