Russians are upgrading Tor anti-aircraft missile systems to protect them from Ukrainian attack drones and artillery.

Footage of the upgraded vehicle was published by the Russian TASS news agency.

Russian anti-aircraft systems of this type are designed to cover ground troops operating in the frontline zone, and are therefore often at risk of being attacked by Ukrainian artillery and drones.

With this in mind, the Russians have installed spaced metal screens on at least one of their vehicles, covering the sides and upper hemisphere of the vehicle. In addition, the turreted vehicle has a “soft” defense.

Obviously, such a set of additional armor will not protect against a direct hit by an artillery shell or a GMLRS rocket with a shrapnel warhead.

At the same time, the motive for such modernization could be the need to protect against attacks by numerous Ukrainian bombers and FPV drones operating behind the invaders’ lines at a distance of up to 30-40 kilometers.

The armor panels can protect against fragments and explosions of free-falling munition used by multirotor drones. At the same time, the radar and antennas of the system remained uncovered.

It is not known for certain whether this modernization is the decision of the manufacturer or an improvisation of the Russian military on the ground. However, this is not the first attempt to protect the Tor SAMs.

At the end of 2023, a photo of a Russian anti-aircraft system covered with sandbags was posted online. The latter, according to the crew, were supposed to protect against hits to the side and vertical attacks.

Strikes to the upper hemisphere with loitering munitions and FPV drones are currently one of the most common causes of those system losses.

In particular, in recent months, the Ukrainian Defense Forces have used specialized strike drones to hit three such installations (1, 2, 3).

At the same time, guided munitions from the HIMARS rocket system remain an equally effective weapon against such systems.