On 17 September 2019, the Israeli news outlet NZIV, citing a number of military sources, published the flight route of the Israeli stealth fighters, that struck eastern Syria.
According t the flight route of the Israeli F-35s it turned out, the IAF F-35s, not only entered the Syrian airspace but also flew for almost several hundred kilometers over the area covered by Russian S-400 and Syrian S-300 air defense systems.
Russian air defense systems and fighters jets didn’t attempt to intercept Israel’s F-35s. This may suggest that Russian stealth detection either systems failed to detect Israeli F-35s or they did not have permission from Russian armed forces to take action against Israeli warplane.
Here is a detailed analysis Why S-300 Russia’s air defenses In Syria Not Being Used Against Israeli Aircraft
IAF Airstrikes carried outputs in question the effectiveness of Russian air and missile defense systems since two other Israeli warplanes were able to enter the Syrian air space without any hindrance.
Given the fact that Russia had previously warned Netanyahu of its readiness to respond adequately, it seems that the Russian air defense systems simply did not notice the Israeli warplanes.
As we have previously reported earlier:
- on 16 September 2019, Russia Threatens To Shoot Down Israeli Planes Using Its Fighter Jets & S-400 Stationed In Syria
- on 19 September 2019, Russia Gave Syrian Military Green Light To Use S-300 Missile Defense System Against Israeli Targets
Despite completing the installation of their S-300 batteries in the Masyaf area of Hama this year, the Syrian Armed Forces have yet to use these air defense systems against the Israeli warplanes that have repeatedly bombed the country.
However, based on what Avia. Pro has reported, the Syrian Armed Forces appear to be reliant on the Russian military to use these air defense systems against the Israeli Air Force jets that violate their airspace.
So the main question is Syrian S-300 air defense systems is capable to detect and destroy F-35 Super-Stealth fighter jet? Here is our analysis on Syrian S-300 is not capable of defeating the F-35 Super-Stealth fighter jet.
In spite of previously reached agreements between Russia and Israel and because of the recent ramping up of Israeli strikes on Syrian territory, the source claimed that the Syrian military received permission to use its air defense systems in the event of the slightest threat from Israel, provided that the Syrian side bears responsibility for such actions.
“Russia allowed the Syrian military to bring the S-300 to full combat readiness and attack Israeli aircraft in the event of the slightest threat,” the source said.
Information regarding this appeared a day after Israeli F-35 fighter jets struck targets in Syria, completely ignoring Moscow’s position on the issue.
According to some reports, before the end of this month, the Syrian Arab Army may receive the BAVAR-373 Iranian air defense system. Iran claims that the system is allegedly capable of detecting stealth targets, potentially including the Israeli F-35 fighter jets, at distances up to 150-180 kilometers.
On Sep. 17, 2019, Israel struck positions at the Iraqi-Syrian border near al-Qa’im and al-Bukamal, the second strike within a month on the same allegedly Iranian military base. The same location was targeted by IAF warplanes on Sep. 8.
After the most recent strike, there were no reports of casualties but the Sep. 8 one allegedly killed several service members.
On the very next day, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed that Iranian-backed militants had launched attacks on the country from within Syria, potentially being the reason for the strike on al-Bukamal.
