Unguided rockets vs SPAAGS

donnage99

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With the recent announcement of germany transfering gepard to ukraine.

Can a helicopter engage something like a gepard with unguided rocket with any real chance of success or it's just gonna get shot down?
 
All probably depends on the ranges involved, speed of rockets …
 
Not with unguided rockets, now a Hellfire or even a TOW is another story, but a Gepard is a small target especially at long ranges.
 
With the recent announcement of germany transfering gepard to ukraine.

Can a helicopter engage something like a gepard with unguided rocket with any real chance of success or it's just gonna get shot down?

Unlikely. To use rockets one has to be flying towards the target. Aerial rockets generally have a maximum range of 2.5km-3 km (although theoretical ballistic ranges are sometimes higher). The Gepard has a maximum range of 4km.

Helicopters would be engaging with missiles though - with Vikhr giving about 8km range and Ataka closer to 6km they can easily outrange the Gepard. However, to do so they have to see the Gepard first. If the safe window is only 2km-4km wide (and more than 4km away from the SPAAG to begin with) the probability increases that the helicopter won't spot the Gepard until it is already within range of the Gepard.

So this system is quite dangerous to helicopters, even if the Mi-28, Ka-52, and some versions of the Mi-24 can theoretically attack it with guided missiles from ranges at which they are immune.
 
To my knowledge gained by following @gepardtatze on Twitter, it is standard practice to place six MANPADS teams in a hexagon around the Gepard with each of the teams being a few kilometres away from the Gepard to try to shoot down any helicopter which tries to attack the Gepard with missiles beyond the range of the Gepard's guns. Additionally, the modernised 1A2 version of the Gepard which the Ukrainians received from Germany can receive data from external radars via a datalink so it need not use its own search radar which is oin any case rather jam-resistant. In such a situation the first thing the RWR of a targetted helicopter notices besides the external search radar is the firce control radar of the Gepard if the unit has not decided to rely solely on the rangefinding laser. In such a case the helicopter is most likely doomed.
 
To my knowledge gained by following @gepardtatze on Twitter, it is standard practice to place six MANPADS teams in a hexagon around the Gepard with each of the teams being a few kilometres away from the Gepard to try to shoot down any helicopter which tries to attack the Gepard with missiles beyond the range of the Gepard's guns.
... and of course, it is useful and responsible to circulate more widely this type of information, just in case the aggressors failed to notice it. The invasion HQ is grateful for your support.
 
Two things, if I may, I can't but help notice the erratic pull-up and firing of unguided rocket procedure by both Russian and Ukrainian helicopters - there seems to be no attempt of aiming or accuracy, which seems both wasteful of both helicopters and rockets.
Secondly, with the irrefutable neglect (and arrogance) of AAA/SPAAG by NATO armies for that of missiles (remembering the Germans had infact withdrawn thier Gepard's from operational service), I'm thinking and hoping the true practicality of designing and fielding AAA/SPAAG systems in the West.

Regards
Pioneer
 
To my knowledge gained by following @gepardtatze on Twitter, it is standard practice to place six MANPADS teams in a hexagon around the Gepard with each of the teams being a few kilometres away from the Gepard to try to shoot down any helicopter which tries to attack the Gepard with missiles beyond the range of the Gepard's guns.
... and of course, it is useful and responsible to circulate more widely this type of information, just in case the aggressors failed to notice it. The invasion HQ is grateful for your support.
As far as I know, everything @gepardtatze posts is already available on public sources and should be quite self-evident to any specialist of air defence. Of course, both the Russian intelligence services and air defence forces seem to have performed miserably during this war, so one can never be quite sure, if they have yet learned about these things...
 

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