Washington had very secretively shipped off long-range Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) to Ukraine last month. We explain how powerful the ATACMS i
he long-range ATACMS is capable of striking territories deep inside Russia. Image courtesy: Lockheed Martin via US army
United States officials recently confirmed that Washington had quietly shipped off long-range Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) to Ukraine. Their statement also established that Kyiv had used the systems to hit an airfield in Crimea that houses Russian military helicopters.
Joe Biden had approved sending the ATACMS to Ukraine in February this year. The weapons became a part of their arsenal last month. However, this was kept a secret. The cat was only let out of the bag after Ukraine used the missiles in the early hours of April 17.
We explain how powerful the ATACMS is and why that means that Ukraine can’t use it in Russian territories.
The capabilities of the ATACMS
The ATACMS is one of the most potent missile systems built by US-based arms manufacturer Lockheed Martin. This is a surface-to-surface artillery weapon system. Its biggest strengths are the long-range of attack, ability to fire cluster munitions, and the weapon system’s mobility.
Range: There is a mid-range version of the ATACMS, called Block 1, and there is a long-range versions, Block 1A. ATACMS Block 1 has a range of 165 kilometres. Ukraine was provided these systems last year, and used them to attack targets in October.