US-based company Raytheon Missiles & Defense and its German counterpart MBDA Deutschland have collaborated to develop a strategic roadmap to facilitate the production of Patriot interceptor missiles in Germany. The strategic roadmap will support the deployment of the Patriot system with the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) to meet the current threat environment as well as deploy Patriot with the Bundeswehr until at least 2048. The roadmap will expand the possibilities of delivering the German-made Patriot GEM-Ts to other operators in different nations across Europe. With the new roadmap, the companies aim to address the German Armed Forces’ potential requirements for Patriot Guidance Enhanced Missile (GEM-T) interceptor missiles by facilitating production work in Germany. The Guidance Enhanced Missile, or GEM-T, is one of the Patriot missile variants available to both U.S. forces and international customers.
Tom Laliberty, president, Land Warfare & Air Defense, Raytheon Missile & Defense said: “Our successful COMLOG joint venture with MBDA plays a key role in missile maintenance and logistics. By enabling COMLOG to produce GEM-T in Germany, we are also expanding the capacity to deliver this mission-critical interceptor system to Patriot partner nations in Europe.”
MBDA Deutschland managing director Thomas Gottschild said: “Patriot plays a central and forward-looking role in the defense of Germany and Europe. With our partner RMD, COMLOG as an existing joint venture of our companies, the test and reference facility in Freinhausen and the capabilities at our company sites, we have ideal conditions to jointly provide Patriot until 2048.”
Raytheon developed the Patriot guidance enhanced missile (GEM-T), an upgrade to the PAC-2 missile. The GEM-T missile provides improved ability to defeat tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles or enemy aircraft in complement to the PAC-3 missile. A modernized, digital fuze eliminates obsolescence and introduces significant performance improvements against tactical ballistic missile targets. This design increases sensitivity for improved performance against high-speed tactical ballistic missile targets. The low-noise front end of the GEM-T has increased seeker sensitivity for better acquisition and tracking. The new low-noise oscillator has a modified down-link, which provides a higher signal-to-interference ratio, improving acquisition and tracking of small airborne threats and cruise missiles in clutter.
MBDA Deutschland and Raytheon have now been working together for more than three decades to support the availability of the Patriot missile defence system with the German forces. Germany had 36 Patriot units when it was NATO’s frontline state during the Cold War and even then it relied on support from NATO allies. Today, the German forces are down to 12 Patriot units, two of which are deployed to Slovakia. Designed to replace Germany’s aging, sectored Patriot systems designed in the late 1960s, the Patriot Guidance Enhanced Missile (GEM-T) interceptor missiles provides protection from a broader threat spectrum with two mission-specific effectors, significantly enhanced sensor capabilities for long range engagements and a new communications and Battle Management system to support enhanced interoperability, data fusion and cyber resilience.
