Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa disclosed intriguing figures for its production of missiles for the Piorun man-portable air-defense system, currently one of the market’s bestsellers and, more interestingly, revealed the output of its competitors, the American Stinger and the French Mistral.
In an interview with Rzeczpospolita, the company said that current annual production of Piorun missiles at Mesko stands at 1,300 units. That's a significant figure given that from the start of production in 2019 through February 2025, some 3,000 units have been produced.
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Regarding competitors, PGZ stated that annual Stinger production is about 720 missiles per year, while Mistral production is around 480 per year.
From Defense Express's perspective, the only other notable competitor might be the Swedish RBS-70, but it's unlikely its missiles are produced at a higher rate.
If PGZs figures are correct, Piorun is currently the most-produced MANPADS among Western models. According to the company, Poland even surpasses the combined annual production of Stinger and Mistral a total of 1,200 units per year versus 1,300 Piorun missiles.
PGZ plans to continue ramping up production. There is scope to increase output by another 100–200 missiles annually, reaching up to 1,500 units.
At the same time, PGZ estimates demand for Piorun missiles at 3,000 units per year. The company aims to reach that level, but it will take three to four years.
Achieving such volumes is a painstaking process: plans call for implementing new production technologies, optimizing and automating processes, and expanding infrastructure. This effort concerns not only final assembly but also all suppliers of components.
Recall that the Piorun MANPADS can engage targets at ranges up to 6.4 km and altitudes up to 4 km. It features a multispectral seeker with high resistance to flares. The missile weighs 10.5 kg in total, is equipped with a 1.82 kg warhead, and uses a contactless laser fuze.
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