I know its autistic but Kinzhals are not glide vehicles they're just aero ballistic missiles, Avangard is the glide vehicle and it works but they can only afford to make enough for their nuclear forces
It's just not that type of missile. It's a strategic weapon. It uses an ICBM as a launch platform, it would be dumb to use it in Ukraine. It's like using a Minuteman rocket to hit a terrorist training camp, completely inappropriate weapon for the type of mission we are seeing in Ukraine.
Patriot, like most long range air defense systems, is not a single item. It is a collection of vehicles. Like most of the recent air defense systems, there can be kilometers between the vehicles. There is usually a single radar, a control vehicle, and multiple launchers. Minimal damage to the battery likely means a launcher was lost. The battery can continue functioning just fine if that's the case. It just lost some of its magazine depth and some areas will be covered in a less optimal way. But the battery is still functional.
No. A single large wave is the best approach. You ideally want all missiles to arrive simultaneously. That puts the most stress on air defense.
I should have been more clear. I wasn't questioning the effects of DU. I was questioning the narrative that there were DU munitions stored in that location where Russia attacked. The reason was that the spike in radiation is the 'smoking gun' for the existence of DU munitions stored at that location. From what I've read, the spike in detected radiation is not high enough (hence the exposure comment via air travel) and that there have been recorded spikes long before the war started. Of course, this is assuming the reports are genuine. Naturally, time will tell by looking at the health of the local population.
From what I read, it comes down to confidence than costs.