Poland is taking active steps to create its own Wisła air defense system. Yesterday, November 8, the press service of Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa announced the transfer of the first pair of M903 launchers manufactured by Huta Stalowa Wola for the Patriot system.
"The development and production of additional components for Patriot kits at the enterprises of Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ) is one of the elements of our commitment to the introduction of the Wisła medium—range air and missile defense system," said Sebastian Hvalek, Chairman of the PGZ Management Board.
M903 launchers manufactured by Huta Stalowa Wola
Image source: grupapgz.pl
Two more M903 launchers are planned to be transferred for testing by the end of the year. In total, under the contract signed in 2018, Huta Stalowa Wola will build 16 M903 launchers, which will be used on two Wisła batteries.
Within the framework of the Wisła program, it is planned to purchase medium-range missile systems with a network-centric communication and control system for the Polish Armed Forces. At the first stage of the program, Poland will acquire two batteries (16 launchers) of the Patriot system in a configuration that includes, among other things, PAC-3 MSE missiles and the IBCS system. In addition to the launchers, the companies that are part of PGZ produce a number of other components of the kits, including transport and charging machines, launcher components, missiles and radar systems.
Patriot sams entered the American army in 1984 and are currently in service in fourteen countries. For more than thirty years of service, the Patriot SAM has undergone many modifications. One of its latest versions is equipped with PAC-3 MSE missiles, which have a radius of destruction increased by one and a half times compared to the PAC-3.
