Germany

Vivendi

Well-Known Member
According to Politico, only 8% (6.8 Billion Euros) of a total of 83 billion Euros for 154 defense contracts from September 2025 until December 2026 will be US contracts; the rest is mainly European. The biggest US contracts are Patriot launchers and missiles, and torpedoes for the P-8A planes.

Of course this will vary from year to year; some big ticket US items that are coming in the future are in particular the F-35A jets for the nuclear sharing arrangement; and I am sure there will be others. Is this current drop in spending on US equipment just a coincidence or is it part of a long term trend?

Germany’s €80B rearmament plan sidelines US weapons – POLITICO
 

seaspear

Well-Known Member
There seems a change of policy regarding arms sales of Patriot missile systems to Europe
Europe though has still been able to purchase some weapon systems from the U.S for Ukraine
Im not sure on the weapons whether they are old stock or something that keeps the arms industry busy
 

Big_Zucchini

Well-Known Member
There seems a change of policy regarding arms sales of Patriot missile systems to Europe
Europe though has still been able to purchase some weapon systems from the U.S for Ukraine
Im not sure on the weapons whether they are old stock or something that keeps the arms industry busy
Important context.
I don't believe the US will reduce output to established customers, just probably not seek new buyers.
 

kato

The Bunker Group
Verified Defense Pro
So, will there be a big investment in increasing production to meet demand? And how long will it take to meet the targets?
For Patriot?

MBDA started construction on expanding their factories in Schrobenhausen, Bavaria last November for that (colocated with COMLOG's Patriot Missile Facility 3). They'll be producing PAC2 GEM-T there. Planning for that started in 2022, IOC is in 2026, full operations 2027. Offhand so far missiles worth around 5 billion Euro are already ordered from future production there.
 

swerve

Super Moderator
Thanks for that.

So, some Patriot missiles will be made in Germany, which is good for supplies in Europe. Patriot's not a single type of missile, though, & the reports from the USA of shortages mention the PAC-3 MSE. I must admit I'm not sure which Patriots some of the European operators have & are buying, though I note that several European countries will be buying PAC2 GEM-T from European production, & some parts will be made elsewhere in Europe.
 

Big_Zucchini

Well-Known Member
Thanks for that.

So, some Patriot missiles will be made in Germany, which is good for supplies in Europe. Patriot's not a single type of missile, though, & the reports from the USA of shortages mention the PAC-3 MSE. I must admit I'm not sure which Patriots some of the European operators have & are buying, though I note that several European countries will be buying PAC2 GEM-T from European production, & some parts will be made elsewhere in Europe.
While European manufacturing seems to deal primarily with PAC-2, it's really the PAC-3 MSE that should be their priority.
Europe is increasingly integrated into the supply chain but it is not manufacturing complete units.
Depending on the scope of European involvement, going to full production could be a small or large leap. But even then the US might pull a significant quantity from there, and it's not going to output in the next couple years anyway in the best case scenario.

While I don't think it'd be smart to reject new customers, I also can't blame the US for prioritizing domestic needs now. Europe had about a decade to get these things sorted.
Some used the opportunity and set up decent IAMD. Now they'll have to look into other suppliers, which are abundant. Including for Patriot equivalents.
 

Vivendi

Well-Known Member
I would not say Patriot equivalents are "abundant" -- Europe has only one (the brand new SAMP/T NG -- the current version is not really equivalent to Patriot).
 

Big_Zucchini

Well-Known Member
I would not say Patriot equivalents are "abundant" -- Europe has only one (the brand new SAMP/T NG -- the current version is not really equivalent to Patriot).
Israel - Barak, Spyder, David's Sling.
Three systems with roughly equivalent coverage and capabilities, from 2 different manufacturers each with their own chain.

Turkey - Siper.
Still in development but it's a solid tradeoff for European nations that aren't in a rush.

South Korea - M-SAM.
Not sure about its status. I believe an ABM variant could be in service, but even if not, there's potential here and like in Turkey's case this could be accelerated with acquisition funds.

All 3 carry some political weight that might exclude them from exporting to some European nations, but for each European nation there's at least one potential foreign supplier on top of the European offerings.
 

kato

The Bunker Group
Verified Defense Pro
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