Romanian Patriot battery is already in Ukraine

The Patriot air defense system provided by Romania has arrived in Ukraine, as confirmed by the representatives of both countries.

Radio Svoboda reported on this.

“We confirm that the Patriot system has arrived in Ukraine,” a Romanian Defense Ministry spokesperson Constantin Spinu stated.

The country provided the most advanced Patriot PAC-3+, capable of effectively intercepting ballistic missiles.

This happened within a month of President Klaus Iohannis signing a decree on September 5 to transfer the system to Ukraine free of charge.

The system configuration

In 2017, Romania signed an agreement with the United States to purchase seven Patriot PAC-3+ air defense systems batteries within the Foreign Military Sales program.

This version of the systems is equipped with a more powerful second-generation AN/MPQ-65 radar, which has a longer detection range, better target identification and ballistic missile tracking capabilities.

According to the US Department of Defense’s procurement reports, the contract includes seven batteries complete with one AN/MPQ-65 radar, one AN/MSQ-132 command post, and four M903 launchers. This allows us to estimate the likely composition of the transferred battery.

Unlike the old elements, the new M903 launchers can carry a larger ammunition of modern PAC-3 and PAC-3 MSE anti-aircraft missiles by reducing their size and weight.

The latter were designed specifically to intercept ballistic missiles. The original PAC-3 has a range of up to 80 km for air targets and 40 km for ballistic missiles. The later MSE from Lockheed Martin has an extended range of up to 120 km for air targets and 60 km for ballistic missiles.

Despite this, the launcher and radar can be used simultaneously with PAC-2 and PAC-3 missiles. This combination allows the system to effectively fight both air and ballistic targets simultaneously.

Last week, the United States approved the transfer of an additional Patriot air defense battery and missiles to Ukraine.