The war in Ukraine has resulted in a very high demand for weapons systems and ammunition, creating a problem of stockpiling them in Western countries, which are helping Kiev by sending their own in its fight against the Russian invaders.
In particular, the problem is focused on artillery shells, primarily 155mm, but also on anti-aircraft missiles, due to the massive use of drones and missiles by the Russians.
PENTAPOSTAGMA had highlighted the issue eight (8) months earlier with an article entitled, "A bell tolling" to the Greek staffs: Immediate additional supply of Patriot missiles for the Aegean-What the overconsumption in Ukraine shows"
We then sounded the alarm by saying: "Turkey has a plethora of drones and missile systems, which may lead to saturation of our air defense network and depletion in a short time of the existing stock of missiles.
The oversupply of American Patriot missiles in Ukraine is of direct concern to us as Greece, since it is known that the backbone of our air defence is based on these missiles, while it is known that Turkey has a plethora of drones which it will use as a spearhead in the event of a military confrontation with our country in the Aegean.
At the same time, we are interested in whether the US would be able to supply us with Patriot missiles in such a case, since Ukraine uses huge quantities of them."
In our recent article entitled, "Ukraine 'out of Patriot missiles' at the mercy of Putin's appetites - The Turkish missile threat and the forecast for stockpiling 'Greek' Patriot missiles", we pointed out the lack of Patriot missiles in Ukraine with adverse consequences for its air defence.
Shortage of STINGER anti-aircraft missiles in the US
Now "it's the turn" of the STINGER portable anti-aircraft missiles, which according to Turkish media, "are in short supply in the US, resulting in the commissioning of 1900 missiles that were unusable," noting:
"Many NATO member countries use the Stinger as a portable air defence missile.
For the Stinger missile, which has not been produced for almost 20 years, the US decided to reactivate production lines to meet the need that arose after the Ukraine-Russia war.
However, it is predicted that production will not start until 2025, although even 70-year-old workers will return to work.
In response, the US continues to renew and commission Stinger MANPADS that have expired and cannot be used. Finally, 1900 Singer Missiles were put back into service with many components such as engines and fuses renewed.
While approximately $10,000 per missile was saved, the life of the renewed missiles was determined to be 10 years.
STINGER effective against UAVs
The US military also noted that the missile is equipped with new technology capable of countering unmanned aerial systems, "a threat that was not in the Stinger's target set decades ago."
However, he did not share detailed information on this issue.
It is considered that the innovation here is based on the head of the searcher and the software.
This work began in 2017 at the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant (MCAAP) as part of the Stinger Service Life Extension Program.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine intensified this effort, and the service approved funds to replace 2,700 obsolete missiles in the summer of 2022 to bolster the active inventory.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Army signed a contract with Raytheon to produce 1,300 Stingers to replace missiles sent to Ukraine.
The military is also inviting developers for potential missiles to replace the portable missiles first introduced in the early 1980s.
FIM-92K Stinger MANPADS characteristics
The Stinger missile, which has a maximum range of 8 km, can engage targets at an altitude of 3.5 km. The infrared guided missile weighs 12.7 kg.
Stinger missiles are the primary MANPADS of many NATO member countries, including Turkey and Greece, and are also widely used by non-NATO countries.
What's next for the "Greek" STINGER
Following the above, it is considered appropriate for our country to move along two main axes with regard to STINGER.
The first should be, in our opinion, the signing of an agreement with the USA as soon as possible for the supply of the new STINGER missiles which, based on their new technological upgrade, are highly effective against drones. If this is achieved, they will then be deployed and distributed to Evros and the islands, with the majority of them in the latter and especially in our small islands in the Aegean, in order to strengthen their anti-aircraft protection, especially against Turkish drones.
The second has to do with the maintenance-sufficiency of the existing ones in our Armed Forces and any supplementation of the existing stockpile from other NATO countries or outside.
Έλλειψη Stinger στις ΗΠΑ: Αντικατάσταση 1900 αχρησιμοποίητων πυραύλων
Η έλλειψη Stinger Portable Air Defense Missile (MANPADS) συνεχίζεται στις ΗΠΑ. Τέλος, ανανεώθηκαν και τέθηκαν σε λειτουργία 1900 βλήματα που ήταν άχρηστα.
Πολλές χώρες μέλη του ΝΑΤΟ χρησιμοποιούν το Stinger ως φορητό πύραυλο αεράμυνας. Για τον πύραυλο Stinger, που δεν έχει παραχθεί σχεδόν 20 χρόνια, οι ΗΠΑ αποφάσισαν να ενεργοποιήσουν ξανά τις γραμμές παραγωγής για να καλύψουν την ανάγκη που προέκυψε μετά τον πόλεμο Ουκρανίας-Ρωσίας. Ωστόσο, προβλέπεται ότι η παραγωγή δεν θα ξεκινήσει μέχρι το 2025, αν και ακόμη και 70χρονοι εργάτες θα επιστρέψουν στη δουλειά.
Σε απάντηση, οι ΗΠΑ συνεχίζουν να ανανεώνουν και να θέτουν σε λειτουργία τα Stinger MANPADS που έχουν λήξει και δεν μπορούν να χρησιμοποιηθούν. Τέλος, 1900 Πύραυλοι Singer τέθηκαν ξανά σε λειτουργία με πολλά εξαρτήματα όπως κινητήρες και ασφάλειες ανανεωμένα. Ενώ εξοικονομήθηκαν περίπου 10 χιλιάδες δολάρια ανά βλήμα, η διάρκεια ζωής των ανανεωμένων βλημάτων καθορίστηκε ως 10 χρόνια.
Πιο αποτελεσματικό κατά των UAV
Ο στρατός των ΗΠΑ σημείωσε επίσης ότι ο πύραυλος είναι εξοπλισμένος με νέα τεχνολογία ικανή να αντιμετωπίσει μη επανδρωμένα εναέρια συστήματα, «μια απειλή που δεν ήταν στον στόχο του Stinger που είχε τεθεί πριν από δεκαετίες». Ωστόσο, δεν μοιράστηκε λεπτομερείς πληροφορίες για αυτό το θέμα. Θεωρείται ότι η καινοτομία εδώ βασίζεται στο κεφάλι του αναζητητή και στο λογισμικό.
Αυτή η εργασία ξεκίνησε το 2017 στο εργοστάσιο πυρομαχικών McAlester Army (MCAAP) ως μέρος του προγράμματος επέκτασης ζωής Stinger Service. Η εισβολή της Ρωσίας στην Ουκρανία ενέτεινε αυτή την προσπάθεια και η υπηρεσία ενέκρινε κεφάλαια για την αντικατάσταση 2.700 απαρχαιωμένων πυραύλων το καλοκαίρι του 2022 για την ενίσχυση του ενεργού αποθέματος.
Stinger Developments
Εν τω μεταξύ, ο στρατός των ΗΠΑ υπέγραψε συμβόλαιο με τη Raytheon για την παραγωγή 1.300 Stingers για την αντικατάσταση των πυραύλων που στάλθηκαν στην Ουκρανία.
Ο στρατός καλεί επίσης τους προγραμματιστές για πιθανούς πυραύλους για να αντικαταστήσουν τους φορητούς πυραύλους που παρουσιάστηκαν για πρώτη φορά στις αρχές της δεκαετίας του 1980.
Χαρακτηριστικά FIM-92K Stinger MANPADS
Ο πύραυλος Stinger, που έχει μέγιστο βεληνεκές 8 χιλιομέτρων, μπορεί να εμπλέξει στόχους σε υψόμετρο 3,5 χιλιομέτρων. Το υπέρυθρο κατευθυνόμενο βλήμα ζυγίζει 12,7 κιλά. Οι πύραυλοι Stinger είναι τα κύρια MANPADS πολλών χωρών μελών του ΝΑΤΟ, συμπεριλαμβανομένης της Τουρκίας. Χρησιμοποιείται επίσης ευρέως από χώρες εκτός ΝΑΤΟ.
