MOSCOW, October 17. /TASS/. Russian troops are successfully using Harpoon-3 anti-drone guns in the special military operation in Ukraine, a source in domestic defense circles told TASS on Monday.
"Russian units are successfully using the latest Harpoon-3 hand-held devices to fight unmanned aerial vehicles. Enemy drones are destroyed by an electromagnetic pulse," the source said.
The anti-drone devices are highly effective and are easy to operate, he said.
"It will suffice to direct the device’s antenna towards a drone and the flying craft’s electronics are denied the capability to determine the location and the drone’s contact with its operator is lost," the source said, adding that the device’s malfunctions were actually excluded.
The source did not specify in which areas these anti-drone guns are being used in the Ukraine operation.
TASS has no official information in regards to this yet.
There were previously no official reports about the combat employment of these anti-drone guns in the special military operation in Ukraine. A TASS source said in July that Stupor electromagnetic systems were used by Russian troops in Ukraine for the first time.
Harpoon-3 anti-drone gun
Harpoon-3 anti-drone systems were engineered by the Automation and Programming Technologies Company. The system’s first prototype was unveiled several years ago. The improved Harpoon-2M version with enhanced characteristics and new functions has been demonstrated at arms shows since 2019. The Harpoon-3 modification was unveiled at the MAKS-2021 air show outside Moscow last year.
The system is designed in the form of an anti-drone gun. Structurally, it consists of an instrument panel with controls and a jacketed antenna device. According to data from open sources, the system is over 1 meter long and weighs 6.5 kilograms.
The Harpoon-3 can be used as a hand-held gun or a stationary system. The anti-drone gun can be mounted on a special platform with two-plane guidance drives or can be remotely controlled. This design enables operators to simultaneously control several anti-drone guns scattered over a certain area.
The device is directed towards a target visually and within line of sight. The device has an operational range of 3.5 km and up to 2 km in high frequency interference. The anti-drone gun’s memory stores information on various unmanned aerial vehicles and the data on the fight against them. The Harpoon-3 can continuously operate for 60 minutes, using its own storage battery.