Rare footage of British air defense system in Ukraine emerges online

Footage of the British anti-aircraft missile system based on the Supacat HMT chassis with an AIM-132 ASRAAM missile launcher in Ukraine has been posted online. 

It is a really rare video, as the system was first shown on a video from the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in October 2023, during night operations against Iranian Shahed 'kamikaze' drones used by the Russian occupation forces.

As a reminder, back in August 2023, Western media reported that the United Kingdom had strengthened Ukraine's air defense with AIM-132 ASRAAM air-to-air guided missiles (which can also be used as an anti-aircraft missile) on an ersatz launcher. An aircraft pilot mounted on a carriage was used to integrate the missiles onto the mobile chassis.

The main tactical and technical characteristics of the AIM-132 ASRAAM missile are the following:

• weight - 88 kg;
• warhead (high explosive) - 10 kg;
• high explosive warhead;
• diameter - 166 mm;
• length - 2900 mm;
• launch range - 25 km;
• maximum flight speed - 3 .

At the same time, the AIM-132 ASRAAM missile will have a shorter range, probably up to 10 km, when launched from the ground, so these machines can actually replace Soviet anti-aircraft missile systems such as the Osa in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

It is also worth noting that the missile has an infrared guidance head, and therefore this British air defense system can operate in "silence" mode without the radar station. At the same time, a small-sized radar for airspace control is visible on the system.