This week, the Ukrainian military will begin to study the American Patriot air defense system. According to American media, a group of military personnel from the Armed Forces of Ukraine has already arrived in the United States. The exercise will take place at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where the US military conducts its own training in the operation and maintenance of the Patriot air defense system.

In the first group there are from 90 to 100 Ukrainian soldiers. That’s how many people are needed to maintain a Patriot battery, which includes eight launchers and ancillary equipment and systems.

An American journalist released a video of a group of Ukrainian soldiers arriving in the United States.

The Pentagon has not announced a formal training program, except for abbreviation. It is known that the USA has developed a special plan for the accelerated training of the Ukrainian army. Mastering the Patriot air defense system will take several months. Americans usually learn to work with this system for up to a year. This was done so that they could return to Ukraine as soon as possible and fulfill their combat duty in the defense of the Ukrainian skies.

Ukrainians selected for training already have experience in managing air defense systems. On December 21, 2022, the United States announced the supply of Patriot air defense batteries to Ukraine. Later it became known that the Pentagon is considering the possibility of training the Ukrainian army in the operation of the Patriot air defense system at a military base not in Europe, but in the United States. Germany also announced the transfer of such an anti-aircraft system. Source