Russian state-owned arms maker Almaz-Antey has delivered its first S-400 Triumf long-range air defense (NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler) regiment in 2020 to the Russian armed forces ahead of schedule, the company announced in a press statement.
“We have delivered the first regiment set of S-400 ‘Triumf’ systems this year to the state customer ahead of schedule,” the company press office quoted the CEO of Almaz-Antey, Yan Novikov, as saying, according to TASS news agency. “The delivery/acceptance tests have passed successfully.”
The S-400 induction ceremony was held at the Kapustin Yar training range in the Astrakhan Region. The Russian armed forces have to date deployed over two dozen S-400 regiments with on average of four new units entering service in past years.
As I noted before:
The standard S-400 battery consists of four transporter erector launchers (TELs) with four large launch tubes or 16 smaller tubes (or a combination of the two) per TEL, in addition to long-range surveillance radar target acquisition and engagement (fire control) radar systems and a command post (vehicle). In the Russian military, two batteries make up an S-400 battalion (also known as a S-400 division), whereas an S-400 regiment consists of two battalions.
Each TEL can carry four long-range or up to 16 short- and medium-range missiles. An S-400 regiment also possesses additional surveillance and target acquisition radars, with the unit generally plugged in to larger long-range radar stations or airborne early warning systems. It is, however, unclear whether Russia has developed such a so-called Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC).
Furthermore, I explained:
In comparison to its predecessor, the S-300, the S-400 air defense system features an improved radar system and updated software; it can purportedly fire four new types of surface-to-air (SAM) missiles in addition to the S-300’s 48N6E, a vertical tube launched, solid fuel, single stage SAM with an estimated range of 150 kilometers (93 miles), and the improved 48N6E2 missile with a reported range of 195 kilometers (121 miles).
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The S-400 is also armed with an improved variant of the 48N6E2 with an alleged range of 250 kilometers (160 miles). The air defense system can also fire two additional missiles, the 9M96E and 9M96E2 with respective ranges of 40 km (25 miles) and 120 km (75 miles). Improved S-300 air defense systems such as the S-300PMU-2 Favorite … can purportedly also fire the 9M96E and 9M96E2.
The S-400’s most advanced long-range missile, the 40N6 SAM, was accepted into service in 2018, although it remains unclear whether the weapon system has actually been delivered to regiments.
Notably, the S-400 has not been deployed in actual combat but is considered to be one of the most advanced interceptor-based long-range air defense systems in the world.