Russia ‘studying captured ATACMS’

The Telegraph:  Russian forces have captured and are studying an intact guidance system from a long-range US-made ATACMS missile, according to reports.

RIA-Novosti, a Russian state media outlet, released a video set to dramatic music showing a man in military uniform wearing a balaclava sitting at a table in a warehouse inspecting the device.

Behind him were several shelves of land mines, missiles and other military hardware.

“We can, in principle, analyse the work of the missile systems at all stages of the flight trajectory, that is, the base of correction and how much it can be corrected because it flies along a complex ballistic trajectory,” the unnamed soldier said as he picked up the device to inspect.

A camera zooms in on the alleged tracking device to a label that identifies it as part of a US-made ATACMS with a specific serial number.

Neither the RIA-Novosti report nor the video footage explained how or when the device was captured. Russian experts said they would get to work immediately on working out how to use the captured device’s data to help the Kremlin’s air defence systems.

A crane is prepared for loading an ATACMS onto the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System - Sgt 1st Class Andrew Dickson/US Army

Viktor Litovkin, a retired Russian colonel, told the online Lenta.ru news portal that scientists would soon identify any weak spots.

“We can reconfigure our surface-to-air missile systems that are supposed to shoot it [the missile] down and we can reconfigure and fine-tune our electronic warfare systems against this missile,” he was quoted as saying.

ATACMS have a range of nearly 200 miles and have been one of Ukraine’s most potent weapons, knocking out command centres, warships and air bases.

The US only started supplying ATACMS to Ukraine in April as it was worried that using one of its most lethal missile systems would escalate the war.

Russian forces had complained about the speed and accuracy of the ATACMS. It is rare for Russian forces to shoot them down.