Ukraine's air defense will be further strengthened with the addition of RapidRanger surface-to-air missile systems, purchased along with Martlet missiles (also known as LMM – Lightweight Multirole Missiles) as part of a £1.7 billion (€2 billion) aid package from the United Kingdom. The deal was officially confirmed by the Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal during the June 11th parliamentary hearings, Defense Express reports.
It is worth noting that Ukraine's Ministry of Defense had already announced the decision to procure RapidRanger systems and LMM missiles before, back in early March 2025. At that time, it was specified that the British government would fund the delivery of 5,000 missiles to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
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The program is being implemented through a loan provided by the UK Export Finance agency (UKEF). Ukraine's Prime Minister Shmyhal mentioned that a sum of £1.7 billion from the United Kingdom was involved in the agreement.
This development is also linked to the fact that both the systems and their missiles are produced by Thales UK in Belfast. Production of LMM missiles is currently being expanded, with a contract signed between the company and the British government in the summer of 2024, with deliveries scheduled through 2027.
In this case, however, Ukraine may count on opening a local production on top of direct supplies. In March 2025, Ukrainian Defense Ministry said London was going to help Ukraine localize the manufacture of LMM missiles by transferring technology and setting up domestic production facilities.
As for the RapidRanger system itself, it is a lightweight launcher equipped with four LMM or Starstreak missiles for short-range air defense. The system features its own electro-optical sighting system with automatic target tracking, plus an optional radar can be integrated. The launcher weighs under 500 kg, making it suitable for installation on light wheeled chassis.
The RapidRanger's performance is directly tied to the capabilities of the LMM missiles, which have a stated range of over 6 km. These missiles are relatively compact — 76 mm in diameter, 1.3 meters long, and weighing 13 kg. The warhead, equipped with a proximity fuze, weighs 3 kg.
The LMM uses laser beam riding guidance, where the missile tries to follow along the path illuminated by the laser to the target. This means the operator needs to manually guide the missile until impact, but unlike with infrared seekers, this method is completely immune to heat flares and works regardless of the target's thermal signature.
Overall, LMM missiles have already demonstrated high effectiveness in Ukraine's Armed Forces, particularly against drones. They are deployed both as man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) and with Stormer HVM air defense vehicles, which were also supplied to Ukraine by the UK in 2022.
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