Denmark has officially signed a contract to purchase SAMP/T NG air defense systems from Eurosam. The agreement was signed by the Danish Defense Acquisition and Logistics Agency earlier this March. The contract is valued at €1.47 billion. The funds will cover the delivery of four SAMP/T NG air defense systems, including missiles. The contract price also includes training and maintenance.
This is reported by Defence Nordic. This is the first time Denmark has been reported to have signed a firm contract for this air defense system. The country had already decided to purchase the European SAMP/T NG system early last fall, but it took about six months to finalize all the details and conclude the final agreement.
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Despite not being battle-tested against ballistic threats, the SAMP/T NG beat the American Patriot system in Denmark's competition, largely due to delivery timelines.
According to Thales, which is set to provide Ground Fire radars for Denmark's air defense system, SAMP/T deliveries are planned to start in 2028, allowing the first system to be fielded as early as two years after the contract is signed. However, it is not clear how long it will take to deliver all four systems.
"Denmark has officially become the third country, after France and Italy, to join the SAMP/T NG community," a press release from Thales states. This serves as a reminder that plans to purchase eight SAMP/T NG air defense systems for Ukraine were announced in November last year. However, Thales's statement on its first export contract with Denmark suggests that a firm contract for Ukraine has not yet been signed.
At the same time, Denmark's position as the next country in line for SAMP/T NG deliveries raises questions about how this may affect future supplies to Ukraine. The system's ability to intercept ballistic missiles is critical for Ukraine, particularly given shortages of PAC-3 MSE interceptors used by Patriot systems.
It is difficult to predict when Ukraine will receive its first SAMP/T NG system or how quickly deliveries will follow, as several scenarios remain possible. For example, these systems could be delivered to Ukraine out of sequence, especially since the manufacturer and other potential buyers may be interested in testing the system in real combat conditions, allowing for further improvements if needed.
A secret agreement could also be reached to supply the SAMP/T NG, with the transfer only announced after it has been tested in combat. Another possible scenario is that Ukraine could receive one of the air defense systems being manufactured under contracts for France and Italy.
It is important to note that the SAMP/T NG air defense system is available in two configurations, specifically featuring different radars, which are the system's core component. In addition to the Thales Ground Fire 300 in the "French" configuration, there is also the Italian Kronos GM HP from Leonardo.
Earlier we reported which option is better. The French Ground Fire 300 has a target detection range 100 km greater than the Italian Kronos GM HP (400 km versus 300 km) and can track twice as many targets simultaneously (1,000 versus 500). However, the Italian system is considered to have an advantage in accuracy.
Ukraine will most likely receive the French version, but given the need to procure the system as quickly as possible, an Italian radar could also be supplied.
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