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Russian Copter-Based Electronic Jammer Spotted in Syria for the 1st Time (PHOTO)

Known as one of the most effective jammers in the world, the Russian helicopter-based radio electronic warfare system Rychag-AV is capable of protecting the entire vehicle by "blinding" all enemy warplanes and missiles within several hundred kilometers.
Sputnik

A photo of what looked like the Russian Mi-8MTPR-1 helicopter equipped with the radio electronic warfare system Rychag-AV in Syria has emerged on Twitter.

The Rychag-AV is considered one of the world's most powerful jammers when it comes to disrupting the electronics of combat aircraft and cruise missiles.

The system is typically installed on Mi-8MTPR-1 choppers and can completely "blind" the enemy up to 400 kilometers (about 248 miles) away.

READ MORE: Moscow Aviation Institute Startup Develops Electronic Warfare Helicopter Drone

Additionally, Rychag-AV elements can be installed on ground-based mobile air defense systems.

Russia's Rossiyskaya Gazeta daily cited military experts as saying that the Rychag-AV jammers added significantly to reducing the effectiveness of the US air strike on Syria's Ash Sha'irat airbase in April 2017.

READ MORE: Jamming the Enemy: Russia Ramps Up Production of Electronic Warfare Systems

Russian sources reported at the time that only 23 Tomahawk cruise missiles hit the targets, while the remaining 36 flew off course.

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