Russian Gadfly image - Rise of the Reds: HanPatch mod for C&C: Generals Zero Hour

The Buk (also known as Gadfly among Western militaries) is a self-propelled surface-to-air missile system first introduced to the Soviet Army in the 1980s. Unlike its 1960s predecessor, the Kub, the missile transporter erector launcher is also equipped with its own radar, eliminating the need for a dedicated radar-equipped targeting vehicle. Originally planned to equip the entire Warsaw Pact, the end of the Cold War led to the system instead being exported to India, Venezuela, Syria and Egypt, as well as large quantities being inherited by some of the post-Soviet states and Russia itself.

The system architecture of the Buk was suitable for numerous cost-efficient upgrades over the decades, with the latest M5 variant introduced in the early 2040s. During the Third World War, the Buk provided vital air coverage for the Russian forces, whose initial decapitation strike failed to destroy the entirety of European air forces, which subsequently relocated to the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula, launching surgical strikes against high-value logistical, command and communications assets.

Also high on the target list of the Europeans were the more advanced strategic air defence systems such as the S-300, many of which have been lost to deep interdiction strikes and special operations. Ever since the entry of the US into the war, Russian forces have been pushed back into eastern Germany, and the remaining S-300s have been pulled back to the Motherland to fend off American bombing raids on strategic targets, leaving the Russian forces in Europe dependent on the Buk for tactical air defence.