To fight the “Shahed”: Ukraine receives Martlet guided missiles from Britain – Times
According to the newspaper, there are no official reports of missile deliveries yet. These weapons have already been successfully used in Ukraine against targets in the air. In particular, the Ukrainian military destroyed an Orlan UAV and a Ka-52 helicopter of the Russian Armed Forces.
The United Kingdom has provided the Ukrainian Defense Forces with Martlet missiles to combat Iranian-made Shahed attack drones used by Russia to attack Ukrainian cities. These guided weapons are part of the advanced systems transferred to counter these drones, according to The Times.
The Martlet missiles, created by Thales Air Defense, are lightweight, multi-purpose guided missiles. At the same time, the publication notes that there are no official reports of missile deliveries.
According to journalists, the UK Ministry of Defense initially placed an order for 1,000 of these missiles starting in 2013. However, initial operational readiness was achieved only in 2021, and full operational capability is planned for 2024.
The Martlet missile provides a single line of weapons that can be used in various modes: sea-based, for attacking targets on the ground, for air-launch, and for engaging air targets from the ground.
Martlet missiles successfully deployed in Ukraine
It is worth noting that in May 2022, a video of the MANPADS firing at a Russian Orlan-10 drone was released. The media were able to identify these missiles as Martlets due to the peculiarities of their anti-aircraft guided missile launcher.
