Speculation are rife in the past few weeks that Ukraine will get advanced US-built Patriot
defense missile systems to try to counter Russian missile and drone attacks.
Two US officials and a senior administration official told CNN that the plans had entered
their final stages and could be announced this week.
However, the plan worked out by the Pentagon would have to be approved first by Defense
Secretary Lloyd Austin and then finally by President Joe Biden.
As per officials cited by CNN, the Patriots are anticipated to ship quickly after the
blueprints are completed in the upcoming days, after which Ukrainians will be trained to
use them at a US Army base in Grafenwoehr, Germany.
Ukrainian troops have already been trained on an array of western military equipment
in that country.
In this video, Defense Updates analyzes what American Patriot air defense can do for Ukraine
? Let’s get started.
Since the start of the war in February, many Western air defenses have been sent to Ukraine
- from man-portable Stinger shoulder-launched missiles to an advanced heat-seeking surface-to-air
missile.
All provide a wide level of protection against different threats.
Patriots are another step on that same path but a very big step since it is a much more
capable system.
One Patriot missile costs around $3m - three times the cost of a missile in a NASAMS (National
Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System).
Patriot missile systems have long been a crucial asset for the U.S. and allies in contested
areas of the world.
The Patriot system gained prestige during the Persian Gulf War of 1991 with the claimed
engagement of over 40 Iraqi Scud missiles.
The system was successfully used against Iraqi missiles in the 2003 Iraq War and has also
been used by Saudi and Emirati forces in the Yemen conflict against Houthi missile attacks.
The American Patriot Air Defense System is an all-weather tactical mobile air defense
system.
It is manufactured by defense contractor Raytheon and entered service in 1981.
It has seen many upgrades since then and the capability has improved a lot since the initial
variant.
The system has the ability to defend against cruise and ballistic missiles, drones as a
well as different types of aircraft.
Patriot systems have been sold to many countries like Taiwan, the Netherlands, Poland, Germany,
Japan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait to name a few.
The Patriot system is expected to remain in service until at least 2040.
Each Patriot battery consists of a truck-mounted launching system with eight launchers that
can hold up to four missile interceptors each, a ground radar, a control station and a generator.
The latest variant of the Patriot is the Pac 3.
The Patriot Pac 3 uses a passive electronically scanned array radar.
It is equipped with IFF (Identification friend or foe) and an electronic counter-countermeasure
to resist jamming.
The radar has a range of around 160 km or 100 miles.
Patriot Pac 3 introduced the new MIM-104F missile, which is also referred to as the
PAC-3 missile.
It has reduced size compared to previous Patriot missiles and is more maneuverable.
The Patriot missile uses a Track-via-Missile (TVM) guidance system.
After the missile is launched, mid-course guidance is provided by the mobile control
center which uses the radar to direct the missile toward the target.
In the terminal phase, the Ka-band active radar seeker in the nose of the PAC-3 missile
acquires the inbound threat.
This radar selects the radar return most likely to be the warhead of the incoming missile
and directs the interceptor towards it.
The missile uses a 'hit to kill' strategy though it has a small high fragmentation warhead
to enhance the kill probability.
The warhead also known as 'Lethality Enhancer’ has 24 tungsten fragments that are launched
in a radial direction increasing the probability of interception.
Two missiles can be launched 4.2 seconds apart in a "ripple".
The second missile locates any debris which may be a warhead and attacks in a similar
manner.
For aerial targets, like aircraft & drones, the Patriot MIM-104F missile has an engagement
range of 160 km or 100 miles whereas for ballistic missiles, it has a range of about 30 km or
around 18.5 miles.
The deployment time for Patriot is 30 min.
Patriot is not a silver bullet but it is a potent air defense system
The news has antagonized Moscow.
Moscow called any plans to deploy Patriots "a provocation" and a further expansion of
the United States' military involvement in Ukraine.
Russia indicated that such missiles would become what it called "legitimate targets"
for missile strikes, something that has been said before in this war.
It is very important to note that soldiers fired like Stingers are easy to use but Patriot
is a much more complex system and Ukrainian personnel will need specialized training to
operate
The system would likely be deployed in Kyiv to start with and this will be an alarming
situation for Russia.
Russian aircraft and missile are been intercepted with much lesser capable systems and if Patriot
goes online in Ukraine, it will be a terrible development for Russia.
While the Patriot missile being very costly is not suitable for taking out Kamikaze drones,
it is a perfect weapon to take out Russian fighters and bombers as well as a high-precision missile.
If we see the larger context, Russian-built Surface-to-Air Missile systems are gradually
being replaced by modern western SAMs, and that is something which will alarm Kremlin.