When the new batch of military aid from Great Britain was being transferred to Ukraine, the exact type of Brimstone missiles used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine since May, was revealed. It turns out, the name of supplied variant is Brimstone 2 Dual Mode, as witnessed by journalists from BFBS Creative.
In fact, the UK Ministry of Defense seemingly made the information slip through intentionally because all the other less important details in the video are blurred, and the location where the batch is loaded for transportation is not disclosed either. The container with missiles is filmed close-up, with the name of missiles being the only piece of information in the frame.
Read more: Great Britain Uses Ukraine Experience to Upgrade its 'Brimstone' Missiles and Install Them on Drones
Importantly, there were also reports from the russian media showing pieces of Brimstone missiles used by the Ukrainian forces, but the date of production caught in the videos was around 2004, i.e. before Brimstone 2 appeared. The active testing of the new missile started only in 2013.
The Brimstone 2 Dual Mode has a larger firing range, upgraded warhead and guidance system compared to the original version of the missile. While the standard Brimstone flies up to 12 km when launched from a helicopter and 20 km from a jet, the second generation has a range of 40 and 60 km respectively.
Despite the information on the ground-launched variant being kept undisclosed so far, in particular, the manufacturer MBDA doesn’t even mention it on its website, the aerial range of the missile is twice as big anyway. Also, a trustworthy American analytical Center for Strategic and International Studies uses the figure of 20 km for the range of Brimstone 2 when launched from ground platforms.
Another important distinct feature of the Brimstone 2 is the combined guidance system: a standard radar homing head able to determine the ground-stationed targets and a classic semi-active laser seeker.
The former allows the system to operate in a "fire-and-forget" mode, while the missiles can exchange information so that two of them don’t attack the same target. The latter provides for additional options such as guidance by a UAV with a laser designator.
Read more: US Military Assistance for Ukraine: Puma UAS and Laser-Guided Rocket Systems in the Batch as Mortal Mix for russian Troops
