Romania takes delivery of first US PAC-3 MSE Patriot air defense missile system.

According to a Tweet published by Lockheed Martin on September 18, 2020, Romania has received its first American-made PAC-3 MSE Patriot air defense missile system. This the first country in the Black Sea region to receive the Patriot missile system.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link

The official ceremony for the delivery of the first American-made PAC-3 MSE Patriot air defense missile system to Romania.  (Picture source Romania MoD)

The U.S. Department of Defense announced on May 25, 2018, the contract calls for Raytheon to build Romania's first brand-new Patriot air defense missile fire unit Configuration 3+. In July 2017, the U.S. State Department had made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to Romania for Patriot air defense systems, related support, and equipment.

The first Patriot air defense missile system manufactured by the American Companies Raytheon and Lockheed-Martin was delivered to Romania on September 17, 2020, during an official ceremony at the Cape Midia military base near the Black Sea port of Constanta attended by the Prime Minister of Romania Orban Ludovic and Minister of National Defence Nicolae Ciuca. Three other Patriot missile systems will be delivered in 2022.

Recently, Poland also has selected the Patriot as a new air defense missile system. In November 2017, the U.S. State Department approved a $10.5 billion sale of four Patriot missile defense systems to Poland. The air defense missile system is now in service with 16 countries including Germany, Greece, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Netherlands, Poland, Qatar, Romania Saudi Arabia, Spain, South Korea, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, and the United States.

In June 2020, a Lockheed Martin PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptor successfully detected, tracked, and intercepted a tactical ballistic missile target today in a test at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.

The family of PAC-3 missiles is high-velocity interceptors that defend against incoming threats, including tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and aircraft. Thirteen nations – the U.S., Germany, Kuwait, Japan, Qatar, the Republic of Korea, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, the Netherlands, United Arab Emirates, Romania, Poland, and Sweden have chosen PAC-3 and PAC-3 MSE to provide missile defense capabilities.

Building on the combat-proven PAC-3, the PAC-3 MSE uses a two-pulse solid rocket motor that increases altitude and range to defend against evolving threats.