Ukraine's game-changing decoys: The power of ADM‑160B MALD
The Russians boasted about shooting down a Ukrainian cruise missile. However, it was not harmful and fulfilled its task. We present what the ADM-160B MALD missiles acquired from the USA are used for.
Cruise missiles delivered from the USA, ADM-160B MALD launched, among others, from MiG-29 aircraft, are a key aspect facilitating attacks on heavily defended targets deep in the hinterland using, for example, Storm Shadow cruise missiles or MGM-140 ATACMS ballistic missiles.
Russian boasting about shooting down MALDs shows that they fulfilled their role and perhaps, thanks to them, the attacked object was hit. The ADM-160B MALD missiles are advanced decoys designed to divert the attention of air defence systems from real targets.
ADM-160B MALD — capable of creating "ghost planes"
The ADM-160B MALD (Miniature Air-Launched Decoy) was created by Raytheon in the first decade of the 21st century as a result of a project initiated by DARPA back in 1995. The original version, ADM-160A MALD, developed by Teledyne Ryan, was ready somewhat later, but the program was cancelled in 2002 due to insufficient range.
The work was soon resumed by the RTX corporation (formerly Raytheon), which led to the creation of the upgraded ADM-160B MALD missile, which entered service with the United States Air Force (USAF) in 2009. The ADM-160B, instead of a traditional warhead, was equipped with electronics simulating radar and signal signatures characteristic of specific aircraft models.
It can also mimic flight trajectory, making the decoy appear as a real target to personnel operating air defence systems. Consequently, air defence can be focused on a different area than the one from which the real threat may come.
ADM-160B MALD — deceives air defence systems and exposes them to attack
Most radars in air defence systems have a limited detection field, and older systems with semi-active radar seekers require continuous illumination of the target by radar until its destruction. As a result, their ability to respond to targets appearing from different directions is limited.
Additionally, ADM-160B MALDs are used as decoys that activate air defence systems (activating radars) to make them vulnerable to attacks by aircraft with AGM-88 HARM missiles. In newer versions, such as the ADM-160C MALD-J introduced in 2012, features are available to disrupt enemy radar operations and alter flight parameters through the addition of a communication link providing continuous communication with the carrier aircraft.
These features are enclosed in a missile weighing 115 kg, with a length of 3 metres and a wingspan of 2 metres. The ADM-160B MALD offers the possibility of flying for 45 minutes and has a range of up to 920 kilometres thanks to the use of a Pratt & Whitney TJ-150 turbojet engine with a thrust of 68 kg. It is a key element in the arsenal of the Ukrainian air force, although its operation is not kinetic.
