Zelenskyy Says Ukraine Needs THAAD To Counter Russian Warplanes, But The System Can’t Do That

Illustrative image. (U.S. Army\Missile Defense Agency)

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on April 3 said that Ukraine is in need of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) systems to counter Russian warplanes.

During a press briefing, the Ukrainian president said that the question of supplying such systems had been already discussed with the United States.

“Ukraine already has experience working with representatives of the Middle East and the Gulf in consultations and expertise. At the same time, we want to rely on the anti-ballistic systems that exist in these countries but that we do not have. Specifically, this concerns THAAD systems and others. Such systems do not exist even in Europe. It is very necessary for them to be in Ukraine. Then, for example, the threat of Russian aerial bombardments would simply not exist in Ukraine. We would certainly remove this threat for at least 200 kilometers. Russian aircraft would simply not take off – and that would be all,” Zelenskyy.

The THAAD indeed has an operational range of 200 kilometers. Nevertheless, the system, as its name clearly suggests, was designed to only shoot down short, medium, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles in their terminal phase — descent or reentry.

In short, it is a dedicated anti-ballistic missile system, with no ability to engage warplanes, contrary to what Zelenskyy claimed.

THAAD interceptors do not even carry a warhead, instead they rely on its kinetic energy of impact to destroy the incoming missile.

They also utilized an angled indium-antimonide imaging infra-red seeker, designed specifically to engage with ballistic missiles.

Click to see full-size image. (U.S. Government)

Typically, each THAAD system consists of six truck-mounted launchers, 48 interceptors, radio and radar equipment, and requires 95 soldiers to operate. It costs upwards $1.8 billion, and a single interceptor could cost as much as over $15 million.

The U.S. military reportedly has only eight THAADs, but the number of functioning systems is likely lower, as at least two deployed in the Middle East were badly hit during the ongoing war on Iran. These losses also highlighted the vulnerability of the system.

It is unclear what exactly Zelenskyy based his claims on, but his latest claims reflect a high degree of military ignorance by him, and even more so by his commanders, who may have given him a completely false briefing on the capabilities of the THAAD.

Even the claim that an air defense system with a range of 200 kilometers could end the threat posed by Russian warplanes is completely ridiculous.

In fact, Ukraine already has an air defense system with a very long range, the American-made MIM-104 Patriot PAC-2, which can engage warplanes from up to 160 kilometers away. The country received several such systems years ago, and they made no difference whatsoever.

The latest claims by Zelenskyy are just a continuation of the same policy where Ukraine demands everything and anything from the U.S. and other allies just to keep the conflict ongoing, promising each time that this or that system will change everything.

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