Ukraine will receive new missiles with a range of 300 kilometers as early as January 2023, Voice of America journalist Miroslava Gongadze reported on X/Twitter, referring to an anonymous high-ranking source in the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
https://twitter.com/MGongadze/status/1717548008978432364
Currently, Ukraine operates the Franco-British Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG air-launched cruise missiles having an operational range of 550 km, and the US-supplied M39 (ATACMS Block I) tactical ballistic missiles – the earliest variant of the MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile System, having the range of 165 km.
The unnamed missile cannot be the Swedish-German 500+ km range Taurus KEPD 350 air-launched cruise missile, which Ukraine has been requesting but Berlin consistently refuses to supply.
If Gongadze’s report is confirmed, Ukraine may probably receive one of the newer variants of ATACMS. There are three main ATACMS variants with an operational range of up to 300 kilometers, all having GPS-aided guidance, unlike the earliest ATACMS Block I with inertial guidance:
- M39A1 (ATACMS Block IA) missile carries 300 bomblets.
- M48 (ATACMS Quick Reaction Unitary) carries the 230 kg penetrating high explosive blast fragmentation warhead.
- M57 (ATACMS TACMS 2000) carries the same warhead section as the M48.
Earlier, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba announced the US plans to supply more ATACMS ballistic missiles to Ukraine and to continue delivering long-range missiles in the future. However, the minister did not specify which missile variants are to be transferred.
Read also:
- Oryx confirms Ukraine destroyed nine Russian helicopters with ATACMS missiles
- British intel: Ukraine’s strikes at Berdiansk and Luhansk airfields reduce Russia’s capabilities at the front
- US to supply more ATACMS long-range missile to Ukraine, says foreign minister
- Frontline report: Ukraine showcases power of ATACMS missiles against Russian airbases
