NASAMS Air Defenses: Ukraine Receives New Weapons to Attack Russian Planes

By Maya Carlin, Warrior Contributor, Weapons

More NASAMS for Ukraine – For more than 15 months, the U.S. has provided Kyiv with billions of dollars worth of aid, including military equipment, humanitarian assistance, training, and cash.

This week, the U.S. State Department approved the sale to Ukraine of the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS), among other military systems.

One AN/MPQ-64F1 Sentinel radar is also included in a weapons package that according to the Defense Secretary Cooperation Agency could add up to a value of $285 million. The Pentagon noted that the Raytheon system could enhance Kyiv’s ability to thwart Russia-launched missiles and other aerial attacks.

This won’t be the first time Ukraine receives NASAMS.

Over the last year, Norway pledged to send at least two of these systems to Kyiv. Washington has previously delivered two NASAMS and awarded the system’s manufacturer, Raytheon, with a $1.2 billion contract to produce six additional NASAMS for Kyiv.

A brief overview of NASAMS

NASAMS is a medium-range, network-centric system designed to defend against unmanned aerial vehicles, fixed wing aircraft, and a wide range of projectiles. The system dates back to the 1980s, when the program was initially conceptualized for the Royal Norwegian Air Force by Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace and Hughes Missile Systems.