Harrison Kass
Last week, a US Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet was nearly hit by an Iranian MANPADS near the coastal city of Chabahar. The missile detonated near the F/A-18’s tail during a low-level strafing run. The aircraft survived the incident—but the incident highlighted the vulnerability of advanced aircraft to cheap, shoulder-fired missiles at low levels, highlighting how valuable relatively primitive portable air defense systems can be even in high-tech wars.
What Exactly Is a “MANPADS” System?
MANPADS is an abbreviation for “Man-Portable Air Defense System.” There are many different MANPADS systems in existence, but each is essentially a shoulder-fired surface-to-air missile.
The first MANPADS were developed in the 1950s and 1960s, but were initially constrained by their rudimentary targeting systems. As time went on, both Western and Soviet designers improved the missiles in their arsenals, leading to deadlier and deadlier systems. Perhaps the MANPADS’ most infamous hour came during the Soviet-Afghan War of the 1980s, in which the United States illicitly supplied thousands of FIM-92 Stinger MANPADS launchers to the Afghan mujahideen rebels, leading to the destruction of hundreds of Soviet helicopters and aircraft.
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