Chris Pocock has been covering the defense beat for AIN for over 30&nbsp;years. He is a British citizen and a graduate of the University of Cambridge. Chris worked in the air cargo business for ten years before becoming a full-time writer in 1983. He subsequently edited two air cargo journals before becoming AIN’s Defense Editor. He retired from that position in 2018, but still contributes to the publication. Chris has written extensively on aerial reconnaissance, including four books on the history of the U-2 spyplane. He also lectures on this and other topics related to intelligence-gathering in the Cold War.

Defense Correspondent

Chris Pocock

Raytheon’s Patriot surface-to-air missile (SAM) system has shot down seven Russian Kh-47 Kinzhal air-launched hypersonic missiles over Ukraine in the past few weeks. The success was confirmed by Colonel Serhiy Yaremenko, commander of the 96th Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade. “No one was sure that the Patriot was capable of destroying a Kh-47. Ukrainians proved it,” he told the Wall Street Journal.
Previously, the Patriot system has seldom met expectations. Its kill ratio was far from 100 percent in the Gulf Wars, and more recently, over Saudi Arabia against Scud-class tactical ballistic missiles fired by Houthi rebels from Yemen, despite the latest PAC-3 version being billed as having such capability. It had apparently never been tested in the U.S. against a hypersonic threat. “It was not a requirement…but it turns out Patriot has some capability,” Vice-Admiral Jon Hill, director of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, told a Senate hearing recently. “It’s got the natural ability [to intercept hypersonic missiles] because it is a cruise missile killer,” he added.
Joe DeAntona, executive director of defense capabilities at Raytheon told AIN, “Today’s Patriot might look like the original 1983 version, but it’s now fully digitized.” He added that the company learned lessons from engagements 10 years ago and&nbsp;that a radar that viewed sector-by-sector, in turn, was not good enough. A gallium nitride-based AESA radar was developed with two rear-panel arrays to provide 360-degree coverage against maneuvering targets. Meanwhile, the missiles that are provided by Lockheed Martin have been upgraded. The PAC-3 is a new “hit-to-kill” interceptor, with an active radar head. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The U.S. has so far provided two Patriot batteries to Ukraine to defend Kyiv. A first engagement on May 4 intercepted a single Kh-47. Days later, six more were detected at a range of 125 miles and all were destroyed, the last at just nine miles and seconds before impact. Ukraine has both the PAC-3 missile and the previous PAC-2 version. The country is also facing attacks from the Iskander hypersonic ballistic missile, from which the Kinzhal was derived.
Raytheon chief executive Greg Hayes told the Wall Street Journal that he was surprised at how effective the Patriot had become. He said that Ukraine has tweaked the system’s software to track and destroy hypersonic missiles flying twice as fast as it was designed for. He also noted that his company was increasing annual production to 12, and plans to deliver five more to Ukraine by the end of next year.
Eric Maule, another Raytheon defense specialist, told AIN that it had taken only weeks to train the Ukrainian soldiers on the Patriot system. That’s presumably because they came with previous experience—Ukraine has Russian-supplied S-300 SAMs. Maule said that training a U.S. soldier from scratch takes a year: six months of basic training, then six months more on their assigned unit.&nbsp;
The newly-found Patriot capability does not come cheaply. According to U.S. Army budget documents, each system costs about $1 billion. Admiral Hill told U.S. senators that each missile costs $4 million. This raises the thorny question of the “cost-exchange ratio.”&nbsp;DeAntona said,&nbsp;that even if the incoming missile cost only $50,000, if it was headed for a multi-million dollar target on the ground, its destruction by Patriot would be worthwhile. “In any case,” he added, “we’re good at discriminating missiles, and where they are going.”

News and developments about airplanes, helicopters and unmanned air vehicles used in all varieties of operations, including airlines, military, business, commercial, general aviation and private.

Patriot Surface-to-air missile System Proves Counter-Hypersonic Capability

Two batteries of the Raytheon SAM system sent to Ukraine immediately proved their worth, shooting down Russia’s vaunted Kinzhal hypersonic missile.

Patriot Proves Counter-hypersonic Capability

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Charlotte Bailey

News and issues about aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), covering all segments of the aviation industry; and modifications for aircraft and engines. Subjects include product support of aircraft, engines and avionics, MRO company mergers, acquisitions, announcements and personnel, Airworthiness Directives, Supplemental Type Certificate approvals and other topics.

News and information on safety procedures and concerns.

News and issues relating to the aerospace industry that are related to the science, engineering and business of flight in space involving civil, industrial and military applications, and similar topics related to flight in the atmosphere of the Earth that are not covered more directly by other AINonline subject channels. In other words, both astronautical and aeronautical subjects, except for those aeronautical topics that are specifically covered elsewhere on this website.

ATR 72 aircraft performs pre-modification flight in Toulouse

Kepplair Starts Converting ATR 72 Into Water Bombers

Curt Epstein

News and issues relating to business, corporate and private aviation, primarily regarding turbine-engine-powered airplanes and helicopters. Subjects include aircraft, engines, maintenance, operations, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security, and training.

Only the piston aircraft segment posted a decline

GAMA: Bizjets, T-props, and Rotorcraft Deliveries Up

Hanneke Weitering

Two captains held the prototype 33 feet above the water for 30 seconds

Regent Flies Electric Seaglider with Crew for First Time

News about bills, laws, regulations and other governmental decisions affecting aviation and aerospace. Topics include FAA re-authorizations, taxes on fuel and aviation activities, environmental legislation, ICAO decisions, governmental mediation of labor conflicts and World Trade Organization disputes and decisions.

Icing approval would open year-round service to northern communities

Horizon Begins Icing Tests for Cavorite X7 eVTOL

Kerry Lynch

Deal to close this year

Bombardier To Grow Manufacturing Capacity with MHICA Buy

David Donald

Essential news and analysis on the defense aerospace business. Your trusted source for new and ongoing programs and requirements in military aircraft (manned and unmanned), engines, avionics, weapons and associated systems, including ground-based air defense.

The two NATO allies will purchase seven of the tanker/transport aircraft

Spain and Poland Agree to Buy A330MRTT Tanker Transports

News and developments about aircraft engines, including turbofan, turboprop, turboshaft and piston.

News and issues relating to international air transport and cargo carriers, national airlines and regional airlines, including aircraft, engines, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security and training.

GE Aerospace has tested the GE9X, Leap 1A, Leap 1B, and more with the 747.

GE Aerospace Flies Boeing 747 To Test New Engine Tech

Charles Alcock

News about commercial airlines, including regulations, aircraft orders, safety, acquisitions, and mergers.

News about environmental issues relating to aircraft operations, including noise issues, emissisions, and regulations. See Fuel for biofuel.

Paris Air Show 2023

In this article

Raytheon

RTX

More In Aircraft