The British-supplied Storm Shadow missile is exactly the long-range weapon President Zelensky has been hoping for. This plays an important role when Ukraine destroys Russian logistics and supplies before its counterattack.
It is a cruise missile weighing about 1,300 kg. The combat load is 450 kg. That is, much bigger than the Hymers rocket, said Pekka Toveri, former intelligence chief of the General Staff, in ISTV’s Ukriana studios, with a video clip as the main image of the article.
– This gives a clear advantage to Ukraine, since the border is 250 kilometers. The missiles used by the British armed forces have a range of about 560 kilometers, Toveri says, and adds that there is no certainty about the range of the missiles delivered to Ukraine.
The Storm Shadow missile is a five meter tall, 1,300 kg rocket. Here it is attached to the underside of a British Royal Air Force Tornado fighter aircraft. Photo: Cpl Craig Fryer RAF
Storm Shadow is an expensive weapon system. The unit price of the missile is more than two million euros.
There is no official information about the number of missiles sent to Ukraine.
– They should be used only for very valuable goals, says Toveri.
– The first thing that comes to mind is the Kartshinsalmi bridge, they say.
The bridge connecting the Crimean peninsula to Russia is an important structure for the military administration of Crimea.
President Vladimir Putin began its construction at the height of his power, when Russia annexed the peninsula belonging to Ukraine in 2014. The 19 kilometer long structure was completed in 2018.
Already last August, Ukraine was able to damage the bridge with a carefully planned explosives operation. It was a huge humiliation for Russia, which has struggled to restore carriage and rail traffic on the bridge.
Now with the help of Storm Shadow, Ukraine has the capability to strike, says Toveri and emphasizes the enormous destructive power of the missile’s dual warhead, which is enough to destroy a huge bridge.
On the morning of August 6, 2022, a bomb explosion planned by a Ukrainian operation occurred on the Kershinsalmi bridge. The fire continued for a long time and the bridge was badly damaged. Photo: Kommersant Photo Agency / Sipa USA / MVfoto
According to Major General EVP, the first stage of Ukraine’s planned blockade of the Crimean peninsula is to cut off land connections from Russia in the direction of Kherson and down to Crimea.
If this offensive operation is successful, the entire supply of Crimea will depend on the bridgehead in Crimea.
– If the bridge could be cut, then maintaining the direction of Crimea and Kherson after that became very difficult, practically impossible, says Toveri.
Comrade says that the Russians also depend on many of their air bases in Crimea. The air force’s mission is to support troops and fortresses on the southern coast of Ukraine.
– If all these can be negated and the Russians are forced to withdraw their demonstrations from Russia, they (the Air Force) will be several hundred kilometers away from the supported forces.
– It makes movement of Ukrainians much easier and movement of Russians much more difficult.
According to the ex-intelligence chief, Russia is currently examining the security situation at the port of Sevastopol, the main base of the Black Sea Fleet.
– Can we stay there longer, thinks Toveri.
– Ships on the docks of the port are tasty targets. It may be that they have to retreat to the Russian side, out of bounds.
The Storm Shadow missile is launched from the air. In the picture is the British Tornado fighter plane, which has two such missiles in its hull.
The British government has received assurances from the Ukrainian Armed Forces that it will only use Storm Shadow cruise missiles within the national borders of Ukraine.
Does the agreement contain information that the Crimean Peninsula belongs to Ukraine?
– Great Britain has not accepted Crimea as part of Russia, the Tovarian states.
Previous attacks in Ukraine, e.g. In Kharkiv and Kherson, before the successful destruction of Russian command centers, ammunition depots and logistics centers, e.g. With the Hymers rocket launcher.
The Hymers systems delivered to Ukraine by the United States are equipped with missiles with a range of 80 kilometers.
According to comrades, Russia has already learned to live with Himar.
– He moved the most important leadership and command posts, as well as maintenance and logistics centers, at least 80 kilometers from the front, so that they would be safe from the Himars.
The resistance to Storm Shadow missiles arriving at the battle site forces Russia to move all its support at least 250 kilometers from the front.
This also applies to underground bunkers, as the missile can be equipped with various warheads such as “bunker busters”, which penetrate deep into the concrete.
In other words, important command posts are also in danger. This forces the Russians to either move command centers further away or decentralize them.
The homing capability of the Storm Shadow missile is superior to that of the Hymers Rocket System projectile.
It’s been reported that GPS-guided HIMERS rockets are capable of being intercepted, says Toveri, so they don’t always hit accurately.
– More difficult to intercept than GPS jamming or other electronic jamming. It also uses inertial navigation and terrain radar to follow a planned route.
Luhansk, which is still under Russian control, has been hit by some cruise missiles. The city is located well over 80 kilometers from the front, so it has been assumed that Storm Shadow missiles were involved.
There is no certainty about this yet. Ukraine has some of its own cruise missile equipment, Toveri says.
He refers to Ukraine’s Crimea missile system, a ground-launched cruise missile with a range of 200-300 km.
– It has apparently been brought into operational ready. It may have been used this time and not Storm Shadow.
In the video above, Pekka Tower’s studio interview (May 16, 2022) in full.
