Alongside Gripen fighter jets, Sweden has pledged to supply Ukraine with long-range Meteor air-to-air missiles. This makes it important to assess current production capacity and identify which countries could potentially contribute additional stocks.
Despite multiple procurement rounds, Sweden has never officially disclosed the total size of its inventories or the volume of individual contracts. However, it is known that three procurement agreements have been signed since 2016.
Read more: Will Gripen with Meteor Really Be Able Shoot Down russian Military Aircraft Over Crimea from Kherson, or Over Kursk from Kharkiv?
The most recent order was announced in spring 2025, with deliveries expected to begin the same year. While this does not necessarily indicate high production rates, it does confirm that the supply chain is capable of scaling deliveries when required.
Beyond Sweden, Meteor is in service with 14 countries worldwide, roughly half of them in Europe. The missile is primarily integrated with Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon fighters. The United Kingdom and Italy are also working on integration with U.S.-built F-35B and F-35A aircraft.
This creates a broad user base that implies sustained production requirements. However, publicly available data suggests that individual procurement volumes remain relatively limited.
For example, France had ordered 200 missiles as of 2023, of which 160 had already been delivered. Spain has procured 100 units, while Italy initially planned to acquire up to 400 missiles.
Germany presents a more complex case. It placed orders for 150 missiles in 2013 and another 100 in 2019. In 2024 and 2025, Berlin approved additional funding for further procurement, although exact quantities were not disclosed. However, the 2024 contract was valued at €521 million and is estimated to cover approximately 270 missiles.
Overall, this means that additional Meteor missiles could potentially be sourced from European stockpiles, but only in limited quantities. At the same time, manufacturer MBDA has announced plans to increase production by around 40 percent by 2026.
Operationally, long-range air-to-air missiles are primarily intended for engagements against russian combat aircraft rather than for intercepting cruise missiles or UAVs. As a result, demand for Meteor is expected to be lower than for systems such as AIM-120 or AIM-9.
In conclusion, Meteor is a serially produced missile in service with more than a dozen countries, meaning supply options for Ukraine do exist. However, limited stockpiles among current operators impose clear constraints on available quantities.
One possible solution would be placing additional direct orders with MBDA for Ukraine’s requirements, or arranging transfers via partner countries that would later receive replacement stocks. At present, however, Sweden remains the only confirmed source of Meteor missiles for Ukraine.
From the Defense Express side, we urge readers to join a fundraiser for a solution that is already proving effective: the One United Fundraiser, organized by the Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation to support interceptor drones.
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