Ukraine has conducted a test of a newly developed surface-to-air missile intended as a lower-cost, mass-producible alternative to the United States’ Patriot air defence system, Denys Shtilierman, co-founder of Ukrainian defence manufacturer Fire Point, has stated.
In an interview with the Financial Times, he said they carried out the first flight test of FP-7.x anti-missile interceptor last week, describing it as “pretty successful,” Caliber.Az reports.
Kyiv has faced ongoing difficulties in securing sufficient Western interceptor missiles to defend its cities against persistent Russian missile and drone strikes, including a large-scale attack last week that reportedly killed at least 22 people across the country.
According to the company, the FP-7.x is designed to counter Russian ballistic missiles and drones at a significantly lower cost than existing Western systems such as Lockheed Martin’s Patriot and the Franco-Italian SAMP/T, while also allowing for much larger-scale production.
Shtilierman said mass production could begin as early as August, depending on the arrival of an infrared guidance seeker, which Fire Point hopes to obtain from Germany’s Diehl Defence. He added that the completed missiles could be ready by 2027.
The wider air defence system, known as “Freyja,” including radar systems for detection and tracking as well as command-and-control infrastructure, is expected to be supplied by European partners. Fire Point did not confirm specific collaborators, but Ukrainian and European officials say discussions have taken place with Germany’s Hensoldt and France’s Thales for radar systems, Italy’s Leonardo for tracking technology, and Norway’s Kongsberg for command-and-control solutions.
By Bakhtiyar Abbasov
