Russia is Enhancing its EW Capabilities
This post is also available in: 
עברית (Hebrew)
Russia has been using electronic warfare (EW) in various arenas. Russian forces have been particularly successful at using electronic warfare technology to interfere with operations of the United States and its allies on Syrian territory. This included blocking small U.S. surveillance drones from receiving GPS satellite signals.
Among the Russian systems capable of such interference is the Krasukha-4, designed primarily to counter the radars of attack, reconnaissance and unmanned aircraft, and has reportedly been deployed to Syria, according to thedefensepost.com. This truck-mounted radio emitter is capable of jamming not only radar signals, but also control channels for drones, making planes “blind and deaf.” It has a range of up to 300 km (185 miles).
Other systems reportedly used by Moscow in Syria include the Richag-AV radar and sonar jamming system as well as the Moscow-1, designed to scan the airspace and transfer the obtained data to EW systems to neutralize targets.
Recently, Moscow has been enhancing its EW capabilities further. It may develop an electronic warfare aircraft based on an upgraded Ilyushin Il-114-300 plane.
The Il-114-300 twin-engine turboprop plane is an upgraded version of the Il-114 aircraft developed in the 1980s.
Ilyushin Aircraft Company Director for Il-114 Programs Ivan Kabatov told tass.com: “With its unique performance characteristics, the plane is an optimal platform for making air platforms to solve the broadest range of tasks – from monitoring, patrolling and transport carriages to electronic warfare, reconnaissance and combat employment.”
He added that the RADAR-MMS Research and Production Enterprise has accumulated vast experience in testing and using promising radio-electronic complexes on the basis of the Il-114LL flying laboratory, according to defenseworld.net.
“The duration of hovering, the low cruising speed, the broad temperature range and the possibility of its use from unprepared aerodromes give all the grounds to consider this aircraft as a platform for special versions for years to come,” the director of Il-114 programs said.
