Short- and Very Short-Range Air Defence (SHORAD and VSHORAD respectively) systems have been having a very rough time in recent months. On 14 September last year, Saudi oil facilities were severely damaged in drone and precision missile attacks, in spite of the expensive and multi-layered long-range and SHORAD defenses deployed. On 20 May this year, the conflict in Libya took a dramatic turn when Turkish-built drones smashed somewhere between four to seven highly sophisticated Russian-made PANTSIR S1 SHORAD systems. It seems that SHORAD systems are struggling to counter an ever-growing and increasingly sophisticated aerial threat. In the 21st century, micro-miniaturization of technology, the proliferation of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and precision-guided munitions are changing the face of war. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the contest between SHORAD and airpower.
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