I wouldn’t call it “special” but the S-400, while far from perfect, is still leaps and bounds better than any other system in the world with a 400km weapon range. This is 4 times the range of US AGM-88 HARM anti-radiation (radar) missiles.
This is going to keep most non-stealth 4th generation planes (F-15s, F-16s) from high altitude bombing (even under heavy jamming) and force them to fly at low altitude which will subject them to short/intermediate range anti-air defense batteries and MANPADs. Integrated air defense systems (IADS) is about building layers of air defense complexes where their sensors and fire control systems are networked within the same platform, which is what made the Soviet/Russian system so good.
Remember on the first day of the Ukraine war when Russia turned on its S-400 radar near its southern border for a moment and shot down a Ukrainian Su-27 some 250km away in Kyiv (which then crashed into an apartment complex)? It’s that lethal for the non-stealth planes.
The F-35s are likely going to fare better but the S-400 radars are probably also powerful enough to detect the stealth aircrafts at certain range. This is pure speculation however because there hasn’t been any real involvement of F-35s on the battlefront yet.
Is there something special about the technology, or is it just that Iran has poor air defense and generic tech would fix that?
I wouldn’t call it “special” but the S-400, while far from perfect, is still leaps and bounds better than any other system in the world with a 400km weapon range. This is 4 times the range of US AGM-88 HARM anti-radiation (radar) missiles.
This is going to keep most non-stealth 4th generation planes (F-15s, F-16s) from high altitude bombing (even under heavy jamming) and force them to fly at low altitude which will subject them to short/intermediate range anti-air defense batteries and MANPADs. Integrated air defense systems (IADS) is about building layers of air defense complexes where their sensors and fire control systems are networked within the same platform, which is what made the Soviet/Russian system so good.
Remember on the first day of the Ukraine war when Russia turned on its S-400 radar near its southern border for a moment and shot down a Ukrainian Su-27 some 250km away in Kyiv (which then crashed into an apartment complex)? It’s that lethal for the non-stealth planes.
The F-35s are likely going to fare better but the S-400 radars are probably also powerful enough to detect the stealth aircrafts at certain range. This is pure speculation however because there hasn’t been any real involvement of F-35s on the battlefront yet.