The first Skyranger 35 self-propelled air defense system mounted on a Leopard 1 tank chassis is set to arrive in Ukraine next week, Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger announced during the Rheinmetall CMD 2025 event, according to monitoring project German Aid to Ukraine on November 18.
The system is being manufactured and integrated by Rheinmetall Italia SpA in Italy.
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Back in September, Rheinmetall confirmed it would supply Ukraine with Skyranger systems under a contract worth several hundred million euros. The deal is funded by an unnamed European Union country using windfall profits from frozen Russian assets.
The exact number and variant of Skyranger systems destined for Ukraine have not been publicly disclosed.
Each Skyranger 35 system can secure a 4-by-4-kilometer area, creating what the manufacturer describes as a fully “drone-free” zone.
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Will very likely down more than Shaheds - more likely to be used for protecting high value rocket based syatems like the IRIS and Patriot. And they get thrown everything at them.
So…
That’s exactly my point.
Leopard-1 based tracked Skyranger models belong to the front protecting other vehicles from drones there (primary IFVs, tanks and the engineering variants used to clear mines - yes they are fully CRAM-capable and will even cover them against artillery) and making life harder for recon drones. (The same was already true for Gepards…)
Wheel-based solutions (or even the basic containerised Skynex variant) are so much cheaper and equally capable when you need them for rather static defenses with more limited repositioning.
Can we please reach a point where systems are not wasting their potential just because there is so much lack in air-defenses in general?
Generally you are right.
BUT: That is a brand new system, you want them to get the quirks out before they reach the frontline…