The USF say they destroyed 19 elements of Russia’s air defense network in early March – including S-300V and Tor systems – as drone strikes find their targets across the occupied territories.

March 12, 2026

Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces (USF) destroyed 19 elements of Russia’s air defense network between March 1 and March 12, according to USF Major Robert “Madyar” Brovdi.

In a Telegram post, Brovdi said USF operators destroyed two additional anti-aircraft missile systems early Thursday morning, March 12 – an S-300V launcher and a Tor surface-to-air missile system.

The report was accompanied by drone footage showing the strikes, though Kyiv Post was unable to independently verify the time or location of the filming.

Brovdi said that pilots from the 9th Kairos Battalion used Ukrainian-made FP-2 medium strike drones carrying warheads weighing between 60 and 100 kg to set alight a fuel and lubricants train in Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk region, as well as to destroy an S-300V launcher near the village of Borovenki in the same region.

The S-300V is a Soviet-era surface-to-air missile system designed to protect critical military facilities and large troop formations. Unlike more common S-300 variants, it is a fully self-propelled system with both anti-aircraft and limited anti-missile capabilities, intended to counter aircraft, cruise missiles, and certain ballistic threats.

The same operators also struck a logistics hub, an ammunition depot, and other military facilities, Brovdi said.

Meanwhile, pilots from the USF “Raid” unit located and destroyed a Tor air defense system near occupied Berdyansk in the Zaporizhzhia region.

The Tor system (NATO reporting name: SA-15 “Gauntlet”) is a Soviet and Russian short-range surface-to-air missile system designed to provide air and missile defense at the divisional level. It is capable of intercepting tactical aircraft, helicopters, drones, and cruise missiles.

The first version entered service in 1986. Since then, the system has undergone multiple upgrades involving its chassis, missiles, and electronic systems. An improved version, the Tor-M1, entered service in 1991.

Brovdi did not specify which modification of the Tor system was destroyed, but the estimated cost of a Tor-M1 unit is around $25 million.

In addition, Ukrainian drones struck a temporary deployment point, warehouses, a resupply base, and an unmanned aerial vehicle workshop across four Russian-occupied settlements in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Earlier, the coordinated work of aerial reconnaissance teams and strike drone operators from the USF resulted in a strike on a Buk-M1 anti-aircraft missile system in the occupied Zaporizhzhia region.

After being detected by Ukrainian drones, the Buk-M1 – reportedly worth around $10 million – was first immobilized using a small strike asset and later hit by FP-2 drones carrying a 100 kg warhead, ultimately destroying the missile complex.

Last week, Unmanned Systems Forces also struck four Russian self-propelled air defense systems worth millions of dollars during overnight operations on March 6.

According to Brovdi, fighters from the 9th Kairos Battalion struck a Buk air defense system in Ukraine’s Russian-occupied Kherson region and an S-300V medium-range air defense system in Ukraine’s Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region using a Ukrainian-made FP-2 strike drone equipped with a 60 kg warhead.

Meanwhile, pilots from the 1st Separate USF Center struck Pantsir-S1 and Tor air defense systems, also using Ukrainian-made FP-2 strike drones, this time carrying 100 kg warheads, Brovdi said.

He stressed that identifying and destroying elements of Russia’s long-, medium- and short-range air defense network remains one of the USF’s top priorities.

https://www.kyivpost.com/post/71816