How great is the Russian Gibka-S Air Defense System on the Ukrainian Front Line today

 Hand Gibka-S VSHORAD System Officially Used by the Russian Army, Potentially Deployed in Special Military Operations.

Russian Gibka-S Air Defense System

Apart from the news of the MBT (Main Battle Tank) T-14 Amarta which Russia also deployed to the War in Ukraine, from the MANPADS (Man Portable Air Defense System) VSHORAD (Very Short Range Air Defense) missile segment, apparently Russia also made a surprise, namely with the potential the use of the Gibka-S air protection system (hand) mounted on the Tiger 4×4 “Russian Humvee” armored platform.

Lieutenant General Alexander Leonov, Commander of the Air Defense of the Russian Ground Forces, in an interview with the Red Star newspaper – Redstar.ru, revealed that part of the Gibka-S R&D work has been completed, now the Gibka-S self-propelled mobile air defense system is ready used. This year, for the first time, the first delivery of this type of combat vehicle will take place.”

The Gibka-S self-propelled mobile air defense system is a launch system consisting of eight Igla-S and missiles or Verba MANPADS, the configuration of which is four missiles ready to be launched on the launch rail.

“The Igla and Verba MANPADS have proven their performance well in operations in Ukraine. "Even if there are cases of missile misses, it leads to the pilot's refusal to carry out the next combat mission," said Leonov.

Gibka-S was developed by the Machine-Building Design Bureau (KBM). Gibka-S acceptance trials were completed in December 2019. The trials validated the specifications of the components used. Then, Gibka-S underwent preliminary trials before state trials. Completion of state trials is an important milestone in the commissioning of the system before the Russian armed forces officially use it.

Gibka-S can protect vital objects from the threat of low and very low-flying aircraft during the day and night. Gibka-S consists of two main components, namely the 9А332 combat vehicle (Kanpur) and the commander's reconnaissance and combat control vehicle (CRCV)

KBM is not alone in developing Gibka-S but collaborates with NPP Rubin, FGUP NII prikladnoy acoustici, Gosudarstvenny ryazanskiy priborny zavod, Saratovskiy aggregateny zavod, VNII Signal, and FGUP GosNIIAS.

9А332 Combat Vehicle

The Gibka-S light anti-aircraft system is based on the Kanpur 9А332. The vehicle is designed to carry a man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) operator, a missile payload, and associated equipment. This Rantis is capable of launching Igla-S missiles and Verba MANPADS, four missiles are ready to launch and four others are ready to load.

9А332 Combat Vehicle

As a launcher, the 9А332 can accommodate a crew of four, including two MANPADS anti-aircraft gunners, a commander, and a driver. This combat vehicle is also equipped with a missile remote control unit and an electro-optical tracking and targeting system.

For the missile used, the Igla-S 9M342 has a 72.2 mm caliber, is 1,690 mm long, and weighs 11.3 kg. This missile is powered by a solid propellant booster, the missile can attack targets flying at an altitude of up to 3,500 meters at a speed of 400 meters per second.

The Igla-S firing range has a maximum range of up to 6,000 meters. Igla-S adopts optical homing passive seeker guidance. The warhead uses high-explosive (HE) blast fragmentation with a proximity trigger and impact fuse.

Meanwhile, the Verba 9M336 missile, also in 72 mm caliber, has a target range and altitude similar to the Igla-S missile. Guided by a tri-mode passive homing seeker, the Verba missile carries a 2.5 kg HE warhead.

The Gibka-S light anti-aircraft system is also supported by the commander's reconnaissance and combat control vehicle (CRCV) for the battery commander. CRCV is intended for automatic control of MANPADS parts installed on combat vehicles.

CRCV

CRCV Equipped with a small Garmon 1L122-2E radar, this vehicle allows communication with higher command posts. Once a target is detected, the combat control vehicle notifies one of the combat vehicles to attack it. The radar has a target range of up to 40 km and can detect targets flying at an altitude of 10 km. The CRCV is crewed by a driver, commander, and radar operator.

In terms of vehicle performance, both the Ranpur 9А332 and CRCV 9S937 are based on the Tiger 4×4 armored vehicle. The Tiger platform can reach road speeds of more than 110 km per hour. This vehicle is 5.6 meters long and 2.4 meters wide. The Tiger 4×4 has an operational range of more than 1,000 km and can traverse water up to 1.2 meters deep.

The Gibka-S is a very short-range Russian anti-aircraft vehicle designed for anti-drone warfare, particularly against small commercial drones and very low-altitude targets. It must have a defense with great mobility capable of supporting the units on the ground. The vehicle is presented to the public for the first time in 20191.

The development of the Gibka-s was undertaken mainly by the subsidiary of the Russian defense group, the Machine-Building Design Bureau (KBM) but also by numerous other associated design offices. Following the proliferation of drones, the Russians wanted to benefit from a very affordable anti-aircraft system in terms of price to avoid using missiles costing several hundred thousand dollars against a drone costing less than $1000; following the war in Ukraine the usefulness of having this system became more and more obvious. 

Acceptance testing of the air defense system was completed in December 2019. The lightweight air defense system underwent preliminary testing before state testing. According to Russian media, the Gibka-S is currently being evaluated in Ukraine. Rostec, in an interview, discussed the feedback received following the deployment of the system and confirmed that its teams are traveling to the Ukrainian frontline to assist and evaluate the vehicle. 

Testing new military equipment in real combat operations before mass production is a very important procedure in military development. While laboratory and controlled environment testing provides initial data on a system's capabilities, real-world combat scenarios provide a different set of conditions that equipment may encounter. Field testing under these conditions can reveal how equipment performs under various combat stresses2.

The Gibka-S system is composed of at least 2 modified Tigr 4x4 armored vehicles, a launcher vehicle, and a radar vehicle. The Garmon 1L122-2E radar is installed on the roof of the Tigr, it would have a detection capacity of 80 km but only 10 km for small commercial drones. It can communicate with the launch vehicle up to a distance of 17 km and also communicate with higher-level command posts (multi-layer air defense). The launcher is equipped with 4 ready-to-fire MANPADS of the Igla-S or Verba type on a remotely operated turret which is installed on the roof as well as 4 missiles in stock inside. The missiles allow the Gibka to hit a target at a distance of 6 km and an altitude of 3.5 km.

After 2019, no new information about the complex has been received. It was not until early 2022 that the Ministry of Defense disclosed relevant information. It turned out that a contract for the production of the Gibka-S was signed and assembly began. The arrival of the first platoon kits to the troops was expected within a year. In 2023 we know that the Gibka will be used in Ukraine in operational conditions but also to finalize tests.

Gibka-S is a new self-propelled mobile air defence system developed by the Russian state-owned defence enterprise Machine-Building Design Bureau (KBM).

The acceptance trials of the very short-range air defense (VSHORAD) system were completed in December 2019. The trials validated the stated specifications of the system components.

The light air defense system underwent preliminary trials before the state trials. Completion of the state trials represents a significant milestone in the commissioning of the system with the Russian armed forces.

Gibka-S can protect deployed and marching units from the threat of low and extremely low-flying aircraft during day and night. It is composed of two major components, including a combat vehicle and a commander’s reconnaissance and combat control vehicle.

KBM collaborated with its partners, including NPP Rubin, FGUP NII prikladnoy akustiki, Gosudarstvenny ryazanskiy priborny zavod, Saratovskiy agregatny zavod, VNII Signal, and FGUP GosNIIAS, for the development of the Gibka-S VSHORAD system.