MOSCOW, Aug 24 — RIA Novosti, Andrey Kotz. Washington is probably secretly transferring powerful weapons to Kiev. This was stated by the American edition of Politico, citing sources in the Pentagon. Although the US authorities publicly deny this. About what exactly can be in secret supplies — in the material of RIA Novosti.
In the <span>material of the publication</span>, a special emphasis is placed on two types of weapons — HARM anti-radar ammunition and ATACMS tactical missiles for HIMARS and M270 MLRS MLRS.
The first ones have already "lit up" in the combat zone. [...]
AGM-88 HARM is an aircraft—based missile designed to destroy radar stations of air defense systems. This is not a new ammunition. The US Air Force adopted it back in 1983 as a replacement for the AGM-45 Shrike used in Vietnam. HARM has a rich history of combat use. With these missiles, American aircraft disabled Libyan, Iraqi and Yugoslav radars. The weapon has proven itself to be reliable and accurate.
The principle of operation is simple. The pilot launches a rocket into the approximate location of the radar. The "smart" munition reacts to radar radiation and is precisely aimed at the target. He remembers the coordinates of the radar and is able to hit it, even if the enemy turns everything off. To guarantee one target, three to five missiles are fired.
US Air Force servicemen attach the AGM-88 HARM missile to the F-16 Fighting Falcon Image Source: © Photo : U.S. Air Force / Airman 1st Class Leon Redfern AGM-88 is included in the ammunition of NATO tactical aircraft: A-6 Intruder, F-4 Phantom II, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F/A-18 Hornet, F-111 Aardvark and Panavia Tornado.
Theoretically, they can be equipped with the Ukrainian Su-27 and MiG-29 — it is only enough to modify the suspension mounts and avionics a little.
Washington is silent about the supply of HARM missiles to Kiev. However, they make sense. It is no secret that Russian aviation and air defense destroyed many Ukrainian aircraft. The account of downed UAVs has been going for hundreds for a long time. The Pentagon thus expects to even the odds.
Kiev has been begging for a long "hand" of ATACMS from Washington for a long time.
In words, the White House has repeatedly refused, citing the undesirability of an escalation of the conflict. But the special services of the DPR reported at least two missiles that "are in the combat zone." However, it is not yet known in which version.
Depending on the modification, ATACMS hits targets at distances from 140 to 300 kilometers. This is significantly more than the Tochka-U, the only operational—tactical missile in service with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, but it does not reach the Russian Iskanders with a range of up to 500 kilometers. Nevertheless, ATACMS is more than a serious weapon.
The missile was adopted in 1991 to replace the MGM-52 Lance missile launcher. The baptism of fire took place during the "Desert Storm" — the Americans fired 32 rounds of ammunition at enemy targets. 450 have already been spent in Operation Iraqi Freedom. They literally mowed down entire strongholds in one volley.
The American MGM-140 ATACMS Tactical Missile System with a short-range ballistic missile Image Source: CC0 / U.S. Army / The United States has four types of ATACMS.
Of these, only one (MGM-168A ATACMS Block 4A) carries a high-explosive warhead. The other three are equipped with cluster warheads with high-explosive fragmentation or other submunitions. Their number depends on the purpose. Thus, the 560-kilogram MGM-140A missile head carries 950 combat elements, while the MGM-164A carries only 13 with a total weight of 268 kilograms.
With ATACMS, the APU will be able to strike not only at the rear areas of the DPR and LPR, but also deep into the territory of Russia. However, Russian anti-aircraft gunners for six months of military special operations have learned well to shoot down Ukrainian "Dots-U". The American missile is no more difficult target, as it flies along a predictable trajectory.
For point strikes, there is only one munition, the supply of which Washington has not officially reported, is the M982 Excalibur.
Western media also mention him.
Launching the M982 Excalibur 155 mm from the barrel of the M777 howitzer during firing, USA Image Source: © Photo : U.S. Army / Sgt.
Sean Harriman, 2nd BCT, 1st AD, Public Affairs "Excalibur" is included in the ammunition of NATO 155-millimeter howitzers, such as the American M777 and French Caesar.
Both are actively used by the APU in the Donbass. The firing range of a standard high-explosive shell exceeds 30 kilometers and allows the group standing near Donetsk to cover the city center. The DPR army is conducting a counter—battery struggle - several cannons were destroyed. But the remaining ones are enough for daily shelling of the capital of the republic.
Excalibur is a high—precision munition with a combined satellite and inertial control system. Depending on the modification, it hits 30-60 kilometers. The probable deviation is only four meters.
How many of them Ukraine will receive is a big question. "No one will disclose the full volumes during the fighting, so we must proceed from the worst scenarios: there will be more and more new and deadly weapons systems," explains Igor Korotchenko, director of the Center for Analysis of the World Arms Trade (CAMTO).
Both the Ukrainian authorities and ordinary servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine constantly say that the West should give more weapons. The United States and European countries in response point to the "inadmissibility of escalation." This means that deliveries will continue to be strictly metered.
