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| RIM-7 Sea Sparrow Missile Will Be A Nightmare For Russian Fighter Jets |
International Military - The United States has launched a new major military aid package worth USD3.75 billion for Ukraine. Washington has promised to send a variety of weapons to shore up Kiev in its ongoing conflict with Russia. Among other things, the package includes a number of RIM-7 Sea Sparrow short-range anti-aircraft missiles.
The Ruadl RIM-7 Sea Sparrow is a scourge for fighter jets because it is capable of chasing and crippling the target fighter. "The missile, which was developed in the early 1960s, is expected to be fitted to the Soviet-era Buk launchers remaining in Ukraine's inventory," the Politico report stated shortly before the official announcement.
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“The package will for the first time include the radar-guided Sea Sparrow anti-air missile, which can be launched from sea or land to intercept aircraft or cruise missiles. In a bit of battlefield innovation, the Ukrainian military has managed to convert an existing Soviet-era Buk launcher to fire the Sea Sparrow,” the outlet wrote, citing “two people familiar with the matter.”
Politico did not explain how Kiev came up with these “battlefield innovations,” but given that Ukraine never had RIM-7 missiles, fitting US-made munitions into Soviet-built launchers suggests heavy US involvement in the upgrade. The missile had previously been successfully fitted to the Kub anti-aircraft launcher, the predecessor to the Buk system, in a collaboration between Raytheon and Polish defense manufacturer WZU Sa.
Upgrades to Soviet-built launchers were first rolled out in the early 2010s. In recent months, Kyiv's Western backers have intensified their efforts to bolster Kiev's anti-aircraft defenses. Ukraine is currently struggling with an escalating bombing campaign against critical Ukrainian infrastructure launched by Moscow after the Crimea Bridge explosion.
Recent deliveries to Ukraine have included the US-made short-range NASAMS system, Germany's IRIS-T air defense system. As for one US Patriot system battery, the backbone of NATO's anti-aircraft defense, it is expected to be transferred to Kiev in the near future.