Military Expert Estimates How Many Patriot Batteries Are Needed to Protect Ukraine
Military expert Oleg Starikov stated that Ukraine would need approximately 50 Patriot batteries and a large number of missiles for them in order to ensure a more or less guaranteed defense against Russian ballistic missiles, according to Politeka.
He shared this information on his channel.
“As of 2025, around 240 Patriot air defense systems of various modifications have been produced globally. They’ve been manufactured since 1982. These systems, equipped with PAC-1 or PAC-3 missiles, are operated in 18 countries worldwide, including the USA, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and Ukraine. The cost of one battery is about $1 billion—$400 million for the radar system and $600 million for the interceptor missile systems,” explained Oleg Starikov.
According to him, the company Raytheon produces only 8 to 12 Patriot batteries per year. Additionally, the same company manufactures about 550–600 missiles of various types for the Patriot system annually. Japan also possesses this technology, but they produce up to 50 missiles per year solely for their own needs. He also noted that one ballistic missile typically requires two interceptor missiles to be successfully shot down.
“I calculated how many Patriot air defense systems Ukraine would need to establish a more or less guaranteed air defense. You can count by region or by strategic assets. If you count by region, I came up with 50 to 75 batteries. If you count by specific targets—such as energy infrastructure, military facilities, transport infrastructure, and regional centers—it comes out to 55 batteries. So realistically, about 50 batteries are needed,” Starikov explained.
The expert also emphasized that one Patriot battery costs $1 billion, so Ukraine would need around $50 billion to cover all critical sites and defend itself against Russian ballistic missiles.
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