Footage of the production and testing of the Russian airborne electronic warfare complex L-370 "Vitebsk", designed to protect aircraft and helicopters from missiles. The developer of the complex is the Federal State Unitary Enterprise Research Institute Ekran, it is produced by the KRET company, journalist Alexey Egorov interviewed the developers. The Russian airborne defense complex L-370 "Vitebsk" is produced in two versions, the L-370 version is used for helicopters, and the "Vitebsk-25" version is used for aircraft. The electronic warfare system is effective, but it does not provide 100 percent protection; in the cockpit you can often hear the phrase “Attack from the right, attack from the left,” this means that the electronic warfare system detected the missile launch and rejected it. Judging by the videos published by the Russian Ministry of Defense, the complex quite often saved the lives of pilots. The Vitebsk electronic warfare system is also installed on the Il-96-300 aircraft on which the Russian President flies.
In the video you can see tests of the L-370 electronic warfare system installed on a Mi-8 helicopter; as you can see in the video, the complex successfully rejects Igla MANPADS missiles; a total of 20 of them were fired. The sets of the L-370 "Vitebsk" complex are placed in suspended containers on the suspension units of the Su-25SM3 aircraft and on the Ka-52, Mi-26, Mi-8 and Mi-35M helicopters. It is worth noting that it is not often found on Su-25 aircraft.
The basis of the Vitebsk electronic warfare is the L-370-3S active jamming station; according to the developer, the station is much faster than the electronic warfare on other aircraft: the Sorptsiya electronic warfare on the Su-27, Omul on the Su-25 and Gardenia on MiG-29. Electronic warfare L-370 "Vitebsk" is capable of assessing the intensity of radar radiation and suppressing this signal in a wide frequency range. The complex also includes a missile protection system with a thermal homing head. In the photo you can see the composition of the complex placed on the Su-25Sm3 aircraft and the Ka-52 helicopter. The system automatically detects a missile launch and activates the use of passive jamming, thermal decoys and chaffs, as well as active protection in the infrared and radio bands. The operation of electronic warfare leads to disruption of the missile homing systems and provokes them to fly to false targets. The system can operate automatically without operator participation, only providing information about the attack angle and the nature of the threat. They plan to equip the Il-76, Il-78, An-72, An-124 aircraft, as well as the promising Il-112V, with the complex.