Well, this is just bizarre. The footage appears authentic (see below) so many wondered how it could happen. Initial speculation that the Ukrainians did it seems highly unlikely so the most plausible explanation seems to be a complete malfunction of their air missile defense system, something that isn't supposed to be possible, and especially not on a modern system as technically advanced as the S-400 Triumph. Possibly, Russia's own anti-air defence systems may have interfered. An expensive and deadly embarrassment for the Russians, as each system costs around $300 million in US dollars.

Source: news.com.au

Dramatic video has captured the moment a Russian surface-to-air missile system fires on itself in a bizarre malfunction.

In the footage, the missile can be seen shooting into the sky - before turning mid-air and slamming back into where it came from in an enormous explosion.

The short clip was reportedly shot in the Ukrainian city of Alchevsk in the Luhansk region, which is under the occupation of pro-Russian separatist forces and is on the front line of the war in Ukraine.

It was filmed in the early hours of Friday morning when Russian troops reportedly launched a missile to intercept an oncoming Ukrainian plane.

However, seconds later, the missile was returned to sender after the tracking system went haywire.

It was also shared by Rob Lee, Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute.

Seen from another angle, it's pretty clear it's from that area.

Meanwhile, more bad news for the Russians as the American M142 HIMARS MLRS are put into service. These have an effective range of up to 300km.