The United Kingdom will supply Ukraine with five additional Raven air defense systems to enhance its capability to intercept Iranian-made aerial threats, including Shahed drones. The announcement was reported by Defence Blog, citing the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS).
The Raven system—nicknamed “FrankenSAM”—is a rapid engineering achievement developed by the Royal Air Force’s Air and Space Warfare Centre. It combines components from existing UK military stockpiles and was designed, built, and deployed in less than four months.
The Raven system integrates an ASRAAM vertical-launch missile module with a Supercat HMT-600 military truck, resulting in a highly mobile short-range air defense (SHORAD) unit. It is engineered to counter low-flying aerial threats, including drones and fixed-wing aircraft.
According to the British military, the Raven has launched over 400 missiles since its first deployment in spring 2023, with a reported interception success rate of up to 70%. Ukraine’s armed forces have already received eight such systems. The new delivery of five more units brings the total to thirteen.
The Raven’s missile component, the ASRAAM (Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missile), was originally developed for aircraft use. However, when launched from the ground, it has demonstrated impressive effectiveness. Each missile weighs 88 kilograms, carries a 10-kilogram warhead, and can reach speeds of up to Mach 3. In its current ground-launched configuration, the effective range is approximately 15 kilometers.
The Raven systems are being deployed in response to persistent drone attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure and military targets, particularly from Iranian-designed Shahed loitering munitions. With the addition of these mobile, ground-based interceptors, Ukraine’s ability to counter such threats is expected to significantly improve, especially in protecting urban and frontline regions.
