The development of the PATRIOT air defence system was officially announced today (05/10) by Polish Minister of Defence, Mariusz Błaszczak. The said announcement was made during the Minister’s meeting with officers of the 3rd Missile Defence Brigade.

As of tomorrow, October 6, the Polish Forces will begin operating with this modern system, marking the first time that Warsaw has acquired anti-missile defence based on the PATRIOT system.

Warsaw will be protected by a modern missile air defence system based on the Patriot for the first time in its history, the Polish Defence Minister said at the airport in the Bemowo district of the capital.

The Minister of Defence added that the system will be put into operation on Friday 11/05. “For the first time in history, the anti-aircraft defence is based on very modern armament, state-of-the-art armament,” the Minister pointed out. Poland has bought a number of Patriot anti-missile squadrons from the US in a bid to boost its air defence capabilities.

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By September 2023, the country began receiving critical components of the PATRIOT system, including M903 Launch Stations and PAC-3 MSE missiles. These were part of a comprehensive package that also included twelve Lower Tier Air and Missile Defence Sensors (LTAMDS) and twelve Large Tactical Power Systems (LTPS) for the LTAMDS. The package was designed to offer Poland the PATRIOT Configuration-3+ system, complete with upgraded sensors and components.

The PATRIOT system is not just a symbolic addition to Poland’s defence, but rather a major upgrade. The PAC-3 MSE (Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement) is an advanced surface-to-air missile defence system with a range of approximately 35 kilometers, a significant increase from the 20-kilometer range of the previous PAC-3. It is capable of intercepting a wide range of threats, from aircraft and cruise missiles to threats from space such as satellites and ballistic missiles.