When the shadow of war looms over the Black Sea, an unprecedented event changes the face of modern naval warfare.
A huge sea power sinks to the bottom of the sea, while another technological breakthrough makes the world powers nervous.
It's a story of technology, courage, and strategy that reveals how a new era of over-the-horizon warfare has arrived and has far-reaching implications for the future of global naval power.
In the past two years of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, there has been a naval battle incident that shocked the world, in 2022, the Ukrainian army successfully used the "Neptune" anti-ship missile missile to sink the flagship of the Russian Navy in the Black Sea, the missile cruiser "Moskva", in operations beyond the traditional radar line-of-sight.
This was not only the greatest loss suffered by the Black Sea Fleet, but also marked a whole new chapter in over-the-horizon naval warfare.
The sinking of the "Moskva" was not accidental, but was an inevitable result of technological progress and tactical innovations.
In the history of naval warfare after World War II, the combat range of anti-ship missiles has been limited to the range that radar can directly detect, usually between 30 and 40 kilometers.
This restriction was considered the natural limit of anti-ship warfare, until the sinking of the "Moskva" completely broke this notion.
In this epoch-making attack, the Ukrainian army issued two R360 "Uranus" anti-ship missiles, which are an improved version of the "Neptune" missile, which has the ability to fly at high subsonic speed and skimming the sea, so that it can still strike accurately under over-the-horizon conditions at a distance of 100 kilometers from the target.
The success of the attack depends not only on the performance of the missiles themselves, but also on the over-the-horizon radar systems used by Ukraine.
Over-the-horizon radar technology, using the principle of atmospheric waveguide, can cross the horizon for detection when radar waves propagate along the sea surface, greatly expanding the reconnaissance range of sea surface targets.
Using this technology, the Ukrainian army was able to pinpoint the location of the Moskva, allowing missiles launched from a long distance to accurately hit the target.
The design and equipment of the Moskva, although it was a formidable force at sea in its time, revealed its vulnerability in this attack.
The ship's air defense system failed to effectively intercept low-flying anti-ship missiles, and its earlier models, the Reeve, S-300F long-range ship-to-air missiles and AK630 close-in artillery systems, were ineffective in this situation.
The attack was not only a successful demonstration of over-the-horizon warfare technology, but also allowed the world to see a shift in the way naval warfare is conducted.
The success of the Ukrainian army is based not only on advanced ** systems, but also on the effective use of information and reconnaissance technologies.
NATO's reconnaissance assets, including the MQ-4C Mermaid Poseidon strategic drone and the P-8 anti-submarine patrol aircraft, reportedly provide Ukraine with critical targeting information.
Despite the delay in the transmission of information, Ukraine was able to use its own reconnaissance resources to locate the Moskva in a timely and precise manner.
And for the navies of the world, the sinking of the "Moskva" is a warning, especially for the US and European navies, that this is not only the loss of a ship, but also a challenge to the existing concept of naval warfare.
The leading position of the Chinese Navy in over-the-horizon radar technology, especially in the application of the "Ore-ME" over-the-horizon radar, gives it a clear advantage in over-the-horizon anti-ship combat capabilities.
The proliferation of such technology will undoubtedly have a profound impact on the global maritime security landscape.
The success of over-the-horizon warfare does not depend solely on breakthroughs in a single technology, but requires a complete system to support it, including a combination of long-range reconnaissance, target designation, and precision strike capabilities.
The attack on the Moskva shows that when these elements are effectively combined, even the most powerful maritime forces can face serious challenges in future conflicts.
This incident not only changed the tactics and techniques of naval warfare, but also provided valuable experience and lessons for navies around the world, that is, in the era of information warfare, whoever can grasp and use information more effectively will have an advantage in future conflicts. February** Dynamic Incentive Program