Netherlands to Buy 22 Air Defense Systems to Counter Drones

The Dutch Ministry of Defense is ordering 22 mobile air defense systems designed to counter drones.

The Dutch Ministry of Defense reported on this.

The Ministry hopes to sign the contracts in the near future. If successful, the first systems could enter service by 2028.

The main weapon of the system will be the Skyranger 30 air defense system. It is equipped with a 30-mm Oerlikon KCA rapid-fire cannon and Mistral or Stinger anti-aircraft missiles.

The gun’s ammunition includes a wide range of ammunition, which also includes radio-fuzed shells.

The ammunition consists of 252 rounds. The rate of fire is up to 1250 rounds per minute.

The air defense system will be mounted on an ACSV (Armored Combat Support Vehicles) tracked chassis from Flensburger Fahrzeugbau.

Air defense systems are already being used on the basis of this chassis, including the Norwegian NOMADS.

“The ongoing war in Ukraine and the events in the Middle East show the growing importance of drones on the battlefield. This automatically emphasizes the importance of being able to combat these unmanned systems,” the Dutch Ministry of Defense stated.

Skyranger 30 can be confidently called the bestseller of the modern European market of anti-aircraft systems for further integration on many various chassis.

Militarnyi reported on the purchase of Skyranger 30 by Denmark, Germany, Austria and Hungary.

A similar system, namely the Skynex air defense system, is also used by the Ukrainian Air Force.