Today, the conflict readiness of the first Polish air defence rocket squadron armed in Patriotia will be announced. American anti-aircraft and anti-missile kits, which in the Polish Army bear the code name “Wisła”, form the highest level of the Polish Shield, a fresh multilayer air defence strategy of the country. How strong and what do the Vistula do?
The American Patriot is presently the longest utilized in the line – due to the fact that for more than 4 decades – a missile-type earth-to-air strategy that allows to fight not only all types of aircraft and helicopters, but besides e.g. maneuvering and ballistic missiles. The maker of Patriot sets, RTX (until late Raytheon), offers them PAC-2 GEM-T (Guidedance Enhanced rocket – Tactical) missiles manufactured since 2007. They can be combated from about 160 km. The second option for U.S. users is manufactured by Lockheed Martin anti-balistic rockets PAC-3 MSE (Missile section Enhancement). And that's what Poland decided on this weapon, signing a $4.75 billion contract in 2018 for the transportation of 2 Patriot strategy batteries.
The Vistula Orchestra
The PAC-3 MSE weighs 321 kg, has a dimension of 5.2 m, a diameter of 25 cm and can be armed with 2 types of heads: a close-up of 73 kg or a hit-to-kill kind head that destroys the mark by direct hit.
The rocket reaches a velocity of more than 6,000 km per hour, and the mark is guided inertly, i.e. the location data of the enemy object are entered into the control strategy at take-off, and at the end of the flight a radar with a wavelength of 1 mm is activated, which guides the rocket to the target.
System Configuration
The Polish Army has decided that the Vistula strategy will be quadrupled, i.e. 1 battery will consist of 2 fire units, each equipped with 4 M903 launchers. By comparison, the Swedes who contracted the Patriots in the same year as us decided that their fire units would only have 3 launchers.
In 2018, the “Wisła” programme was divided into 2 stages. It was then accepted that the first 2 purchased Pariot batteries would be equipped with older sectoral AN/MPQ-65 radars and then developed innovative IBCS command and control system – Integrated Air and rocket defence conflict Command System. Another six Vistula batteries are to be delivered already in the mark configuration, i.e. with around LTAMDS radars.
The AN/MPQ-65 Radar was created for PAC-3 MSE missiles. Although its detailed method specifications are secret, it is known that it can track more than 100 objects and at the same time guide missiles to respective of them. The radar with the vehicle M983 weighs 35 t is 3.61 m high, 2.9 m wide and 17 m long.
LTAMDS (Lower Tier Air and rocket defence Sensor) I want it to be better than the erstwhile 1 in all way. The device is equipped with 3 AESA antennas (based on semiconductors made utilizing galium nitride technology), allowing to detect targets smaller, higher heights and further distance than AN/MPQ 65.
New Brain
When Poland was buying Patriots, it made the condition that the first packages delivered to us were to be equipped with Northrop Grumman, a company developed by the company. IBCS network-centric command system. As the army officials explained, including Brig-Gen. Michał Marciniak, who led the squad liable for acquiring the Vistula strategy (now Deputy Head of the Armed Forces Agency), IBCS is crucial for the construction of the country's multi-layer air defence system, as it allows combat management with any effector and any radar. This means that IBCS can not only command Vistula sets, but besides Narwi and Pilica+ (short and very short scope systems) and the reconnaissance data can be obtained from Polish and allied radars.
More power
To importantly increase the capacity of the Vistula, the military plans in the coming years, with the introduction of another six Patriot batteries into service, to buy another kind of missiles. These are to be rockets much cheaper (the Low Cost Interceptor) than presently utilized PAC-3 MSE. As the representatives of the MON emphasize, specified rockets should be produced in Poland or with a crucial share of the Polish armory.
Long way to the Vistula
2012 – was adopted "Technical Armed Forces Modernisation Plan 2013–2022", which assumed the construction of an air defence and rocket defence strategy of a country consisting of 3 subsystems: a very short range, alleged VSHORAD – Very Short scope Air defence (with a cryptonym ‘Pilica’); Short scope Air defence (‘Narew’) and the mid-range MRAD – average scope Air Defence (with the code name ‘Wisła’).
4 June 2013 – The Armed Forces Inspectorate invited companies to the alleged method dialog on the anti-aircraft and anti-missile mid-range rocket set codenamed “Wisła”. There were 14 curious parties.
17 September 2013 – The government adopted a resolution on the establishment of the multiannual programme "Priority tasks of upgrading the method forces of the Republic of Poland as part of operational programmes", from which the budget was to be financed the acquisition of the Vistula systems.
24 January 2014 – The Armed Forces Inspectorate issued an invitation to the second phase of the method dialog on Vistula.
30 June 2014 – The Armed Forces Inspectorate informed of the choice of further procedure for the Vistula case. Raytheon of the USA offering Patriot kits and the French Eurosam consortium offering SAMP/T sets were invited to the tender to choice the strategy provider.
21 April 2015 – The Council of Ministers adopted a advice from the MON on the implementation of the “Wisła” programme in an intergovernmental procedure with the United States and the acquisition of the Patriot strategy for the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland.
6 September 2016 – The Armed Forces Inspectorate directed to the United States Government, in accordance with the abroad Military Sales procedure, a LoR (Letter of Request) request concerning purchase of 8 Patriot batteries.
31 March 2017 – The Armed Forces Inspectorate sent the US government an improved version of the LoR. The Polish government declared its willingness to acquisition SkyCeptor low-cost rockets and declared the maximum order amount to PLN 30 billion.
6 July 2017 – The United States Department of Defence and the Ministry of National Defence of the Republic of Poland signed the Memorandum of intent concerning Poland's acquisition of the Patriot Air defence strategy in the second phase.
17 November 2017 – defence safety Cooperation Agency (DSCA), an American government agency liable for the preparation of interstate arms sales contracts produced in the US, has submitted to legislature its intention to sign a Patriot contract with Poland.
23 March 2018 – MON signed with representatives of Raytheon Company and Lockheed Martin Global Inc. Offset agreements related to the supply of anti-aircraft and rocket anti-missile kits medium-range “Wisła – phase I”. The first, worth PLN 224 million, was concluded with Raytheon Company, provides for 31 alleged offset commitments; the second, worth PLN 724 million, concluded with Lockheed Martin Global Inc., provides for 15 offset commitments.
28 March 2018 – MON signed a contract for the supply of 2 anti-aircraft batteries and Patriot anti-missile systems and thus Poland became the 15th user of this weapon.
4 September 2018 – 3 implementing agreements with the United States government on the implementation of the first phase of the Vistula Operational Programme were signed.
Second half of 2020 – the first group of Polish soldiers in the USA began training from the construction and operation of Patriot kits.
September 2022 – the first components of Vistula go to SZRP.
October 2022 – The process of integration and investigating of all elements of the first squadron (the alleged SICO – strategy Integration and Check Out) began in Toruń.
December 2024 – preliminary operational readiness of the Vistula.
17 September 2025 – first rocket shooting of the Vistula system.
![Drony zamiast żołnierzy. Na granicy potrzeba rewolucji [KOMENTARZ]](https://cdn.defence24.pl/2026/01/29/1200xpx/CAOcOJYBAfiyLDDM90xVdV4cuBvl1x3XXLpb8P3d.6uul.jpg)
![Wojsko irańskie jest gotowe na wojnę totalną [reżim ajatollahów]](https://wcn-media.s3.us-west-004.backblazeb2.com/2026/01/yeb8RbSd-QgnfDom9-Iran-1.jpg)
