Ukrainians outrun Patriot SAM training schedule

The Ukrainian military will complete Patriot systems training in the United States in a few weeks.

Borys Kremenetskyi, Ukraine’s defense attaché in the U.S., stated this to the Ukrainian service of the Voice of America.

They master modern missile systems under the accelerated program in the United States.

“It’s about weeks, I can’t be more specific… It’s been almost a month since they came here. Usually, if you start teaching from scratch, the training period can take from several months to a year,” said the attaché.

The Ukrainians arrived at the Fort Sill military base in Oklahoma in mid-January.

Then the Pentagon said that their training with the modern air defense system would last for several months.

However, according to Boris Kremenetsky, the terms were reduced due to the fact that the Ukrainian military was more experienced than it was expected.

“The program is really reduced compared to how other specialists are taught, and the reason is one: we send on training those specialists who have experience with air defense systems, they know the basics of air defense, that is, they do not need to be trained in basic elements,” the attaché noted.

Kremenetsky also added that Ukrainians are trained at a same military base where all American specialists serving Patriot systems are trained.

The training program in Oklahoma suggests that Ukrainians will not only quickly master the modern air defense system, but will be ready to become instructors for other military upon returning home.

The attaché did not name the exact number of Ukrainians undergoing training in the United States. However, he noted that there are enough specialists to work with Patriot in Ukraine, so the main question is whether to provide more of these systems.

On December 21, 2022, the United States announced the provision of a new $1.85 billion military assistance package to Ukraine, in which the Patriot air defense system was included for the first time.