Ukrainians have long had a special type of missile weapon at the top of the wish list. It was CNN who could first tell that the wish will now be fulfilled. This was later also reported by the New York Times. This was confirmed on Wednesday by US President Joe Biden. So-called MLRS are vehicles with many launch pads for rockets. The United States has two different systems, but they use the same rockets. The rockets the experts assume that the Ukrainians get, have a range of at least 70 kilometers. It gives the Ukrainian defense opportunities they have not had until now. On Twitter, military expert Thomas C. Theiner explains that the rockets can hit command posts, supply lines and bases far behind the front line. He shows on a map that the missile weapons go much further than the other weapons the United States has provided. FAR BEHIND THE FRONT: With the American howitzers M777, the Ukrainians can hit the Russian front line. With the new missile weapons, the Russian supply lines can be hit. Photo: Twitter / Theiner Not the most far-reaching The American weapons can use a wide range of different rockets. It was one of the goals during the development that it should be possible. The largest of the rockets falls into a different category than the others. Joe Biden makes it clear that the Ukrainians will not get this rocket. The MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile System is not an artillery rocket. It is what is called a short-range ballistic missile. It can hit targets at least 320 kilometers from the launch site. This means that it can walk three-quarters of the way to Moscow from Ukrainian territory. “We do not want to give Ukrainians the opportunity to carry out attacks outside the borders of their own country,” Joe Biden wrote in the New York Times. BIG THINGS: American ATACMS Has such a wide range that large parts of Russia can be hit from Ukrainian territory. Photo: US DoD Precision weapons The rockets the Ukrainians will receive are most likely GPS-controlled with a range of at least 70 kilometers. These rockets, named M30A1, M31 and M31A1, all have high-explosive warheads. Previous varieties had cluster bombs. Military expert Theiner writes on Twitter that the other American rockets are either not available or are out of date. NO CLASS BOMBS: Thomas C. Theiner writes on Twitter that the United States will not send missile bombs to Ukraine. Photo: Twitter / Theiner The rockets have a so-called “circular error probable” of five meters. The rockets used by the Ukrainians and the Russians now have a CEP of about 170 meters. NOT PRECISE: All the white clouds of smoke come from impact from Russian artillery rockets in Ukraine. They hit over a large area. Photo: RU DoD Much faster Another big difference between the new weapons and rocket weapons the Ukrainians now have is how fast they can be reloaded. The typical Russian and Ukrainian missile weapon is the BM-21 Grad. It’s a truck with 40 launch pads. Each of the rockets must be placed in the ramp by hand. This is a time consuming and tedious process. The American rockets are placed in modules at the factory. These are hoisted into place with a lifting device that is part of the launch ramp. NOT TIRED: American soldiers in the process of recharging a HIMARS. Photo: US DoD With wheels or belts Americans have two different vehicles that use these rockets. The belt-driven M270 has two rocket modules. Himars that go on wheels have only one module. Each module has six rockets. Sources tell the Washington Post that it is relevant to give Ukraine Himars. It is a mechanically simpler system. This means that maintenance will be less difficult for the Ukrainians. This is also what the Ukrainians of Himar have repeatedly asked for. MOBILE AND FAST: M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) belts wheels. Photo: Lockheed Martin Norway The Norwegian Armed Forces used the M270 for a short period. Twelve carriages were purchased at the end of the 1990s. These were put in stock after a few years. The reason was that the rockets they could use had cluster bombs. Norway has committed itself not to use cluster munitions. The wagons are still in stock, the Armed Forces informs NRK. In the years that have passed, it has not been possible to find buyers. GREAT IMPACT: A Norwegian M270 wagon before they were put in stock. The rockets these wagons send out have a rough caliber and reach far. Photo: Torgeir Haugaard / The Armed Forces These wagons could be donated to Ukraine. If it is true that the Ukrainians will only get GPS-controlled rockets, it is less likely. The Norwegian wagons are still not upgraded to M270A1. This means that they can not use GPS-controlled rockets, the Armed Forces informs.
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Ukraine gets long-range precision weapons – NRK Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
