War Drums Beating in Syria

[guanotwozero]

ORIGINAL: FlyForLenin
It's an assumption that they would show such footage?

Yes - otherwise they wouldn't bother to show us all those fakes. This indicates they really want to convince people of shootdowns. Real evidence is the best way.

Someone posted something earlier about how pieces would scatter all over the place, and would be difficult to find en masse. Maybe that is the reason?

They may still be in the process of trying to find wreckage for all we know.

Maybe. But as these missiles fly low except for a terminal pop-up, a shootdown far from target would not be scattered far. A shootdown next to target would be scattered, but easy to find.

Which also brings up the question - how would radars engage low-flying missiles in hills? W Syria is very hilly. Maybe a lucky shot when a missile flew close to a MANPAD/electro-optical SAM? Debris would be sure available if that happened.

As time goes on, I find it harder to believe the shootdown scenario.

[Dysta]

Maybe an anti-salvaging measure? If something so advanced were launched is going to risk to get by Russians, then why it didn't employ self-destruct features? An intercepted or seduced cruise missile should be immediately scuttle into shards rather than just crashed with remains.

I am not talking about the evidence must be as a whole as RQ-170 in Iran, but a largely scattered fragments of steel and aluminum would hardly call an evidence of interception either. Especially the electronics are within the warhead, it will be immediately vaporized to avoid tech leaks.

[guanotwozero]

Maybe, but I would have thought some recognisable fragments should survive.

BTW interesting report by Daily Beast here, based on Pentagon claims.

[Filitch]

ORIGINAL: guanotwozero
Which also brings up the question - how would radars engage low-flying missiles in hills? W Syria is very hilly.

Looks like missiles do not always keeps constant altitude at terrain-following flight, but in complex circumstances (Syrian cross-country territory is such case) can flies about hundred meters. If you look videos from Damascus you can notice that missiles flies enough high, not at dozens of meters.

ORIGINAL: guanotwozero
BTW interesting report by Daily Beast here, based on Pentagon claims.

ORIGINAL: thedailybeast.com
It is hardly surprising that Syria's late-Cold War-era air defense systems

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