Ukrainian Air Force explains why Russian hypersonic missile cannot destroy MIM-104 Patriot system

The Ukrainian Air Force yesterday refused to comment on the Russian Defence Ministry's statements about the destruction of the MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air missile system. Nevertheless, the topic was raised today, 17 May, by the service's spokesman, Col Yuriy Ignat.

Here's What We Know

According to the Ukrainian Air Force spokesman, the Russian defence ministry has "already destroyed the entire Ukrainian air force eight times". Furthermore, let's not forget that the Russian command has "destroyed" more HIMARS missile systems than the US has handed over to Ukraine.

This was the main reason why the Air Force did not comment on statements about the destruction of the MIM-104 Patriot air defence system. However, Colonel Yuriy Ignat has now explained why a single hypersonic missile is not capable of destroying the entire complex.

This is because the Patriot is an entire division that includes launchers, a command post and radar. The number of launchers is not specified, but there could be up to eight.

The command post is capable of operating in three modes: manual, semi-automatic and automatic. The latter makes it possible to intercept air threats without human intervention. It was in this mode that the complex worked on the night of May 16, when six Russian hypersonic missiles were intercepted.

The launchers are equipped with four containers. They are not located in one place but at a distance from each other. That makes it impossible to destroy the entire antiaircraft missile system with a hypersonic missile.

We should add that the day before, CNN quoted an anonymous senior official as saying that the MIM-104 Patriot was damaged, but not destroyed, in the night attack. According to him, the US is assessing the extent of the damage. On the other hand, the White House could not confirm this information.

However, the US Presidential Administration said that it would help to repair the surface-to-air missile system if repairs were needed outside Ukraine. This was reported by John Kirby, the US national security adviser.

Source: TV channel Rada