Pantsir S1 Live Firing
Saturday, 26.10.2019 | Training
Minister of Defense Aleksandar Vulin and Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, General Milan Mojsilović attended the live firing from combat weapons “Pantsir S1” (“SA-22 Greyhound”) as part of a Joint Tactical Exercise “Slovenski štit 2019” (“Slavic Shield 2019”) of the Rocket Units of the Air Defense of the Serbian Armed Forces and the Russian Aerospace Forces at “Pasuljanske Livade” Military Complex today.
After successful firing, Minister Vulin said that thanks to the agreement between Presidents Putin and Vučić, the Serbian Armed Forces are currently much more powerful and better equipped.
– Thanks to the implementation of the military-technical agreement, but also thanks to the enormous efforts of both Minister Shoigu and every member of our Armed Forces who has undergone training in the use of the “Pantsir S1” system, we can say that we are safer and more secure – said Minister Vulin, adding that it is a weapon that guarantees lasting peace and that “Pantsir S1” is now being integrated into the arms of the Serbian Armed Forces.
Commandant of the “Slavic Shield 2019“ Exercise, Commander of the 250 Rocket Brigade of the Air Force and Air Defence, Brigadier General Tiosav Janković said that the members of this unit and their colleagues from the Russian Aerospace Forces are together successfully performing the second stage of this exercise.
– It is the first exercise of this kind for the Air Defense Units, and it is of immense importance for both our Armed Forces and the colleagues from the Russian Federation. In this exercise, including the first stage at the Russian Federation, we learned a great deal about new technology, tactics and use of rocket systems, Rocket units for Air Defense, and those experiences will be invaluable for all of us in the coming period. Our young officers and non-commissioned officers, who are being trained to use the Artillery-Rocket system “Pantsir S1” for the Air Defense, were the first who had the opportunity to carry out their live shooting using this system. Thus, the 250th Rocket Brigade is significantly improving and upgrading its operational capabilities and I hope that in the coming period we will continue to carry out such important and highly significant tasks – General Janković said.
Captain Miloš Golubović, a member of the 250th Rocket Brigade, was part of the combat crews that carried out the shooting today. He pointed out that while shooting at ground targets, all of them were successfully destroyed by the cannon weapon.
– This task is extremely important for us, as well as for our colleagues from the Russian Federation, as we have gained exceptional experience that will be invaluable to us in executing the future tasks – said Capt. Golubović, who may boast that in addition to the experience gained during his training in the Russian Federation he has also “gained” another family member, since his second son was born.
Deputy Commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces, Lieutenant General Yuri Nikolaevich Grekhov assessed the exercise and cooperation with the members of the Serbian Armed Forces as excellent and added that it was the first training of this kind with his Serbian counterparts; he also added he was satisfied with the readiness of our combat crews and working together during the exercise.
After successfully performed shooting, General Grekhov presented Minister Vulin with a model of the “Pantsir S1” system.
For the purpose of the shooting, two “Pantsir S1” combat assets, with joint combat crews of the Serbian Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, were reassigned from the “Pukovnik-pilot Milenko Pavlović” (“Colonel-Pilot Milenko Pavlović”) Airport in Batajnica, to the “Pasuljanske livade” inter-service training grounds, where live shooting of ground targets was performed.
The Artillery-Rocket system for anti-aircraft operations “Pantsir S1” is intended for anti-aircraft defense of significant objects from reconnaissance and airborne operations, as well as protection of Air Defense units and war equipment.
