Posted on 01/05/2016 9:58:43 PM PST by Perseverando
Exclusive footage obtained by Sky News reveals IS terrorists have the technical know-how to reactivate surface-to-air missiles.
The former head of the RAF has said evidence uncovered by Sky News of Islamic State recommissioning surface-to-air missiles is of great concern and that passenger planes would be an easy target.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Graydon was responding to exclusive footage which revealed the extremists were able to produce homemade thermal batteries for heat-seeking missiles - a feat that has eluded terror groups until now.
It raises the possibility of the militants being able to reactivate discarded stockpiles of older missiles, previously thought redundant.
The capability of the insurgents emerged in more than eight hours of unedited training videos shot at a jihadi 'weapons lab' in the IS stronghold of Raqqa.
Sir Michael said of the footage obtained by Sky News: "It does appear to be an intelligence gold mine.
"The thing that particularly got my attention was the possibility that they would be able to get their hands on old surface-to-air missiles and insert this thermal battery which would make it very concerning indeed.
"And there are an awful lot of these old missiles around the place, of course.
"These would not necessarily be of great use in Iraq and Syria but in wider Europe and one's immediate concern would be towards civilian airliners.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.sky.com ...
The missile that they are connecting a battery to in the video is an air-to-air missile. This is a Russian copy of the AIM-9 Sidewinder known as the AA-2 Atoll (K-13). Plenty of these missiles were captured when they overran Syrian air force bases and storage depots. It looks likely that they may attempt to field these converted air-to-air missiles as surface to air missiles?
The US used to have a SAM system based on the Sidewinder.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIM-72_Chaparral
You can see captured AA-2 Atoll air-to-air missiles at 3:08 in the following ISIS video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJCtIdfXDKs
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.