Strikes against the air defense “umbrella”: how the SBU’s Alpha unit broke through Russia’s $4 billion defense in a year
19 January 15:17
In 2025, long-range strikes by special forces from the Alpha Special Operations Center of the Security Service of Ukraine became one of the key factors in weakening Russia’s air defense system. According to Ukrainian estimates, the total cost of destroyed and disabled Russian air defense systems amounts to about $4 billion.
This is stated in a report by the SBU, as reported by "Komersant Ukrainian".
The SBU emphasizes that these are not isolated strikes, but a systematic campaign against the enemy’s echeloned defense.
What exactly was destroyed
According to the Security Service, key Russian air defense systems of various levels were hit. These include the S-300, S-350, and S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems, the Buk-M1 and Buk-M2 medium-range complexes, as well as the short-range Pantsir-S1/S2 and Tor complexes of various modifications.
At the same time, significant losses were also suffered by radar reconnaissance and guidance systems, a critically important element of any air defense system. These include the destruction of Nebo-U and Nebo-M radars, Podlot, Niobiy, Kasta-2E2, Gamma-D, Protivnik-GE, as well as radars that are part of the S-300, S-400, and Buk systems, in particular the 92N6 station.
What is the strategic effect?
The SBU emphasizes that this campaign resulted not only in the physical destruction of expensive equipment, but also in the creation of “corridors” in the Russian Federation’s multi-layered air defense system. This made it possible to secure relatively safe routes for Ukrainian long-range drones deep into Russian territory.
According to Ukrainian estimates, it is through these corridors that strikes are carried out on military bases, ammunition depots, airfields, and other Russian military infrastructure facilities.
The weakening of Russian air defense is seen as one of the key prerequisites for scaling up strikes on enemy rear facilities. At a time when Russia is spending significant resources on restoring its air defense systems, the systematic loss of radars and anti-aircraft systems is putting long-term pressure on its defense capabilities.
The SBU emphasizes that such tactics are aimed not only at reducing the effectiveness of air defense here and now, but also at undermining the Russian Federation’s ability to quickly close the airspace deep within its territory.
