Ukrainian Il-76 Airlifter That Was Tracked Across U.S. Delivered Radar Asset To Utah Air Base
A Ukranian Air Force Il-76 'Candid' cargo plane has appeared at an Air National Guard facility attached to Salt Lake City International Airport. We now know that it has delivered an unspecified mobile radar system as part of a U.S. Air Force contract.
...Based on what we know, it seems more likely that the Air Force has purchased or leased a radar from Ukraine for so-called "foreign materiel exploitation" (FME) purposes. The U.S. military is always looking to acquire "threat representative" systems to pick them apart and look for potential vulnerabilities, as well as seeing how threatening they might actually be to American forces while operating in real-world conditions.
Ukraine, a friendly former Soviet republic that still maintains and produces various Soviet-era systems, has become an increasingly valuable source for this type of equipment. In September 2018, the U.S. Army reportedly took delivery of another Ukrainian air defense radar, a 36D6M1-1, which is associated with the S-300 surface-to-air missile system.
Variants of the S-300 remain in service in Russia, as well as numerous other countries around the world, including other potential American opponents, such as Iran. The new Ukranian radar could also be similar, if not identical to a system still in widespread use.
...Based on what we know, it seems more likely that the Air Force has purchased or leased a radar from Ukraine for so-called "foreign materiel exploitation" (FME) purposes. The U.S. military is always looking to acquire "threat representative" systems to pick them apart and look for potential vulnerabilities, as well as seeing how threatening they might actually be to American forces while operating in real-world conditions.
Ukraine, a friendly former Soviet republic that still maintains and produces various Soviet-era systems, has become an increasingly valuable source for this type of equipment. In September 2018, the U.S. Army reportedly took delivery of another Ukrainian air defense radar, a 36D6M1-1, which is associated with the S-300 surface-to-air missile system.
Variants of the S-300 remain in service in Russia, as well as numerous other countries around the world, including other potential American opponents, such as Iran. The new Ukranian radar could also be similar, if not identical to a system still in widespread use.
No comments:
Post a Comment