““Even THAAD may not be enough.” Defense Express explained why Patriot and SAMP-T will not be able to shoot down Oreshnyk January 20, 17:20 Share: German Patriot air defense system (Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine) Patriot and SAMP-T anti-aircraft missile complexes have demonstrated high efficiency in Ukraine, successfully shooting down various goals However, the Oreshnik medium- and intercontinental-range Russian missile may be out of reach for them. This was reported by Defense Express.”, — write on: ua.news
German Patriot air defense system (Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine)
The Patriot and SAMP-T anti-aircraft missile complexes demonstrated high efficiency in Ukraine, successfully hitting various targets. However, the Oreshnik medium- and intercontinental-range Russian missile may be out of reach for them.
This was reported by Defense Express.
Each air defense system has its own tasks. In particular, the Patriot PAC-3 and SAMP-T complexes are designed to combat operational-tactical ballistic missiles, the flight range of which does not exceed 1,000 kilometers, so they are not suitable for intercepting Oreshnyk.
The publication explains that medium- and longer-range ballistic missiles move at an altitude of more than 100 km during the main flight stage. Their speed when entering the atmosphere is 3-4 km/sec for medium-range missiles and 5-7 km/sec for intercontinental missiles.
Because of this, the Patriot PAC-3 and SAMP-T complexes can, in theory, intercept the warheads of such missiles already in the atmosphere. However, how effective it will be in practice remains an open question.
The main problem with the Patriot and SAMP-T air defense systems is that the Oreshnyk missile has a separate warhead that carries up to six warheads and dummy targets. The number of objects that these systems can intercept at the same time is limited, so they are not able to shoot down all of the Nutcracker’s warheads at once.
According to Defense Express, even the THAAD complex, which specializes in intercepting medium-range ballistic missiles, also has a limit on the number of targets that can be hit at the same time and will not be able to completely neutralize this threat.
The most effective way to intercept such a missile is to destroy it before it begins to split into warheads, writes Defense Express. The American SM-3 anti-aircraft missile, which is used on ships with the Aegis system or in fixed Aegis Ashore installations on the ground, is suitable for this.
Earlier, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi stated that Ukraine does not yet have systems to intercept the Russian Oreshnyk missile, but the necessary actions are being taken to create countermeasures.
Hit Ukraine with Oreshnyk missile – what is known
On November 21, 2024, Russia first attacked Ukraine with an Oreshnyk intercontinental ballistic missile. It flew to the Dnipro and caused minor damage. A number of mass media wrote that Russia struck the Dnipro on November 21 with a modification of the RS-26 Rubezh missile, which did not have a warhead.
On the same day, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin called the use of a nuclear-free hypersonic ballistic missile “a response to attacks by British and American weapons.”
According to the GUR, on November 21, the aggressor country Russia launched a ballistic missile from the Kedr complex over the Dnieper.
On November 28, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin publicly threatened to strike “decision-making centers” in Kyiv with Oreshnyk missiles.
ISW analyzed that Putin, with loud statements about the Oreshnyk ballistic missile, is probably looking for a way to move away from his nuclear threats, which he is not ready to fulfill.
On December 16, the Russian dictator announced that serial production of the Oreshnyk medium-range ballistic missile would begin in the near future.
On December 22, Putin boasted that he had been “deeply immersed” in the development of Oreshnyk and supported its testing in combat conditions.