As announced on Thursday, December 12, 2024, last week a ceremony was held at the Rzeszów-Jasionka Airport, attended by Paweł Zalewski, Secretary of State at the Polish Ministry of National Defense, and Luke Pollard, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces at the UK Ministry of Defence. The event marked the withdrawal of the Sky Sabre mobile air defense system battery from Poland.
Photos: UK Ministry of Defence
Officials from the Polish and British Ministries of Defence expressed their gratitude to the personnel of the 11th Battery Royal Artillery, part of the 16th Regiment Royal Artillery, which is a unit of the British Army’s 7 Air Defence Group, for their support in defending Poland’s airspace.
The battery, deployed in July 2022, was initially intended to be stationed in eastern Poland for six months as a reinforcement of NATO’s eastern flank and as protection for the logistical hub of military and humanitarian aid to war-torn Ukraine. Subsequently, the British presence was extended four times, up until the end of this year.
Now, the battery equipped with the Sky Sabre system will return to the United Kingdom, providing the British Army with flexibility for future operational requirements, including training more personnel on this system.
Minister for the Armed Forces, Luke Pollard MP said:
“This operation has been a huge success. The Sky Sabre system played an important role in defending Poland’s airspace. Our outstanding Armed Forces personnel keep us secure at home and strong abroad and I’d like to thank them for their professionalism and hard work during this extended deployment, I’d also like to welcome them home for some well-deserved rest with their loved ones over the Christmas period. The UK remains unshakeable in its commitment to defending our NATO allies, and we will continue to work closely with our Polish Allies, including through a deployment of RAF Typhoons next year. We continue to work with our Polish friends to deliver the NAREW programme.”
A single Sky Sabre system set consists of a launcher and two support vehicles equipped with a command post (FCC) and the Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Modular Integrated C4I Air & Missile Defense System (MIC4AD), along with a Saab Giraffe Agile Multi-Beam (AMB) medium-range 3D surveillance radar. The system’s interceptor is the MBDA CAMM (Common Anti-Air Modular Missile) short-range air defense missile. This missile enables the engagement of aerodynamic targets at distances ranging from 1 to over 25 km and at altitudes exceeding 10 km.
Sky Sabre, acquired under the FLAADS (Future Local Area Air Defence System) program, was initially assigned to the 32nd Battery (Minden) of the 16th Regiment Royal Artillery, part of the 7th Air Defence Group, headquartered at Baker Barracks on Thorney Island along the southern coast of the UK. The re-equipping process began on January 15, 2021, and was completed by December 6 of the same year. The new system replaced the Rapier Field Standard C (FSC) systems, which had a range of 8 km and radio-command-guided missiles, and had been in service with the British Army for nearly five decades.
The Narew program is being implemented through collaboration between MBDA UK and the Polish Armaments Group (PGZ), under which the Polish Armed Forces will receive 138 iLauncher systems mounted on Jelcz chassis and over 1,000 extended-range CAMM-ER missiles. The UK Ministry of Defence emphasizes that this program also serves as a boost for the British defense industry, fostering growth and opportunities domestically while reaffirming the UK’s commitment to defending Poland and NATO’s eastern flank. The UK is also a strategic partner for Poland in the program to build three multipurpose missile frigates under the Miecznik program.
As the British side notes, Poland continues to develop long-term defense projects with the United Kingdom and its allies, including a new 4 billion GBP defense agreement with the British defense industry.
On October 17 of this year, during the NATO Defense Ministers’ meeting in Brussels, Poland (alongside Germany, France, and Italy) joined the UK-led DIAMOND initiative (Delivering Integrated Air and Missile Operational Networked Defence). The initiative aims to enhance interoperability, conduct joint training, and support the European defense industry in the field of air and missile defense.
In October of this year, the British Army deployed specialist engineers to assist Polish authorities in dealing with the devastating floods that struck the country. Over 100 British soldiers are permanently stationed in Poland as part of NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence.
Now, air defense tasks in the Rzeszów area will be taken over by Norwegian F-35A Lightning II multirole aircraft and NASAMS (National/Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System) units, along with approximately 100 Norwegian soldiers. Additionally, in January 2025, a German MIM-104 Patriot medium-range air and missile defense battery will be redeployed to Poland.
As our Sky Sabre air defence deployment in Poland concludes, the UK remains steadfast in supporting our NATO allies. RAF Typhoons will join a NATO air policing mission in Poland in 2025. Together, we will stand up for European security 🇬🇧🇵🇱
Read more: https://t.co/vga6NzriIW pic.twitter.com/cMg3oLFydl
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) December 12, 2024
