The U.S. will provide new counter UAS systems to Ukraine, similar to the Army’s truck-mounted systems.
The Pentagon on April 4 announced a substantial new package of military aid for Ukraine ahead of an expected offensive against Russia, looking to bolster stocks of air defenses with a specific focus on counter uncrewed aircraft systems (C-UAS).
The $2.6 billion package includes $2.1 billion in new equipment to be contracted under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) and another $500 million in existing equipment that will be provided under presidential drawdown authority. This is the 35th such drawdown since August 2021.
Under the new contracts, the Pentagon will provide additional ammunition for the Raytheon-Kongsberg National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, along with anti-aircraft ammunition, three air surveillance radars, and extensive mortar and tank ammunition.
The list also features new C-UAS systems, including nine 30mm gun trucks. The Pentagon did not specify which system this is, but Leonardo DRS recently received $60 million contracts from the U.S. Army for its Mobile-Low, Slow, Small Unmanned Aircraft System Integrated Defeat System (M-LIDS). The system features a 30mm cannon on a Moog Inc. turret mounted on a vehicle.
The list also includes 10 mobile C-UAS laser-guided rocket systems, which a senior defense official says fires AGR-20 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon Systems. This would imply the contracts are for additional L3Harris Vehicle-Agnostic Modular Palletized ISR Rocket Equipment, which were provided under previous USAI announcements.
The announcement also includes an undisclosed number of satellite communication terminals and services. The defense official would not specify if this includes SpaceX’s Starlink or other providers, since the terminals and services have not yet been contracted.
The $500 million in drawdown authority includes additional munitions for Patriot air defenses, along with ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, to include M982 Excalibur rounds, other artillery and mortar rounds, tank ammunition and an undisclosed number of Tube-Launched, Optically Tracked, Wire-Guided missiles.
