Reuters photo

Yesterday details of the incident in the Baltic Sea became known. According to the Pentagon, supported by photo and video materials, Russian Su-24 bombers in the company of a Ka-27 carrier-based helicopter for two days, dangerously maneuvering at extremely low altitudes and periodically simulating attacks, made overflights of the American destroyer Donald Cook, taking part in the maneuvers together with the Polish Naval Forces. The European command has already expressed deep concern about the "unprofessional maneuvers of Russian aircraft." Concerns about the incident were also expressed in the White House. At the same time, it is noted that attempts to contact the pilots in English and Russian were unsuccessful.

But the Russian Ministry of Defense promptly responded. The official representative of the military department, Major General Igor Konashenkov, made it clear that he was very surprised by the "painful reaction of American colleagues." According to him, flying around the American destroyer in neutral waters, the crews of Russian bombers acted with the utmost precaution. “Having found the ship in the zone of visual visibility,” the general specified, “the pilots turned away from it in compliance with all security measures.”

In general, between two great nuclear powers another exchange of pleasantries took place, characteristic of the coming ice age cold war. But if objectively, ours flew around the "Donald Cook" really famously, while the flight height was no more than 30 m. Once the Su-24 even passed below the ship's superstructures - so much so that the jet streams raised excitement, says an American observer.

With the arrival of Sergei Shoigu in the Ministry of Defense, Russian aviation finally began to take to the air regularly, and after the annexation of Crimea - no matter how they relate to this historical episode! - some state will was also designated. By the way, the destroyer "Donald Cook" already had the opportunity to feel it on his metal skin.

IN Soviet times the American fleet very rarely - all cases can be counted on the fingers - dared to look into the Black Sea. But with the advent of independent Ukraine, it generally ceased to crawl out of these waters, which are very significant in the defense sense for Russia. First, there are more legal grounds for permanent presence. Secondly, it was believed that Moscow did not have military arguments to seriously object.

At least the crew of the same destroyer "Donald Cook", which appeared exactly two years ago (April 10, 2014) in the neutral waters of the Black Sea, felt like the master of the situation. The latest combat information and control system "Aegis", which allows you to simultaneously track hundreds of targets, and almost a hundred Tomahawk cruise missiles in nuclear and conventional equipment, with a launch range of up to 2500 km - this was, of course, the strongest argument. Therefore, the appearance of the unarmed Su-24 at first did not make much of an impression. But exactly until the moment when the bomber crew turned on the Khibiny electronic warfare complex: the Donald Cook immediately became blind and deaf - in other words, it turned into a piece of floating iron with which you could do anything. And the Su-24 simulated 12 attacks and went back on course.

As it became known later, as a result of a meeting with the Russian Su-24, the entire crew of the Donald Cook was demoralized, and 27 American sailors immediately wrote reports for dismissal from the fleet. Naturally, from the banks of the Potomac, Russia was immediately accused of “violating its own traditions and international treaties". But what is noteworthy is that before all the insistent requests of Moscow “not to turn the Black Sea into another NATO training ground”, the Americans did not react at all, but the Khibiny for some reason acted immediately ...

But the lessons, apparently, need to be reinforced. In response to the protests of the American side in connection with the latest incident in the Baltic, General Igor Konashenkov noted that the destroyer of the US Navy "Donald Cook" was, although in neutral waters, but still 70 km from the main naval base of the Baltic Fleet (g . Baltiysk) - that is, at the range of use of airborne weapons. And with a huge margin. So our reaction was not so unreasonable. In addition, “the principle of freedom of navigation of the US destroyer does not at all cancel the principle of freedom of aeronautics of Russian aircraft,” noted official representative Ministry of Defense of Russia.

By the way, quite recently, in the same area, over the Baltic, our Su-27s had to drive away NATO fighters attached to the plane of Sergei Shoigu, on board of which was one of the nuclear buttons assigned to the Minister of Defense ex officio. Then everything worked out. Still, the military is better to stay away from each other. Nothing good is expected from international contacts with the use of ships and military aviation.

USS Donald Cook (DDG-75) is an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer of the United States Navy.

Donald Cook - Vietnam War POW who died in captivity, the destroyer was commissioned in 1998. She was one of the first U.S. warships to come to the rescue of the USS Cole, which was damaged by suicide bombers on October 12, 2000. In 2003, the USS Donald Cook launched Tomahawk packets during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Donald Cook was featured as the "Super-Fast Warship" on Build It Bigger.

February 16, 2012, Secretary navy Ray Mabus has appointed the destroyer "Donald Cook" as one of four ships to be based in the port of Rota, Spain.

Modernization

November 12, 2009 Agency missile defense announced that Donald Cook will be upgraded during fiscal 2012 to RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) capabilities, allowing it to operate as part of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System.

USS "Donald Cook"
USS Donald Cook (DDG-75)
Service: USA
Vessel class and type Destroyer URO (Guided Missile Destroyer)
Home port Naval Base Norfolk
Organization US Navy
Manufacturer Bath Iron Works
Ordered for construction January 19, 1993
Construction started July 9, 1996
Launched into the water May 3, 1997
Commissioned August 21, 1998
Status in service

Main characteristics
Displacement 6783 long tons, 8915 long tons (gross)
Length 153.92 m (maximum), 142.3 m (waterline)
Width 20, 1 m., 18.0 m (at the waterline)
Draft 9.4 m (with GAS), 7.3 m (without GAS)
Booking No
Engines 4 General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbine units
Power 108000 l. With.
mover 2
travel speed 32 knots (maximum)
cruising range 4400 miles at 20 knots.
Crew 337 people (including 23 officers)

Armament
Tactical strike weapons 2 launchers of the Aegis system for 29 (bow) and 61 (stern) missile cells, respectively. In various combinations, they can arm themselves: Tomahawk KR Tomahawk, RIM-66 SM-2 Standard-2 SAM, RUM-139 ASROC PLUR
Artillery 1*1 127mm. AU Mark 45. Mod. 3/54 cal., 600 rounds
Flak 2 6-barrel 20 mm. ZAU "Phalanx"
Missile weapons 2*4 RCC Harpoon
up to 74 RIM-66 SM-2 Standard-2 missiles
Anti-submarine weapons PLUR RUM-139 ASROC
Mine and torpedo armament 2*3 324mm. TA Mk. 32 (torpedoes Mk.46 and Mk.50)
Aviation group 1 SH-60 LAMPS helicopter, no hangar

Course to the Black Sea

On April 8, 2014, US military officials confirmed the USS Donald Cook's trip to the Black Sea as part of US military support to its allies in Eastern Europe, concerned about the build-up Russian troops along its border with Ukraine.

Today, April 11, the large reconnaissance ship "Dupuy-de-Lom" has joined it. In addition, it is expected that on April 14, the destroyer Duplex of the French Navy will also enter the Black Sea," the source said.

"Thus, taking into account the fact that the Alize rescue ship of the French Navy has been in the southwestern part of the Black Sea since the end of March, for the first time since 2008 in the Black Sea basin, near Russian border, a NATO naval group is being created," he said.

According to a source in the Russian military department, representatives of the alliance no longer claim that the visits of their warships to the Black Sea are planned. "Now they openly declare that these visits are directly related to the events in Ukraine," the Defense Ministry spokesman added.

Why NATO sends ships to the Black Sea

He explained that NATO, sending ships to the Black Sea, pursues several goals at once. Lavrov: Russia calls for compliance with the Montreux Convention on the presence of military vessels in the Black Sea Crimea and other regions of Russia bordering Ukraine, including conducting radio and electronic intelligence against our armed forces," the source said.

According to him, the United States and France, in accordance with the Montreux Convention, sent a notification of the entry of their ships into the Black Sea to the Turkish side in advance. He recalled that the current entry of an American ship into the Black Sea is already the fourth in a row since February this year. "During the current" Black Sea activation "Donald Cook" may visit the ports of Turkey and Romania. It is not yet known whether he will call at the Ukrainian port of Odessa to demonstrate US support for the current leadership in Kiev," the source said.

How Russia assesses US actions in the Black Sea

He specifically noted that the Russian military department regards the appearance in the Black Sea of ​​an American warship With anti-missile system"Aegis" as the desire of the United States "to bring the naval component of its missile defense system as close as possible to the territory of Russia."

Taking into account the fact that the installation of missile defense elements on the land territory of the US European allies, in particular Romania, is a lengthy process, the Americans have taken the line to increase the intensity of their warships with an anti-missile system entering the Black Sea, the interlocutor emphasized. - Since February of this year, US Navy ships have been in the Black Sea on a regular periodic basis. Instead of one American ship that left the Black Sea, another immediately appears, or even several. It is quite possible that this practice will also be applied to destroyers with the Aegis missile defense system.

As previously reported, "Donald Cook" will be the first of four American ships that form the main strike element of the initial stage of the deployment of the missile defense system in Europe. They are equipped with the Aegis anti-missile system with the SM-3 (SM-3) submunition capable of destroying ballistic missiles in atmospheric space. These forces will be combined into single system with an early warning radar in Turkey and a ground-based Aegis missile launcher under construction in Romania, to be delivered to combat duty in 2018.

What is the Montreux Convention on the Limitation of the Presence of Warships in the Black Sea

According to the provisions of the Montreux Convention on the regime for the passage of warships to the Black Sea through the Dardanelles and Bosporus, the presence of warships of non-Black Sea countries in the Black Sea cannot exceed 21 days, and the total tonnage of ships of each country is 30 thousand tons. In February of this year during Olympic Games in Sochi in the Black Sea there were two American ships at once - the headquarters "Mount Whitney" and the frigate "Taylor". The first of them withstood the terms of the Montreux Convention, and the second overstayed them under the pretext of repairing a propeller failure in the Turkish port of Samsun when leaving the Black Sea. In March, against the background of the crisis in Ukraine and the tense situation in the Crimea, another American ship, the destroyer Thruxton, appeared in the Black Sea, which visited the ports of Romania and Bulgaria and conducted joint exercises at sea with the ships of the navies of these countries. The American command called this visit planned. Thraxton also did not violate the terms of the Montreux Convention, entering the Black Sea on March 7 and leaving it on March 21.

Mediterranean (January 14, 2003) - The guided missile destroyer Donald Cook conducts a mission in support of Operation Enduring Freedom as part of a planned six-month deployment. Donald Cook is part of the Carrier Battle Group (CVBG) owned by the USS Harry Truman Aircraft Carrier Group (CVN 75). US Navy Photographer 1st Class Michael Pendergrass. Central Command area of ​​operations (March 21, 2003) - missile destroyer Donald Cook underway. Donald Cook was the first surface ship to fire Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAM) for the liberation of Iraq. Donald Cook was based in Norfolk, Virginia and held combat missions in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. US Navy photo by Alan J. Beribo.
At sea aboard the USS Donald Cook (DDG 75) January 13, 2003 - Boatswain 3rd Class Randal S. Davis directs an SH-60 Sea Hawk helicopter on the landing pad of the USS Donald Cook. US Navy Photographer 1st Class Michael Pendergrass.
(April 9, 2003) - Missile destroyer Donald Cook during operations in support of the operation to liberate Iraq and destroy the regime of Saddam Hussein. US Navy photo by journalist Alan J. Beribo. (April 23, 2003) - missile destroyer Donald Cook. A 5-inch (127 mm) Mark 45 gun is fired. US Navy photo by journalist Alan J. Beribo. Atlantic Ocean (April 29, 2009) A Harpoon missile is launched from the USS Donald Cook during exercise Unitas. The countries participating in the exercise are Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Germany, Mexico, Peru, the United States and Uruguay. (U.S. Navy photo specialist mass communications Patrick Grieco.
(April 23, 2003) - missile destroyer Donald Cook (DDG 75). Torpedo firing exercises reusable. US Navy photo by journalist Alan J. Beribo. (April 23, 2003) Electrician 3rd Class Brandon Yakubovsky, left, and Controller 2nd Class Chad Kurtmansch of the crew of the destroyer Donald Cook secured the torpedo to the ropes. US Navy photo by journalist Alan J. Beribo.
Red Sea (March 19, 2003) Donald Cook (DDG 75) launches one of his Tomahawk surface-to-surface missiles at military installations in Iraq. Donald Cook is part of the USS Harry Truman Group operating in the Red Sea in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. US Navy photo of Journalist 2nd Class Patrick Reilly.
Central Command Operations Area (March 21, 2003) Donald Cook (DDG 75) launches one of his Tomahawk surface-to-surface missiles at military installations in Iraq. Donald Cook is part of the USS Harry Truman Group operating in the Red Sea in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. US Navy photo of Journalist 2nd Class Patrick Reilly. US Navy photo by journalist Alan J. Beribo. Central Command Area of ​​Responsibility (April 8, 2003) Seaman Angela Dellarvelle of Poohetton, Ohio, explores the surface beyond the guided missile destroyer Donald Cook. US Navy photo by journalist Alan J. Beribo.

Reasons for the imperfection of domestic ATGMs

We still do not have third-generation anti-tank missiles
……
COMPARING MI-28 AND APAC

Consider the combat capabilities of the Mi-28N helicopter, which are determined by the electronic filling. The effectiveness of reconnaissance and weapon control depends on it.
The adoption of any model should be accompanied by an assessment of its effectiveness and a comparison of combat capabilities with an analogue of the enemy. Let's try to make such a comparison in relation to the Mi-28N and AN-64 Apache.
The Mi-28N helicopter is designed to destroy ground and air targets. Particularly noteworthy is the analysis of the process of destroying armored vehicles with the help of Shturm-SM ATGMs. In this situation, the use of a missile laser beam guidance system is extremely dangerous, since the total time for a visual search for a ground target and missile control is much longer than the reaction time modern means military air defense enemy.
Reaction time refers to the time from helicopter detection to departure anti-aircraft missile With launcher, which for a short-range anti-aircraft missile and gun complex is 4–10 s. The Mi-28N is most dangerous when firing at a distance of 6 km, which requires an increase in flight altitude to ensure reliable visual contact with the target. With the price of a helicopter equal to the price of three or four Abrams, the Shturm-SM missile in conditions foreign funds military air defense will not solve the problem of hitting targets, taking into account the criterion of effectiveness-cost
Taking into account the firing range of 6 km for the Shturm-SM missile, the time to complete a combat mission will always exceed the reaction time of military air defense, which will lead to the defeat of the Mi-28N. Taking into account that during the creation of the Shturm-SM missile, the option of hitting the M1A2 SEP tank equipped with SAZ was not worked out, it is difficult to believe that there are serious indicators of the effectiveness of hitting the Abrams.
The main drawback of the Mi-28N is its outdated weapons, which are not capable of hitting targets without entering the enemy’s military air defense zone. These helicopters in the ranks army aviation are unlikely to make a significant contribution to air support ground forces. This applies to all Mi helicopters with Shturm-SM missiles.
The avionics of the Apache Longbow helicopter and the homing head (GOS) of the Hellfire missiles were developed under conditions high level development of radio-electronic and other technologies. The Hellfire ATGM has been constantly upgraded and has gone from a second generation missile (AGM-114A) with a semi-active laser seeker to a third generation missile (AGM-114L) using a radar seeker. When creating the Longbow ATGM complex, a significant reduction in the time spent by a helicopter under aimed enemy fire when aiming missiles was pursued due to highly intelligent avionics and the ability to launch salvo missiles at a cluster of armored vehicles. “

According to the data received, on April 12, 2014, the following happened in the waters of the Black Sea. The Russian flew 12 times over the USS Donald Cook at sea, simulating a combat attack. Despite the fact that, according to some reports, the bomber was not armed, he used electronic warfare, completely turning off all the destroyer's air defenses. Which not only did not allow everything to be put on alert, but also completely demoralized the entire naval crew.

What happened

Donald Cook - destroyer with guided missile weapons, which are based on Tomahawk cruise missiles, capable of carrying not only conventional, but also nuclear charges and hitting their target at a distance of up to 2,500 kilometers.

The Su-24 is a Russian front-line bomber, which is used to deliver missile and bomb strikes in any weather conditions with accurate destruction of ground and air targets. By the way, during the victory parade in Yekaterinburg, one of the modifications of such a bomber was involved.

Donald Cook went to the Black Sea to maintain peace and stability in the region, according to the US representative. The ship was moving along the sea border of Russia, which is why the Russian military considered these actions provocative and sent bombers to meet them. The main goal was to make clear American sailors that it is not worth crossing our maritime border.

During a simple overflight of the SU-24 on April 12, 2014 in the Black Sea over Donald Cook, the pilots used electronic warfare equipment, completely extinguishing all the destroyer's equipment and simulating an attack. Having performed these actions as many as 12 times, the pilots turned back to the base, and only after they disappeared on the horizon did the ship's equipment work. The destroyer, all this time, could only stand and do nothing.

Consequences and comments

Such an action, committed by Russian pilots on April 12, 2014, completely demoralized the crew of Donald Cook at sea. After all, the destroyer itself is a powerful enough ship, and such a target as an ordinary SU-24 bomber does not pose a danger to it. However, in our case, the Americans were powerless, although they acted in accordance with the charter. The sailors were completely demoralized, because their warship, designed to deal with such targets, was completely devoid of combat capability. It was this fact that led to the dismissal of 27 crew members, who were at that moment at sea, the destroyer Donald Cook. As the main reason for dismissal, they all indicated the unwillingness to endanger their lives.

As for the comments from the government of the Russian Federation, as it turned out later, V.V. Putin did not give an order to use means of suppression and electronic warfare. All this happened at the initiative of the Russian pilots themselves. But, thus showing superiority over US forces, no serious measures were taken against the pilots. But the Ministry of Defense did not comment on the event either.

A new ritual of meeting uninvited guests is a repeated flight by a combat aircraft of the Russian Air Force. A polite reminder of who is the boss on the Black Sea. Next time, another polite plane will arrive with polite missiles. The Black Sea is the Russian Sea. For centuries!

"The Su-24 bomber flew several times in close proximity to the US Navy destroyer Donald Cook, which entered the waters of the Black Sea on April 12. This is reported by Reuters, citing Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steve Warren. According to him, the plane is at a low altitude made 12 passes over the "Donald Cook" at a time when she was in the northern part of the Black Sea.

In connection with the keen interest of the public in the topic of the Navy and, in particular, in the incident with the overflight of the American destroyer, I propose detailed overview the current situation with a description of the possibilities of both parties. What threat could the bomber and destroyer pose to each other? What is this "Cook" capable of, and what is the danger of its appearance on the very shores of Russia?

USS Donald Cook (DDG-75)

Aegis guided missile destroyer - the 25th ship of the " Orly Burke". Belongs to the obsolete "sub-series II". Bookmark date - 1996, launching - 1997, acceptance into the fleet - 1998. currently assigned to the naval base of Rota (Mediterranean coast of Spain).

The ship is small - 154 meters in length, the total displacement is about 9000 tons. Regular crew - 280 people. The cost of the destroyer is a billion dollars in 1996 prices.


Cook is famous for being the first to launch a missile at Iraq on a March night in 2003.


He really has a lot of missiles. 90 below-deck UVP Mk.41 cells, each of which can contain a Tomahawk tactical missile launcher, ASROC-VL anti-submarine missile torpedo, Stenderd-2 long-range anti-aircraft missile, ESSM short-range missiles (4 in one cell) or an atmospheric interceptor SM-3 American missile defense system. It is possible to use obsolete self-defense missiles "SiSparrow". By the end of this decade, LRASM anti-ship munitions are promised to appear in launch cells.

Thus, a modest destroyer is capable of carrying the entire range missile weapons, which is in service with the US Navy (with the exception of ballistic missiles submarine-based). The number and type of missiles can vary in any proportion, increasing the number of strike or defensive weapons. The composition of the ammunition load is determined by the current task.

This is an extremely powerful and versatile ship, whose strike capabilities surpass those of any cruisers and destroyers in other countries. Even those who are much larger than Cook. There are no analogues to this ship in the Russian Navy yet.

However, do not overestimate American destroyer. Its strike capabilities are great, but limited to the only format of warfare "fleet against coast". High-precision Tomahawk SLCMs are good for attacking the most important objects of military and civilian infrastructure in the depths of enemy territory, but they cannot help the destroyer in sea combat (the BGM-109B TASM anti-ship version of the Tomahawk was decommissioned 10 years ago). Before the advent of promising LRASM, the only anti-ship weapons destroyer "Cook" to date, there are 4 small-sized subsonic anti-ship missiles "Harpoon", located in the stern of the ship.


"Donald Cook" and the British complex supply ship RFA Wave Ruler

And yet, Orly Burke-class super destroyers were not designed to launch Tomahawks at those who disagree with White House policy. The main "chip" of these ships has always been the "Aegis" ("Aegis") - a combat information and control system that linked all the means of detection, communication, fire control and damage control of the ship into a single information space. In fact, the destroyer "Donald Cook" is a naval combat robot capable of making decisions and exchanging information with other similar ships without any participation of living people.

Such an intelligent and high-speed system was created to solve one, the most important and responsible task - to ensure effective air defense of formations. Powerful air defense platforms for protecting aircraft carriers and escorting convoys on the high seas.

Included with the "Aegis" is certainly a multifunctional radar AN / SPY-1. A masterpiece of the US electronics industry, capable of detecting missiles flying above the water itself and observing satellites in near-Earth orbits. This is the problem with SPY-1 - it turned out to be impossible to effectively solve such different tasks with the help of a single radar. And if with discovery spacecraft there are no problems, then the capabilities of the Aegis destroyers to repel attacks of anti-ship missiles look frankly doubtful.

The Aegis + SPY-1 bundle looked like a very innovative solution for 1983, but by now this system is completely outdated. You can name at least five modern maritime systems that are superior to Aegis in the field of solving air defense problems.

As a result, the super destroyer "Cook" (like any of its 62 twins) was not able to perform the first of its tasks.

And the only terrible trophy of the Aegis system in all 30 years of its operation was an IranAir passenger airliner, which the CICS erroneously identified as an F-14 fighter.

With such an "outstanding" air defense system, the American Aegis destroyers are hardly worth entering the Black Sea at all. Where the entire water area is shot through by coastal missile systems and coastal aviation, capable of "slamming" an American tin can with one blow. A lone American ship is not serious.


A major drawback of the destroyer "Cook", as well as all representatives of the sub-series I-II, is the inability to permanently base the helicopter. The ship has only a stern landing site and a limited supply of aviation fuel. The absence of a helicopter reduces the destroyer's anti-submarine capabilities and limits its functionality.


Is it really an explosion on board the destroyer?
Alas, just a rocket launch from the aft UVP


minders


"Cook" passes the Bosphorus

Surely, many regretted that the destroyer was flown not by the snow-white Tu-22M missile carrier and not the latest Su-34 bomber, but only by the modest 24th Sukharik. A front-line bomber with a variable sweep wing, put into service in the distant 70s. However, even this was more than enough. The Pentagon press service erupted with angry accusations of provocation and "unprofessional actions" by Russian pilots. The Russian public also reacted with a flurry of derisive and jocular comments in the style of "Yankee, go home!"

On Saturday, the fighter flew up to a distance of a thousand yards (about a kilometer) to the destroyer at an altitude of about 500 feet (150 meters). The fighter had no weapons. The ship's commander issued several radio warnings. The maneuvers ended without any incident.

In general, it is worth recognizing that this episode does not make sense from a military point of view. Su-24 is not a German dive bomber "Stuka". He doesn't need to approach the target at a distance of a thousand yards. Outside the twenty-first century. Epoch precision weapons. The main method of warfare has become remote, in which the weapons operator does not see the enemy in person.

Approaching an opponent's warship Peaceful time also does not give any reason to discuss the current situation. The incident took place in neutral waters, where everyone is free to be where he pleases. Another thing is that an American destroyer arrived in the Black Sea - the sphere of Russia's primordial interests, where the appearance of strangers is not welcome and is even specially limited by the Montreux Convention.

The Russian bomber "passed" the American ship at low level 12 times. And this is also a sign.

The only countermeasure that could be used by the Aegis destroyer was to shoot down the aircraft. Like the mentioned Iranian airliner in 1988. Of course, it was categorically impossible to do this in this situation - I had to endure ridicule and, as if nothing had happened, take refuge in the territorial waters of Romania.

It is useless to look for any sense in the actions of the Su-24 crew from a military point of view. “Combat sortie”, “attack rehearsal”, “Su-24 revealed the position of an enemy ship” - this is not about him. Combat sorties are carried out according to a different scheme - detection from the greatest range, launch of missiles and immediate departure to low altitude, beyond the radio horizon of the ship. Where the SPY-1 radar can't see it. In combat conditions, “going breastfeeding” on Aegis missiles is a beautiful, but not the most prudent act

The twelvefold flyby of the Donald Cook was purely demonstrative. To moderate the bellicose fervor of the Pentagon, which sent the fifth warship to the region this year, apparently believing that the Black Sea has the right to be called African American. The Russian side needed to demonstrate its determination. To show the whole world that we are closely following the development of the situation in the Black Sea, and if necessary... However, our "partners" understood everything and retreated.


If necessary, even the Su-24, which is not too adapted for striking ships, has a lot of worthy “answers” ​​for the adversary. Special interest represent remote-controlled air-to-surface missiles Kh-59 and Kh-58A missiles, which are guided by the radiation of shipborne radars (flight speed - Mach 3.6).