Ukraine Receives All Promised Skynex Air Defense Systems from Germany

Ukraine has received all the promised Skynex air defense systems from Germany as part of military assistance.

Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall, made this announcement, as quoted by the author of the German Aid to Ukraine project.

According to him, four Skynex systems, the transfer of which was announced after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, are currently in use in Ukraine.

“This means that the last two systems publicly promised by the German government have now been delivered on time, as announced,” German Aid to Ukraine concludes.

Since the gun units of the Skynex system are not self-propelled, their main task is point air defense – primarily to protect important stationary military facilities and, in particular, critical infrastructure.

A Skynex system battery consists of four 35 mm guns, a control center, and a radar station that performs initial detection of aerial targets and directs the guns.

The core of the system is the 35 mm Oerlikon Mk3 automatic cannon, with an effective range of 4,000 meters and a rate of fire of 1,000 rounds per minute.

The systems also have their own radar station paired with an electro-optical system. Together, these provide target acquisition and precise aiming, even against small targets.

In 2022, Rheinmetall announced that it would produce two Skynex batteries for an unnamed European country and requested funding from the German government. It was later revealed that these systems were intended for Ukraine.

The first two systems were officially received by Ukraine at the beginning of 2024, with the total cost of the two delivered systems reaching €182 million. Another two systems were scheduled for delivery later.

The Ukrainian Air Force employs the German Skynex systems to shoot down Russian Shahed-type drones.

To do this, the systems use AHEAD-type rounds. These rounds are programmed at the moment they leave the barrel and detonate in the air after a set time near the target. This creates a cloud of pre‑formed fragments that effectively destroy the target.