Himars artillery systems & JADO: How Ukraine can win grinding battle against Russia in Donbas

Himars employ the "scoot and shoot" capability which enhances the survivability of the crew in a "high threat environment". It could hold the key Donbas

 

US President Joe Biden has said he would not send rocket systems to Ukraine that could hit targets well inside Russian territory, despite urgent requests from President Zelensky for long-range weapons.

Since failing to capture Kyiv in the war's early stages, Russia's army has narrowed its focus and has been hammering cities with relentless artillery and missile barrages as it seeks to consolidate its control.

Kyiv has asked the United States for mobile batteries of long-range rockets, the M270 MLRS and the M142 Himars, which can launch multiple rockets at the same time with a range of up to 300 kilometres, eight times or more the distance of artillery in the field.

The future Himar systems can offer an extended range of up to 499 km. It stands out due to its quick, long-range precision strikes.

(Photo Courtesy: Lockheed Martin)

Himars employ the "scoot and shoot" capability, according to Lockheed Martin which enhances the survivability of the crew in a "high threat environment".

The missile system can fire and relocate and conduct reload in a matter of minutes which reduces the enemy's ability to target the weapon.

The Himar system carries a six-pack of GMLRS rockets or one TACMS missile and can launch the MLRS family of munitions.

The system can be transported in the C-130 aircraft and on ships ensuring its easy mobility which can greatly help the Ukrainians in their war against Russia.

(Photo Courtesy: Lockheed Martin)

Ukraine had requested the United States for mobile batteries of long-range rockets, the M270 MLRS and the M142 Himars. It could give Ukrainian forces the ability to reach with great precision targets far behind Russian lines, though it is unclear if that is their intent.

Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba had said at the World Economic Forum that the MLRS "is really the weapon that we badly need."

With the Himars, the Ukrainian forces can hit deeper behind Russian lines while staying out of range of Russian artillery.

(Photo Courtesy: Lockheed Martin)

The Himar system was tested in joint military exercises including Valiant Shield and Northern Edge. Himars with its long-range, mobile, precision missiles allow tactical superiority and the same time is believed to be effective and reliable.

Moscow was quick to react to the US missile system being transported to Ukraine, saying that the planned delivery of new US weapons to Ukraine, including advanced missile systems, increases the risk of drawing the United States into direct conflict with Russia

Both Ukraine and Russia already operate multiple-launch rockets systems, but the Himars has superior range and precision.

(Photo Courtesy: Lockheed Martin)

"We believe that the United States is adding fuel to the fire deliberately and on purpose," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding," such supplies" do not encourage Kyiv to resume peace talks, Peskov said, adding that Washington wanted to "fight Russia to the last Ukrainian."

Since failing to capture Kyiv in the war's early stages, Russia's army has narrowed its focus and has been hammering cities with relentless artillery and missile barrages as it seeks to consolidate its control.

Moscow's forces have continued a push in the eastern Donbas region, upping the pressure on the twin cities of Severodonetsk and Lysychansk.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's advisor Mykhailo Podoliak had said:  "It is hard to fight when you are attacked from a 70 km distance and have nothing to fight back with."

The US relented as it agreed to send the Himars to Kyiv.

(Photo Courtesy: Lockheed Martin)

Under Secretary of Defense Colin Kahl said Ukraine forces need about three weeks of training to be able to use the Himars, a highly mobile guided rocket launcher that could give the Ukrainians a distance and accuracy edge in the grinding artillery battle in the Donbas region.

Carrying six rockets at a time with ranges of more than 70 kilometers, double that of US howitzers already in use on the battlefield, the Himars system "will provide Ukraine with additional precision in targeting at range," Kahl said.

Under the new aid package, the Ukrainian military will also receive five counter-artillery radars, two air-surveillance radars, 50 command launch units for the Javelins, 6,000 other anti-armour weapons, and 15,000 artillery rounds, and 15 tactical vehicles.

(Photo Courtesy: Lockheed Martin)

Kahl said that the Himars systems which Kyiv has been requesting for weeks were already prepositioned in Europe for training and then delivery. In addition to the three weeks operations training, he said maintaining the equipment could require two more weeks.

They would be very useful for Ukraine forces to single out and strike high-value Russian targets, he said.

He confirmed that Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky had provided Washington assurances that the Himars would not be used to strike targets inside Russia, responding to US worries that doing so could incite Moscow to expand the war beyond Ukraine.

"President Biden has made clear we have no intention of coming into direct conflict with Russia," said Kahl.

Citing US intelligence, three US officials said the United States estimated that Russia's failure rate varied day-to-day, depended on the type of missile being launched, and could sometimes exceed 50 per cent. Two of them said it reached as high as 60 per cent.

One of the officials told Reuters that intelligence showed that Russia's air-launched cruise missiles had a failure rate in the 20 to 60 per cent range, depending on the day.

Pentagon meanwhile said Russia is boosting air and sea military operations as it struggles to turn the tide of war in Ukraine, where the "dexterity" of the defense mounted by Kyiv is stalling the invasion.