British Stormer HVM arrived in the Armed Forces of Ukraine last year, when the UK Ministry of Defense announced six vehicles at once and hundreds of Starstreak missiles for them to fire. It was in July 2022, and shortly afterward, the same month, the first photos of these vehicles in Ukraine appeared on social media.
ArmyInform notes that although these vehicles haven't gathered much attention, they've been doing a great job taking down numerous aerial vehicles sent by the russian army on sorties.
Read more: Ukrainian Army Hit the Headquarters of the russian forces on Arabat Spit
Operators of the Stormer praised the British vehicle: lightweight and mobile, and fully computer-controlled. Soldiers point out the main advantage of the Stormer HVM – the fact it is basically "invisible" to the sensors on enemy aircraft and helicopters – due to its passive mode operation without emitting any signals.
"We can find a target, quickly take it down, and immediately leave the spot. The pilot of the aircraft won't know he is being led until the bitter end," says Ihor, commander of a Stormer HVM team.
Weapon system operator Yaroslav adds that if enemy aircraft is locked on by the missile, it will be very hard for it to avoid being hit by a missile traveling at a speed of 1 km per second. The hit probability is 90%, he assures.
Last but not least, there are no issues in providing maintenance to this sophisticated vehicle, as the article says. There is a bilateral cooperation between Ukraine and Great Britain on the subject of repair and maintenance of Stormer HVMs. So, be it a daily checkup or engine replacement – a multitude of problems can be resolved in a relatively short time.
Over the months of duty on the front line, Stormer HVM brought down "quite a few" russian aircraft. Mostly they eliminate drones since the manned aircraft is too scared to approach the area covered by Ukrainian air defenses. In particular, among the recent targets, the soldiers destroyed an Orlan-10 reconnaissance UAV.
Read more: Canada Announced New Major $500 Million Defense Aid Package
