One of Ukraine’s two SAMP/T surface-to-air missile batteries has shot down a Russian warplane for the first time.
That’s obvious good news for Ukraine, which could rely more on the Franco-Italian air defense system—Europe’s answer to the American Patriot.
But the news belies the scarcity of SAMP/Ts—and their Aster missiles—not just in Ukraine, but everywhere.
“There is a confirmed aircraft,” Yuriy Ihnat, a Ukrainian air force spokesman, said at a recent industry event.
Last year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country needed at least seven of the best air defense batteries.
A new Patriot missile plant is under construction in Germany, but will need years to tool up.
That’s a few months longer than it takes Lockheed to produce a Patriot—and clearly too slow to save Ukraine. »
