Air force chief: Ukraine army masters Patriot in just 10 weeks instead of 10 months

Ukrainian Air Force Commander Lt. Gen Mykola Oleshchuk has said that Ukraine’s military had managed to master the Patriot surface-to-air missile (SAM) system in just 10 weeks, while the allies were hoping for at least 10 months.

He made the remarks on the air of the telethon "United News", Unian reports.

"When we trained on the US Patriot, there was a program written for 10 months. After that, as the guys came for training in the United States, the instructors decided that 10 weeks is enough for our guys to master this technique. That is why I am proud of the personnel of the Ukrainian Air Force," said Lt. Gen.

Oleshchuk added that in the first days of the full-scale war, he reported on the need to strengthen air defence at a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

"Those forces and means that we had at that time were very little. We knew that with the forces and means we had, we would simply not fulfil the task," Oleshchuk said.

However, the air defence system has been significantly advanced thanks to military assistance from partner countries. One NASAMS with 5-12 launchers can replace five S-300s.