MOSCOW, December 24. /TASS/. Russian troops will get first Very Short-Range Air Defense (VSHORAD) Gibka-S systems next year, Commander of the Russian Armed Forces’ tactical air defense Lieutenant General Alexander Leonov said.

"For the first time, air defense units will get sets of Gibka-S combat vehicles next year," he said in an interview with the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper, published on Friday.

The Gibka-S Very Short-Range Air Defense (VSHORAD) system, equipped with four Igla, Igla-S or Verba missiles, can successfully counter planes, helicopters, drones, cruise missiles and high-precision weapons flying at low and extremely low altitudes, at any time of the day and in limited visibility. It is mounted on the wheeled chassis of the Tigr-M armored vehicle.

During trials at the Kapustin Yar testing range in southern Russia in late 2019, Gibka-S proved its effectiveness against aerial targets while moving at the speed of up to 30 kmph.

Gibka-S is the first vehicle-mounted SHORAD/VSHORAD system produced in Russia.