FrankenSAM: Military tech meshed to create Ukraine's Raven air defence system

The military call it a 'FrankenSAM' – an innovative mix of existing military tech, meshed together into a highly effective air defence system that has been in use in Ukraine for the past two years.

Raven, as it is officially called, is based around a Supercat HMT 600 all-terrain vehicle – the same platform used for the British Army's Coyote.

On the back engineers mounted a missile launcher, fitted with rails taken from retired RAF Tornado, Hawk and Jaguar jets.

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Those rails enable the system to fire ASRAAMs – Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air missiles – the infra-red guided weapons usually fitted to British fighter jets like the Typhoon and F-35 for use in dogfights.

The UK has sent hundreds of ASRAAMs to Ukraine, mostly missiles that are nearing the end of their shelf life.

Since it was first sent in early 2023, Raven has been fired 400 times by Ukrainian forces, mainly against the waves of Iranian-designed Shahed 136 one-way drones that Russia has launched with devastating effect against Ukrainian cities.

Ukraine claims it has a 70 per cent success rate, and the MOD says there are now plans to send an additional five systems to Ukraine, to bolster the eight Britain has already supplied.