On October 17, the U.S. Army awarded a contract for its new Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS), a competition to develop a new radar for the Patriot and future air and missile defense systems. The winning radar, designed by Raytheon, has a longer detection range than the legacy AN/MPQ-53 system. It also...
On October 9, the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force conducted a public drill of its Patriot missile defense system in Tokyo. The demonstration took place at a public park in Ariake District, Tokyo and marked the first urban JASDF missile defense exercise since 2013. Japanese Defense Minister Taro Kono and Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike attended the...
On September 26, the Pentagon announced the deployment of one Patriot battery, four Sentinel surveillance radars, and 200 support personnel to Saudi Arabia, following Iranian attacks on Saudi oil facilities last week. In a statement, the Department of Defense also announced it would maintain two Patriot batteries and one Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)...
Originally published in The Hill. The attacks on the oil facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais in Saudi Arabia are neon flashing warning signs of the threat presented by the proliferation of low flying precision guided weapons like drones and cruise missiles. These attacks were highly successful, despite the apparent presence of air defenses. This illustrates...
On August 29, the U.S. Army successfully intercepted a cruise missile target using the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Cost Reduction Initiative (PAC-3 CRI) interceptor. The test also used the Army’s Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) to fuse information from multiple Sentinel and Patriot radars and engage the target at a record distance. Related Links: Lockheed Martin’s...
On August 15, South Korea’s Ministry of Defense announced it would spend about $240 billion on missile defense in the 2020-2024 period. Under the budget plan, the Blue House would acquire two ground-based early warning radars, three Aegis-equipped destroyers, and the Patriot Advanced Capability 3 Missile Segment Enhancement (PAC-3 MSE) missile defense system, all of...
On August 13, Bahrain signed an agreement to purchase the Patriot air and missile defense system from the United States. The U.S. Department of State had previously approved the sale of 60 Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) and 36 Patriot PAC-2 Guidance Enhanced Missiles (GEM-T), in addition to several launchers, radar sets, and control stations. According...
On July 13, the Royal Netherlands Army received its first shipment of recapitalized Patriot fire units from the United States. Under the $105 million sale, the U.S. Army is replacing the radars, launch systems, and fire control units for four Patriot systems. The rebuilt Patriot elements were also installed with a Netherlands-specific dehumidifier system to...
On July 12, the U.S. State Department approved the potential sale of 50 Patriot Advanced Capability 3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) surface-to-air missiles to Germany. The PAC-3 MSE can reach double the range of the legacy PAC-3 and offers improved kinematic performance. The sale, which includes logistical support, is estimated to cost $401 million. ...
On July 12, Turkey received the first elements of the S-400, a fourth-generation surface-to-air Russian missile system. Few recent weapon sales have been as geopolitically charged as this one. U.S. officials have threatened both military and economic sanctions should Turkey acquire the Russian system. The delivery comes after many years of negotiations for more advanced...
