Ukraine has already received two batteries of the French-made Crotale NG air-defense systems, Sébastien Lecornu, France’s minister of armed forces, confirmed during an interview with the Le Journal du Dimanche that was published on November 20.
France first promised to supply Ukraine with the modern short-range air-defense systems in mid-October. The country was among the first NATO members to provide lethal military aid to Kiev after the start of the Russian special military operation in February.
“Everything we promise, we deliver,” said Lecornu during the interview.
The Crotale NG [New Generation] is the latest version of the legacy Crotale system that was developed by the Thales Group in the 1960s. The system is designed to intercept airborne ranged weapons and aircraft, from cruise or anti-ship missiles to helicopters, drones or low-flying high-performance fighter jets.
The main feature of the Crotale NG is the new VT-1 missile, which has a Mach 3.5 speed, a load factor to 35 G, a 13 kg warhead, a range of 11 kilometers and six kilometer ceiling.
The system is equipped with an S-band pulse doppler radar with a range of 20 kilometer, a Ku-band tracking radar with a range of 30 kilometers, a thermal camera with a range of 19 kilometer and a daylight CCD camera with a range of 15 kilometers.
The Crotale NG, which is typically mounted on Patria Pasi 6×6 armored vehicles, entered production in 1990. The French military bought at least 12 systems.
In the last few weeks, Ukraine received several Western air-defense systems, including German-made IRIS-T SLM, Norwegian-made NASAMS, American-made MIM-23 Hawk and Italian-made Aspide 2000. Many of these systems were reportedly deployed in western Ukraine or near the capital, Kiev, to protect strategic areas and key facilities. Nevertheless, they have already failed in the face of several Russian drone and missile attacks.
The French-supplied Crotale NG batteries will likely be also deployed in the western region or near Kiev. It is unclear if it will actually make any difference.
Δεν υπάρχουν σχόλια:
Δημοσίευση σχολίου