Ukraine conflict: Germany buys back Swedish IRIS-T missiles to supply to Kyiv

Sweden mounts the IRIS-T SLS air-defence system on the trailer section of the BvS10 armoured all-terrain vehicle. (Försvarsmakten/Jessica Krantz)

Germany has bought back 200 IRIS-T SLS (Surface Launched Short Range) air-defence missiles from Sweden to supply to Ukraine, Janes has learnt.

The Swedish missiles are being refurbished by Diehl Defence and will replenish IRIS-T SLM (Surface Launched Medium Range) missiles that have been fired by Ukrainian forces defending against Russian air attacks.

Sweden will procure IRIS-SLS missiles to replace the ones supplied to Ukraine. The Nordic country has mounted IRIS-SLS launchers on the rear unit of the BvS10 armoured all-terrain vehicle, whose wide tracks allow it to move over snowy and swampy terrain.

Ukrainian IRIS-T SLM systems supplied by Germany have fired as many as 13 missiles during a single night.

Janes has also learnt that the Ukrainian IRIS-T system Russia claimed to have destroyed at the beginning of August was a wooden decoy. Janes has determined that the launcher Russia claimed to have destroyed did not have antennas matching verified imagery of an actual IRIS-SLM system, and there were no secondary explosions despite the Russian loitering munition hitting the missile container.