Patriot manufacturer vows to supply more air defence systems to Ukraine

Raytheon Technologies, the Patriot air defence system manufacturer, plans to increase production volumes significantly.

This was stated by the company’s CEO, Greg Hayes, cited by The Wall Street Journal. He said that the company plans to increase production to 12 systems per year.

In addition, according to Hayes, Raytheon Technologies plans to supply Ukraine with five more systems by the end of next year.

“We were very surprised by its effectiveness,” Hayes said of the Patriot.

Patriot Coalition for Ukraine

The latest military aid package from the United States included additional ammunition for Patriot air defence systems.

On 1 June, after arriving at the European Political Community summit in Moldova, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, called for the creation of a Patriot coalition. The Prime Minister of the Netherlands supported this initiative.

How Patriots help Ukraine defend its skies?

American Patriot air defence systems help Ukraine defend its skies from Russian missile attacks. These systems destroyed Russian Kinzhal hypersonic airborne ballistic missiles in the sky over the Kyiv region.

The Patriot system entered service in the US in 1982. It was first used in 1991 during the Gulf War. At that time, Patriot was actively used as an anti-missile system, not as an anti-aircraft system, against Iraqi missiles.

Since then, the Patriot and its interceptor missiles have been optimised to defend against tactical ballistic missiles. They are also effective against cruise missiles and military aircraft.

Key features of the MIM-104 Patriot

• maximum target interception range – 80 km;
• minimum target interception range – 3 km;
• maximum target interception altitude – 24 km;
• minimum target interception height – 0.06 km;
• number of targets that can be fired simultaneously – 8 (in the 90° sector);
• probability of hitting the target – 0.8 (in combat conditions – 0.4-0.6);
• missile weight – 912 kg.

The Patriot battery includes four launchers. The battery’s launchers can fire three types of missiles: MIM-104A for intercepting aerodynamic targets (air defence), MIM-104B with passive guidance function for jammers or ground radars (anti-aircraft missiles) and MIM-104C/D/E missiles for intercepting ballistic targets. The maximum height of target engagement is 24.2 km, with a range of 50-160 km, depending on the missile type.

Patriot Air defence systems in Ukraine

It was confirmed that Ukraine had received the Patriot air defence system in mid-April 2023. Ukrainian officers were trained to master new systems abroad.

According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, the Patriot air defence systems came from the United States, the Netherlands and Germany. They now protect Ukrainian skies from attacks by Russian missiles and drones.

The location of the new systems in Ukraine is not disclosed for security reasons: the enemy should not have this information.

However, it is known that Patriot has already destroyed several Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles in the skies over the Kyiv region. Russian propaganda has long claimed that these missiles have “no analogues,” but Patriot systems have destroyed this myth.

The Ukrainian military has successfully integrated Patriot systems into Ukraine’s existing air defence system, which previously depended entirely on Soviet models – short-, medium- and long-range S-300, Buk and other air defence systems.