JASSM missiles for Ukraine’s new F-16s?
August 16, 2024
The Politico website has reported that the US Biden administration is “open” to supplying Ukraine with stealthy Lockheed Martin AGM-158 JASSM air launched cruise missiles, and that the Pentagon may already be working on upgrading Ukrainian F-16s to be able to carry and fire them. The missile might also be integrated on Ukraine’s existing Russian fighter designs, in just the same way that the AGM-88 HARM and AASM Hammer have been.
Lockheed Martin has already delivered more than 4,100 JASSMs to the US Air Force and allies, and production is ongoing to meet a requirement for a US stockpile goal of 7,200 missiles. The JASSM has been supplied to a number of close allies including Poland for its F-16s, and for the F/A-18s flown by Australia and Finland. Others, including Japan and the Netherlands, have recently signed agreements to buy the weapon, while Denmark, Germany, Greece, Romania are believed to be in discussions for the supply of JASSM.
The 2,400-pound JASSM (Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile) is armed with a 1,000-pound warhead and has a range of more than 230 miles, though the improved AGM-158B JASSM-ER has a range of 575 miles.
The US attitude to supplying JASSM to Ukraine has changed over the course of the war, and to national security adviser Jake Sullivan was reportedly more receptive when Ukrainian parliamentarians pressed the issue when they visited Washington in July.
The Russian threat has intensified steadily, and has reached a new order of magnitude with a range of new missiles, glide bombs and UAVs. Congressional opponents have accused the administration of moving too slowly and in failing to give Kiev the equipment needed to win the war. The new weapon would provide the new Ukrainian F-16s with a powerful long range stand-off capability. US attitudes to Ukraine have been shaped by Ukraine’s successes – and especially its recent ground assault into Russia’s Kursk region. This has resulted in the delivery of a variety of sophisticated weapons to Ukraine that were once considered off-limits.
The Pentagon has not confirmed any intention to transfer JASSM missiles to Ukraine, saying only that it has: “a range of options to meet Ukraine’s security assistance requirements.”
