Missile defense funds are likely to grow—a lot. In addition to a September reprogramming of an additional $249 million for the Missile Defense Agency for FY 2017, appropriations for FY 2018 could exceed $11 billion, over $3 billion more than the president's original request. This would make for the highest level of missile defense funding in a decade...
On November 30, Romania signed an official Letter of Offer and Acceptance to receive U.S. Patriot Advanced Configuration-3+ (PAC-3) air and missile defense systems. Approved by the U.S. State Department on July 11, the $3.9 billion sale will include: seven Patriot Advanced Configuration-3+ firing units, 56 Patriot MIM-104E Guidance Enhanced Missile-TBM (GEM-T) missiles and 168...
Four Patriot Adanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) Cost Reduction Initiative (CRI) missile interceptors and one PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) recently completed an operational test-firing at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico. Led by the U.S. Army, PAC-3 interceptors successfully detected, tracked, and defeated four tactical ballistic missile targets. These upgraded systems feature improved command and control...
On November 20, Romanian Defense Minister Mihai Fifor said that Romanian plans to procure $3.9 billion worth of Patriot air defense system technology in the first half of 2019. This statement followed Romania’s Senate’s defense committee formally approving the acquisition, which still needs to pass the rest of the Senate for the purchase to go...
On November 17, the U.S. State Department approved a possible Foreign Military Sale to Poland for an Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Battle Command System (IBCS)-enabled Patriot Configuration-3+ for an estimated cost of $10.5 billion. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale on November 14,...
From November 6 through November 9, U.S. and German troops are practicing fires from short- and long-range air defense platforms at the NATO Missile Firing Installation on the Greek island of Crete as part of the German-led Artemis Strike 2017 exercise. In addition to two Patriot batteries from the Baumholder, Germany-based 5th battalion, 7th Air...
On November 11, the Israeli military shot down a Syrian reconnaissance drone patrolling near the demilitarized zone north of the Golan Heights with a Patriot interceptor missile. While initial reports indicated the unmanned aerial vehicle was Russian-designed, the Israeli military is also investigating if there is a connection to Iran and Hezbollah. “We hold the...
On November 7, the Swedish government announced it will begin negotiations with U.S. company Raytheon for a $1.2 billion Patriot missile defense sale. The Swedish Armed Forces and the Defense Material Administration (FMV) chose Patriot over the French consortium Eurosam’s SAMP/T. “This is a major investment in the Swedish defence capability as well as the...
On November 6, the White House submitted an FY18 emergency budget request for the Department of Defense for $5.9 billion in additional funding “to support urgent missile defeat and defense enhancements to counter the threat from North Korea.” Most of this request, $4 billion, is designated for missile defeat and defense activities. $2.1 billion would...
On November 4, Houthi-Saleh forces launched a Scud-derived Burkan-2H ballistic missile toward Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Saudi air defenses employed at least four Patriot interceptors, which the Saudi Ministry of Defense said successfully destroyed the incoming missile. According to Yemen’s Houthi-controlled Defense Ministry, the Burkan-2H was aimed at the King Khalid International Airport....
