Photo: EPA
Ukrainian crews have valuable lessons for the United States and its allies, the newspaper reports.
Despite US President Donald Trump publicly rejecting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s proposal to assist in shooting down Iranian drones, US Central Command has invited Ukrainian advisers. One Ukrainian Armed Forces officer told The Times he was struck by reports that Gulf states had fired up to eight Patriot interceptor missiles — each costing more than $3 million — at a single target, using the systems even against cheap drones.
Meanwhile, Ukrainians reportedly use one or two missiles to intercept Russian ballistic weapons. Data from Ukrainian Patriot crews’ missions is shared with partners. “I don’t understand what they were doing, what they were looking at for the four years we have been at war,” the Ukrainian officer said.
Ukrainians were also shocked by reports that Kuwaiti air defenses shot down three American F-15E fighter jets. “Friendly fire happens in any war, but in this specific case it was clear negligence,” a senior officer said.
According to analysts, differences in approach may stem from the fact that Gulf state forces often leave their batteries to take cover, whereas Ukrainians remain at their posts to fire manually.
Zelenskyy has stated that during the first four days of the war in Iran, the US and its allies launched more than 800 Patriot missiles. That is around 200 more than Ukraine has received over the past three years.
“Very often they [the US and its allies] were firing recklessly. For example, they used SM-6 missiles from ships — very effective anti-missile weapons. Each of these costs around $6 million, and they used one to shoot down a Shahed drone worth $70,000,” one Ukrainian source said.
The Shahed drones have already caused significant damage to US and allied assets. For example, an AN/FPS-132 early warning radar worth $1 billion was destroyed, along with at least one Terminal High Altitude Area Defense radar valued at around $300 million.
“For two months they stood in exactly the same place. Then the Shaheds came — three Shaheds costing about $70,000 each. And that was it,” a senior Ukrainian officer said.
According to the British newspaper, Ukrainians have become masters of camouflage and maneuver, especially when it comes to air defense systems. They now seek to share these lessons with the United States.
The report recalls how Ukrainian Patriot crews turned the system into an offensive weapon: on May 13, 2023, a 25-year-old fire control officer known as “Materyi” shot down three Russian aircraft and two helicopters over Bryansk region, from where glide bombs were being launched at Chernihiv. His team moved the Patriot battery close to the Russian border to ambush aircraft in what Russia considered safe airspace. They also developed methods to assemble and disassemble Patriot systems far faster than US manuals prescribe, firing and relocating before detection.
Additional lessons for the US include Ukrainian experience against newer Russian ballistic missiles that perform “double-arc” trajectories to mask their targets. Operators rely on nerves of steel and manual control, sometimes disabling automated targeting and waiting until the last possible moment to engage — often seconds before impact.
Colonel Kyrylo Peretyatko, awarded the title Hero of Ukraine after commanding a NASAMS battery that shot down 12 Russian cruise missiles in two minutes, said no country should be complacent in studying air defense.
“There have been no operations like those currently taking place in Ukraine in world history. This is a completely different kind of war that all countries are studying,” he said.
Earlier, Pavlo Narozhnyi, founder of the “Reactive Mail” charity, warned that the war in the Middle East could reduce Ukraine’s access to aviation and air defense aid. He noted that Ukrainian aircraft require short-range AIM-9 missiles for shooting down Shaheds, spare parts for F-16s, HARM anti-radar missiles, and Boeing-manufactured aerial bombs.
