On June 12, speaking at the U.S. Naval War College, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson advocated for a transition from regular naval ballistic missile defense patrols to land-based BMD with systems like Aegis Ashore. Reflecting on the Navy’s BMD, Richardson said “It’s a pretty good capability and if there is an emergent need...
On June 1, the Pakistan Navy concluded a second agreement to buy two Type 054A Jiangkai II-class guided missile frigates from the China Shipbuilding Trading Co Ltd. (CSTC). This follows the initial 2017 agreement to procure two frigates. The Type 054A frigate weighs 4,000 tons and features stealth capabilities and a 32-cell vertical launching system...
On April 18, MBDA successfully conducted its second development test fire of its Sea Venom/ANL missile. The missile was tested from a Panther test helicopter at Ile Du Levant in southeast France. The Sea Venom/ANL is a joint venture by French and British navies designed for use against smaller, lighter ships such as fast attack vessels and corvettes....
On May 30, India and Russia finalized a price agreement for Indian procurement of the S-400 Triumf (NATO: SA-21 Growler). No public announcement of the price agreement has been made, but an Indian official suggested it could be disclosed at the Russia-India summit in October 2018. The price agreement comes despite the United States’ Countering...
On February 23, India’s Strategic Forces Command (SFC) test fired a Dhanush ballistic missile from an Indian Navy vessel in the Bay of Bengal. The missile was fired off an Indian Navy Sukyana-class offshore patrol vessel, either the INS Subhadra or INS Suvarna. The Dhanush launch comes amid a busy schedule of Indian ballistic missile...
On February 20, the U.S. State Department approved a possible $3.2 billion Foreign Military Sale (FMS) of Patriot Configuration-3+ Modernized Fire Units to Sweden. If finalized, this would be Sweden’s first purchase of the U.S. Patriot system. According to a statement released by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, “This proposed sale will support the foreign...
On February 21, India’s Strategic Forces Command (SFC) test fired a Prithvi-2 tactical surface-to-surface short-range ballistic missile. The missile was fired at night from launch complex 3 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur. The Prithvi-2 missile entered service in 2003, and was recently test fired on February 7. It has a range of...
On February 20, India’s Strategic Forces Command (SFC) test fired an Agni-2 medium-range ballistic missile. The launch comes just two weeks after test launches of an Agni-1 and Prithvi-2, and took place at India’s Integrated Test Range off the coast of Odisha. The Agni-2 was previously test fired in May 2017, but failed for unknown...
On February 7, South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) announced its intent purchase additional Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptors from the United States. The estimated $53 million contract will go through the U.S. Foreign Military Sales program, with an undisclosed number of interceptors scheduled for delivery after 2020. Related Links:...
On February 18, UAE armed forces intercepted a Houthi-launched ballistic missile targeting Yemen’s south-eastern port city of al-Mokha. The attack marks at least the sixth reported Houthi missile targeting al-Mokha since the beginning of the 2015 Yemen War. For more, see our interactive The Missile War in Yemen. Related Links: UAE shoots down Houthi missile...
