Direct proof of use
The 9K35 Strela-10 is documented on both sides of the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War. During the pre-2022 Donbas phase, OSCE Special Monitoring Mission reporting recorded Strela-10 systems in Ukrainian government-controlled areas and in non-government-controlled areas tied to Russian-aligned armed formations. On 5 January 2016 the SMM reported five 9K35 Strela-10 systems at Ukrainian government-controlled holding areas and an MT-LB mounted with four Strela-10 missiles near Artemivsk, now Bakhmut.
The record continued immediately before the full-scale invasion. OSCE Daily Report 38/2022 listed one 9K35 Strela-10 near Novohnativka in a government-controlled area and two Strela-10 systems in a non-government-controlled Luhansk-region training area near Buhaivka. OSCE Daily Report 42/2022 then recorded one 9K35 Strela-10 near Keramik in a government-controlled area and one near Obilne in a non-government-controlled area on 22 February 2022.
After 24 February 2022, visual loss records show the same system in combat service with both state forces. Oryx lists visually documented Russian 9K35 Strela-10 losses and separately lists Ukrainian 9K35 Strela-10 losses. Oryx transfer tracking also records twelve 9K35 Strela-10M systems delivered to Ukraine in March or April 2022.
Sources: OSCE SMM Daily Report 5 January 2016, OSCE SMM Daily Report 18 February 2022, OSCE SMM Daily Report 23 February 2022, Oryx Russian Equipment Losses Ukraine, Oryx Ukrainian Equipment Losses Ukraine, Oryx Heavy Weaponry Supplied To Ukraine
Timeline
The dated record begins in the earlier Donbas phase, when OSCE monitors documented Ukrainian Strela-10 systems at holding areas and on an MT-LB near Artemivsk on 5 January 2016. In April 2019 the SMM again recorded Strela-10 systems on both sides of the line, including two systems near Chernenko, four 9K35 systems at Bakhmut railway station, and six 9K35 systems at the former Luhansk international airport in non-government-controlled territory.
In February 2022, OSCE monitoring placed the system on both sides immediately before Russia's full-scale invasion. The 18 February report recorded a Ukrainian-side Strela-10 near Novohnativka and two non-government-controlled systems near Buhaivka. The 23 February report recorded one 9K35 Strela-10 near Keramik and one near Obilne on 22 February.
From March or April 2022, Oryx transfer tracking recorded additional 9K35 Strela-10M systems delivered to Ukraine. Oryx visual loss lists later recorded Russian and Ukrainian Strela-10 losses during the full-scale war, showing that the system remained in front-line air-defense service rather than only in storage or transfer channels.
Sources: OSCE SMM Daily Report 5 January 2016, OSCE SMM Daily Report 7 April 2019, OSCE SMM Daily Report 18 February 2022, OSCE SMM Daily Report 23 February 2022, Oryx Heavy Weaponry Supplied To Ukraine, Oryx Russian Equipment Losses Ukraine, Oryx Ukrainian Equipment Losses Ukraine
Narrative
In this conflict the Strela-10 appears as a mobile short-range air-defense vehicle for maneuver and local force protection. Its OSCE record before the full-scale invasion is concentrated in Donetsk and Luhansk reporting: Ukrainian government-controlled holding areas, railway or field locations, and non-government-controlled training areas around Luhansk and Donetsk. Those observations support fielding and deployment claims, while the reports do not normally identify specific engagements or successful interceptions.
The full-scale phase broadened the evidence from monitoring reports to visual loss and transfer documentation. Oryx's Russian and Ukrainian loss lists identify Strela-10 vehicles among visually confirmed equipment losses, which supports operational fielding by both armies after February 2022. The separate Oryx transfer list documents additional Strela-10M systems delivered to Ukraine in the opening months of the full-scale invasion.
Reporting on the 2025 battlefield role describes both Russian and Ukrainian Strela-10 use against drones and other low-flying targets. Army Recognition reported Russian-operated Strela-10 use to protect military units, personnel concentrations, artillery, and equipment from reconnaissance UAVs and cruise missiles, and described Ukrainian use against Russian aerial reconnaissance, including Orlan-10 UAVs. That reporting fits the broader conflict pattern in which older short-range air-defense systems remained valuable against unmanned aircraft even as both sides adapted vehicles, decoys, and protective measures.
Sources: OSCE SMM Daily Report 5 January 2016, OSCE SMM Daily Report 18 February 2022, OSCE SMM Daily Report 23 February 2022, Oryx Russian Equipment Losses Ukraine, Oryx Ukrainian Equipment Losses Ukraine, Oryx Heavy Weaponry Supplied To Ukraine, Army Recognition Strela-10 Ukraine Analysis
