2014 Yemen Civil War

2K12 Kub / SA-6 Gainful in the 2014 Yemen Civil War

Houthi-aligned forces used an SA-6/Kub-family surface-to-air missile in Yemen in June 2019, when U.S. Central Command assessed that a Houthi SA-6 shot down a U.S. MQ-9 over Yemen.

Weapon profile2K12 Kub / Kvadrat / SA-6 Gainful
SideHouthi-aligned forcesRoleAir Defense
2K12 Kub / Kvadrat / SA-6 Gainful, Tracked medium-range surface-to-air missile system, Air Defense - 2014 Yemen Civil War
Image source: 2K12 Kub radar and missile launcher image

Evidence Map

ClaimEvidence typeSources
Houthi-aligned forces used an assessed SA-6 surface-to-air missile to shoot down a U.S. MQ-9 over Yemen on June 6, 2019.Official U.S. military statement and CSIS missile-war study

Sources: CENTCOM Observation Aircraft Statement, CSIS Missile War in Yemen

The system family is tied to Yemen's legacy Kub/Kvadrat inventory, including at least 200 SA-6 missiles procured from the Soviet Union in 1979.CSIS historical inventory context

Sources: CSIS Missile War in Yemen

Fater-1 was publicly presented by the Houthis after the shootdown and assessed by CSIS as a painted-over SA-6.Defense research assessment of Houthi display material

Sources: CSIS Missile War in Yemen

Fater-1 is identified in later defense reporting as a 3M9/Kub-family copy or clone and was reportedly shown on a Kub launch vehicle.Defense reporting and identification review

Sources: War Zone Houthi Air Defenses

The cited public sources do not identify the exact launcher, radar, crew, missile serial origin, or full battery arrangement used in the June 2019 MQ-9 engagement.Source-boundary assessment from the cited record

Sources: CENTCOM Observation Aircraft Statement, CSIS Missile War in Yemen, War Zone Houthi Air Defenses

Timeline

2K12 Kub / Kvadrat / SA-6 Gainful In 2014 Yemen Civil War

  1. Yemen procures SA-6 missiles

    CSIS reports that Yemen procured at least 200 SA-6 missiles from the Soviet Union, creating the legacy Kub/Kvadrat-family inventory later relevant to the civil war.

    Sources: CSIS Missile War in Yemen

  2. U.S. MQ-9 shot down over Yemen

    CENTCOM assessed that a Houthi SA-6 surface-to-air missile shot down a U.S. MQ-9 over Yemen.

    Sources: CENTCOM Observation Aircraft Statement, CSIS Missile War in Yemen

  3. Houthis unveil Fater-1

    CSIS reports that the Houthis unveiled Fater-1 in August 2019 and assessed that the missile appeared to be a painted-over SA-6.

    Sources: CSIS Missile War in Yemen

  4. Fater-1 shown on Kub launcher vehicle

    The War Zone reports that Houthi-aligned Yemeni militants later released an image of Fater-1 missiles loaded on a Kub launch vehicle.

    Sources: War Zone Houthi Air Defenses

Documented Use

Direct proof of use

The clearest public proof of 2K12 Kub/SA-6-family use in the 2014 Yemen Civil War is the June 6, 2019 shootdown of a U.S. MQ-9 over Yemen. U.S. Central Command said on June 16, 2019 that the MQ-9 was shot down by what it assessed to be a Houthi SA-6 surface-to-air missile, and added that the altitude of the engagement indicated improved Houthi capability enabled by Iranian assistance.

CSIS later described the same incident in its missile-war study, identifying it as a Houthi-fired SA-6 that shot down a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper reconnaissance drone over Yemen. The report places the missile in a 2K12 Kub/Kvadrat, NATO SA-6 Gainful, section and notes that Yemen had procured at least 200 SA-6 missiles from the Soviet Union in 1979.

Sources: CENTCOM Observation Aircraft Statement, CSIS Missile War in Yemen

Dated milestones

Yemen's prewar inventory is important context but not, by itself, evidence of wartime firing. CSIS reports that Yemen procured at least 200 SA-6 missiles in 1979, creating a legacy stock from which Kub/Kvadrat-family missiles could later appear in the civil war.

On June 6, 2019, a U.S. MQ-9 was shot down over Yemen. CENTCOM's June 16 statement attributed the shootdown to an assessed Houthi SA-6 and treated it as evidence of improved Houthi engagement capability. In August 2019, according to CSIS, the Houthis unveiled the Fater-1 and claimed it was a new indigenous missile, but the report assessed that the displayed missile appeared to be a painted-over SA-6.

A later War Zone review of Houthi air defenses described Fater-1 as at least a copy or clone of the Soviet 3M9 missile for the 2K12 Kub/SA-6 system and reported that Fater-1 missiles were subsequently shown loaded on a Kub launch vehicle. That supports the family identification and display context, while leaving the exact origin of individual missiles unresolved.

Sources: CENTCOM Observation Aircraft Statement, CSIS Missile War in Yemen, War Zone Houthi Air Defenses

Use pattern

The documented conflict role was Houthi-aligned air defense against unmanned aircraft, not a broad record of repeated Kub battery operations. The directly supported firing event is the June 2019 MQ-9 shootdown over Yemen, attributed by CENTCOM to a Houthi SA-6 and by CSIS to a Houthi-fired SA-6.

The public sources separate possession, display, and use. CSIS supports legacy Yemeni SA-6 inventory and the later Fater-1 display; CENTCOM and CSIS support the June 2019 firing against the MQ-9; The War Zone supports the identification of Fater-1 as a 3M9/Kub-family derivative and reports later imagery of Fater-1 on a Kub launcher vehicle. None of the cited sources proves the full launcher, radar, crew structure, or missile origin used in the June 2019 engagement.

Sources: CENTCOM Observation Aircraft Statement, CSIS Missile War in Yemen, War Zone Houthi Air Defenses

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Sources