EW System Lima Accounts for Half of Air Target Suppression, Night Watch Commander Says

The domestically developed Lima electronic warfare (EW) system accounts for half of the suppression of aerial threats Russia uses to strike Ukraine.

The commander of the Night Watch unit, callsign Alkhimik, announced this in an interview with Militarnyi.

This applies to both Shahed-type drones and missiles, although effectiveness varies by target type.

“If, hypothetically, 400 Shaheds are launched, and 380 are intercepted, the Air Force reports that 50% of that result is achieved by electronic warfare. Since Lima is currently the only system capable of countering advanced CRPA antennas, that figure reflects Lima’s effectiveness,” the commander said.

According to him, Shahed-type drones are the most difficult targets to suppress, while missiles are easier to counter.

Meanwhile, effectively disrupting missiles requires creating a very large electronic warfare coverage area.

“…Missiles use laser gyroscopes with an accuracy of one degree. That means 100 kilometers of electronic warfare coverage produces a missile deviation of about 1.7 kilometers. If you create an EW coverage area of that scale, you can prevent the missile from striking a city,” Alkhimik shared.

Lima provides more than 90% of the capabilities of Pokrova, Ukraine’s strategic electronic warfare system that integrates assets from across the Defense Forces of Ukraine.

The system replaces satellite navigation signals received by Russian drones and missiles with false ones, causing them to lose navigation, deviate from their flight paths, crash, or even turn back. The system entered service in early 2024.

According to Alkhimik, Lima has countered 61 Russian Kinzhal air-launched ballistic missiles, most of which broke apart in flight.

The system transmitted false coordinates and additional signals to the missiles, disorienting their navigation computers. As a result, the missiles attempted maneuvers beyond their structural limits and disintegrated.

Lima EW System

Lima is not a conventional electronic warfare system that simply generates radio interference. According to its developer, it uses a digital electronic attack that combines jamming, spoofing,, and cyberattacks against the missile’s navigation receiver.