Entre los sistemas de armas que EUA y NATO\u00a0est\u00e1n proveyendo a\u00a0Ucrania, en apoyo a la defensa\u00a0de este pa\u00eds ante la invasi\u00f3n de Rusia, los sistemas port\u00e1tiles del tipo SHORAD (Short Range Air Defense) como los FIM-92 \u201cStinger\u201d, han mostrado su efectividad y vigencia. Pero como contrapartida, los pa\u00edses proveedores ven con preocupaci\u00f3n, c\u00f3mo sus propios stocks disminuyen r\u00e1pidamente. Esto se ve como una oportunidad de acelerar el desarrollo de un \u201cnuevo sistema SHORAD\u201d, que est\u00e9 operativo en un lapso menor a 3 a\u00f1os, en reemplazo del\u00a0Stinger, que se encuentra en servicio desde los a\u00f1os 60\u2019s.<\/p>\n
WASHINGTON: The top two leaders of the House Armed Services Committee are sounding the alarm for the US military to develop a modern\u00a0short range air defense system<\/a>\u00a0that would allow it and its allies to replenish the thousands of Stinger anti-aircraft systems that are currently being transferred to\u00a0Ukraine<\/a>.<\/p>\n In a March 18 letter to\u00a0Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin<\/a>\u00a0and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley,\u00a0HASC Chairman Adam Smith<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0HASC Ranking Member Mike Rogers<\/a>\u00a0expressed concern that the provision of Stingers to Ukraine could potentially dwindle US Army and Marine Corps stockpiles, as well as those of other allies delivering the weapon to the Ukrainian military.<\/p>\n \u201cWe believe this is a matter of the highest urgency,\u201d Smith, D-Wash., and Rogers, R-Ala., wrote in the letter, which Breaking Defense exclusively obtained.<\/p>\n Smith and Rogers implored the Pentagon to accelerate the development of a short range air defense (SHORAD) system that could replace the FIM-92 Stinger, a Raytheon Technologies-produced system that was designed in the late 1960s.<\/p>\n \u201cThe committee urges focus on the most rapid possible development, testing, and fielding of a more capable SHORAD system and would favorably consider an appropriate reprogramming request to get this started,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n Specifically, the lawmakers said the new system should be low-cost, exportable to allies and available in 36 months.<\/p>\n \u201cEvents in Europe have demonstrated the importance of such a capability and the need for the Army and Marine Corps to develop a plan to invigorate the industrial base, buy-down strategic risk in our current capability, and accelerate the development of a follow-on SHORAD system that can be rapidly fielded,\u201d Smith and Rogers wrote.<\/p>\n While the Army has previously signaled interest in replacing Stinger, a program of record has not materialized. In 2020, the service released a sources sought notice for a Stinger replacement, postulating a potential contract award for 6,000 missiles in fiscal year 2026,\u00a0Aviation Week<\/a>\u00a0reported. However, there has been little activity since the Army put out that solicitation.<\/p>\n The HASC leaders\u2019 letter comes just days after President Joe Biden announced\u00a0an additional $800 million<\/a>\u00a0in military assistance to Ukraine. The latest package includes 800 Stinger anti-aircraft systems, on top of more than 600 Stingers previously delivered to the Ukrainian military. (In total, the administration has ordered $2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since January 2021.)<\/p>\n