Expired ATACMS missiles spark debate over military use
The Bulgarian service Obektivno, citing Pentagon budget documents, reports that the expiry date of some older ATACMS missiles, which were supposed to be sent to Ukraine, expired in 2015. This was already noted at the beginning of 2024 by Newsweek, which mentioned the M39 and M39A1 variants produced in the 1990s. In a conversation with WP Tech, Gen. Tomasz Drewniak, former Inspector of the Polish Air Force, explained that occurence.
The findings of the Bulgarian service Obektivno indicate that the "expiry date" of some older ATACMS missiles, which were to be delivered to Ukraine, had already expired in 2015. In January of this year, Newsweek also pointed this out, writing about the oldest versions of the ATACMS missiles, the M39 and M39A1. These missiles were produced in the 1990s and were gradually replaced by newer models over time.
ATACMS for Ukraine
Gen. Ben Hodges, who served as the commanding general of the U.S. Army in Europe, argued at the time that there were no concerns about the expiry date of these missiles. "All weapons are eventually replaced by better, more lethal, more cost-effective weapons," he said in an interview with Newsweek, also arguing that these missiles could be significant for the operations conducted by the Ukrainians.
Currently, after authorisation by U.S. President Joe Biden's administration for the use of American weapons to hit targets deep within Russia, ATACMS could be used by Ukrainians to conduct attacks on airports, supply points, or warehouses located on Russian territory. These are places that play a significant role during ongoing military operations, and ATACMS missiles - depending on the version - can strike targets located even 300 kilometres away.
Missile expiry
In a conversation with WP Tech, Gen. Tomasz Drewniak, former Inspector of the Polish Air Force, pointed out how one can perceive the "expiry date" of missiles and their subsequent usefulness for military purposes.
- First of all, it should be remembered that a missile consists of several elements, and many factors influence its combat usefulness. Clearly determining whether a missile is "expired" requires extensive knowledge. For example, there are several ways of storing missiles. If a missile is kept in a container, in a place with appropriate humidity, temperature, etc., it can be useful for up to 20 years. If such a missile is taken out of the container, it may lose its usefulness within a year - he said.
According to the military expert, in the case of ATACMS for Ukraine, it is difficult to take a clear stance without deeper knowledge. - We do not know how the missiles were stored, under what conditions, what might have expired in them - whether the rocket motor or the navigation systems. Therefore, I would not look for sensationalism here - added Gen. Tomasz Drewniak.
- In Poland, we also keep expired missiles. This is a standard procedure worldwide. It just has to be clearly stated that these are missiles we use, for example, during training for shootings in Ustka. We do not use them in combat. Another important issue is the procedures for checking such missiles. In our country, this task is handled by the Institute of Aviation Technical Troops. For example, anti-aircraft missiles whose service lives are nearing the end, or - because sometimes it happens - are beyond their service life, are sent there - the military expert stressed.
The expert also explained what poor storage of missiles might mean in practice, for example, not ensuring the proper humidity. If in such a situation the rocket motor gets wet, then one can expect that the missile will have completely different flight parameters than those assumed as the norm.
