Patriot Missile System Failure

Throughout the history of Air Defense Artillery (ADA), innovative steps were made for the technological advance in weaponry to defend our skies and ground forces. The diverse history and continuous research and development of air defense systems played a vital role in the safety of ground troops and foreign civilians during the Persian Gulf crisis. Though not always in the forefront of battle, ADA had its own vital roles that it played from the time of its birth, and it was no different during Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield when necessity helped to bring about the evolution of the PAC-II Patriot missile.

Air Defense had a prominent involvement in The Persian Gulf War. The Patriot missile system demonstrated its effectiveness in combat in 1990 and United States (U.S.) forces as well as Iraqi forces utilized the Homing All the Way Killer (HAWK) missile system. Air Defense’s considerable involvement in the Persian Gulf War accredited to the developments and capabilities of the Patriot missile system along with the HAWK missile system’s Iraqi dilemma.

Our nation has been in conflict with the Middle East for over two and a half decades. Air Defense Artillery has made a huge impact in Middle East conflicts. The threats that make Air Defense Artillery a necessity for these conflicts include a number of aircraft, such as planes, jets and helicopters as well as launched munitions like scud missiles and mortars. Air Defense Artillery is an ever evolving force and has been there for protection of American forces against these threats. Air Defense Artillery is a group of weapons that divide the airspace into two different sectors. Short Range Air Defense, also known as SHORAD, defends against low altitude, short range aircraft and munitions. High to Medium Altitude Air Defense, also known

On the 3rd of February 1998, a U.S. military jet sliced the wire of a

It influenced future generations of soldiers and equipment to advance both tactically and technically, greatly increasing the multi-role diversity and capabilities of the Air Defense Artillery systems of today’s United States Army. Compared to the Patriot Launcher Missile system, it showed that Air Defense units could be multifaceted. Like the M42 Duster (SPAAG), the Patriot system demonstrated excellent destruction ratio for aircraft but the system also worked well in defense of TBM’s (Tactical Ballistic

The missile system reduced Scud annoyance and effectiveness. Patriot’s mission to counteract air born threats was an overall success. This war was a major demonstration of U.S. air defense capability. Although every fire did not successfully destroy its target, it exemplified extraordinary accuracy. The Patriot world is continuously evolving. Modifications to the software has been made, and today’s system has multiple intercept mechanisms. PAC 2 in no longer the only source of air defense capability. The PAC 3, a more sophisticated missile defense system, has a more accurate interception rate. A growing technology, and it will continue to expand in the future, air defense is here to

Since the events of 9/11, drone strikes have become a tool for the United States as it fights a global war against terrorist organizations. The advantages and disadvantages of this particular counterterrorism option continue to be debated. Instead of sending in warfighters to achieve specific objectives, many argue that unmanned combat aerial vehicles provide the U.S. military and government with low-risk and low-cost options as it engages in military operations in other regions of the world. Compared with manned fighter aircraft, some of these unmanned vehicles are able to fly longer without stopping, which affords the U.S. with better intelligence collection and targeting opportunities. Even if the aircraft were shot down, there is not

On September 11, 2001, four commercial aircraft were hijacked by terrorists who led an attack on America by crashing the planes into buildings. This attack created destruction, trauma, death, and fear. There had not been an act of war of this magnitude since the bombings of Pearl Harbor, and it shook the foundation of American exceptionalism. Americans exceptionalism is sometimes taken too far and it can create the idea that the United States is invincible. Therefore, when something of this scale takes place, a backlash is formed and the question of, ‘how did this happen’ is brought up. This new fear of airplanes becoming missiles brought the citizens of our county to bring a call to action to our government.

In conclusion, the history of Air Defense is a broad and cultured history spanning from the early 1800’s to present day. Our proud branch has fought in many wars like the Korean War, Vietnam War, WWI and WWII, Desert Storm, and of course Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). The contribution ADA has given to OIF and OEF has not only evolved the way we combat aerially but has changed the dynamic of which we fight our wars

128 U.S Army Air Corps Aircraft’s were damaged with 77 Army Air Corps Aircrafts destroyed with no hope of being repaired.

Military forces deploy to vastly different environments across the globe. However, two of the most important discriminating factors which shape how operations are conducted are acceptance and protection of US forces by the local population. Operational environments are roughly sorted into two major categories. Permissive environments are locations where the host nation has control of its territory and supports US operations. Non-permissive environments refer to locations with hostile or uncertain local response. Although the weapon’s systems and sensors do not change from one location to the next, the environment surrounding a deployed Air Defense unit has a significant impact on how it is best operated. The Patriot and Avenger weapons systems clearly demonstrate the disparate considerations that must be taken for implementation of each asset when employed in a permissive and non-permissive environment respectively.

In today’s digital age, development of new technology and weapons are at an alarming rate, hence arises the need to stay ahead of advancements in order to properly defend the nation, as well as coalition forces and allies. In this period of warfare, the number one threat comes in the form of air breathing and ballistic missiles. During World War II, this threat was present, but was not thought to be prevalent.

These problems showcased themselves through low altitude engagement with warheads and radar clutter of false targets that was produced from buildings. These problems were addressed through improvements of the software code from limited data collected during the use of the missiles that was then upgraded over short, even weekend, periods. This resulted in more accuracy and precision of the Patriot missiles in intercepting Scud missiles. This problem became more apparent when the evidence of the success rate of the missiles of 70 percent for Saudi Arabia and 40 per cent for Israel were compared to the initial interception success rate of 95 percent from US Army sources (Maital & Seshadri,

In 1968, the Soviet Union came up with a new development- the building of antiballistic missiles defence systems. These were to be used for nuclear, chemical, biological or even conventional warheads in the homeland defence of such a strike because they were designed to counter ICBM’s. As a method to counter this development, United States came up with multiple independently targeted re-entry vehicles (MIRV’s) which improved the chances of avoiding detection by ABM systems. In addition to this, United States also developed its own IBM in order to match that of Soviet Union.

On June 1st, 1999 American Airlines flight 1420 experienced a tragic accident that claimed many lives and made an impact on aviation worldwide. The event and it subsequent investigation shed