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...These missiles will land on your a$$ if VN continues to provoke China. If a war breaks out and none of us will see any replies from you again then we can assume the missiles did their jobs, that's how "fake" they are to you.
VN wants peace, and always wishes to have a good relationship with China. It never attacks China first. But it must be prepared for a worst case.
‘Fire dragon’ guards Vietnam sky
http://tuoitrenews.vn
The surface-to-air missile system S-300PMU1 is deployed and ready to open fire
After launching missiles, the launcher of the S-300PMU1 system is stowed to move to other fighting sites (Photo: Nguyen Quoc Van)
Hanoi’s air defense missile force, or Force 64, under the Vietnam Army has been training on the system in order to be well prepared for any emergency.
A training session
At 10:00, Force 64 received an alert and went to ready status. Fighting vehicles were taken into fortified positions. Radar systems and missile launchers were erected.
Force 64 is equipped with the Russian-made S-300PMU1 SAM system. Within minutes, the complex is ready to launch missiles and destroy targets.
The air command control in charge of operating acquisition and detection radars and missiles launchers detected groups of targets entering into the airspace guarded by Force 64.
Major Nguyen Quoc Van, chief of the unit, ordered his radar system to establish the trajectory of the targets and identify the number and class of the targets, as well as other information such as coordinates, distance, altitude and velocity.
The illumination and guidance radar, called 30N6E, of the S-300PMU1 is considered a super-genie eye which utilizes multi-channel and multi-function pulse-Doppler antennae. The surveillance radar can detect aircraft, strategic cruise missiles, tactical battlefield ballistic missiles and any stealth flying targets with a reflection surface as small as 0.02 square meters flying in massive enemy air raids and heavy clutter.
The S-300PMU1 has superb missile kinematics, high-powered aperture phased array radar capability, and high immunity to severed electronic hamming thus requiring unusually intense defence suppression efforts from enemy forces.
Tens of monitors display info on the hostile flying targets and the status of the SAM system in launching missiles to destroy the opposing force.
Chief Van admitted “the commanding officers of the S-300PMU1 don’t hold guns as infantry. We fight through monitors of control systems and signals.”
In the ground command unit, officers were communicating with morse code signals, displayed on two large monitors for air and firepower surveillance info.
“After tracking targets in detail, we asked for permission to attack them with two missiles,” a target surveillance officer reported.
Launch officer Nguyen Thanh Nguyen was given an order to open fire. Two missiles left the launcher at a speed of 1,900 meters a second, quickly destroying the airborne targets.
It is a possible situation that officers of Force 64 have made part of regular training.
Servicemen operating the illumination and guidance radar system 30N6E to detect and track hostile flying targets (Photo: Nguyen Quoc Van)
Robust firepower
“We realize that the S-300PMU1 is a very modern munitions system, and we take pride in having such equipment handed over to us,” said Major Van.
The S-300PMU1 is regarded as one of the most potent anti-aircraft missile systems currently fielded. It can defeat any modern strike aircraft, strategic cruise missiles, tactical battlefield ballistic missiles and other flying stealth targets over an area of 1,600 square kilometers, which surpasses the US’s Patriot system, with a coverage of just 300 sq.km.
With high precision, the S-300 system can give nightmares to hostile air forces.
The S-300 system can also detect flying targets within 300km and hit them from 3 to 150 kilometers away and at an altitude of 10 meters to 27 kilometers. It can track 100 targets at the same time and fire at six targets at once. It manages 12 missiles and can launch two missiles at each.
A target hurtling at a speed of 10,000kph can fall prey to the Russian SAM system.
The equipment can be deployed within five minutes and be prepared for launch from any unprepared site, whereas the Patriot requires 30 minutes for deployment. Within 40 seconds, the system can go from standby status to fighting status.
The unit is composed of a radar system, up to eight missile launchers each carrying four guided missiles, supplementary and maintenance units, and a missile storage station, all of which is placed on a tractor that can climb a hill of 30 degrees, cross a 2.5m deep ditch, wade 1.3m under water, and operate for 500km non-stop.
The system can also carry warheads and missiles and maintain them on the spot. It is designed for 'shoot and scoot', in which the unit fires and immediately moves, within five minutes thanks to rapid erection and launch preparation.
Each vehicle of the kind is operated by two officials -- a commander and a driver cum radar operator.
Any officer working with the S-300 system, even a driver, is well trained in Russia. All staff graduated the foreign training courses with an A+ grade.
Major Nguyen Quoc Van was sent to Russia for two years of training before going back home last September to take over as the chief of Force 64. He is assisted by vice chief and chief of staff Nguyen Tran Luyen, 35.
All other staff of the unit are less than 32 years old, and the youngest one is only 24.
Force 64 is one of 13 units belonging to Air Defense Division 361, which was established in 1961 to defend Hanoi.
In a 12-day operation in late 1972, the division played the key role in protecting Hanoi’s airspace. It shot down 29 aircraft including 25 B-52 strategic bombers of the US Air Force.