USA Reinforced the Island of Guam with a New Air and Missile Defense Battalion Equipped with THAAD, Patriot, and UAVs
The U.S. Army has formed and activated a new air and missile defense battalion on the island of Guam in the Pacific Ocean.
The press office of U.S. Army Pacific reported on this.
The ceremony marking the formation of the 3rd Battalion, 43rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment, 38th Air and Missile Defense Brigade, part of the 94th Air and Missile Defense Command, took place on October 16.
The newly formed unit replaced Task Force Talon, which was deactivated this summer. That task force had been operating on a rotational basis since 2013.
The new battalion will operate THAAD and Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems as well as unmanned aerial vehicles.
The THAAD System
THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) is a U.S. ground-based missile defense system designed to intercept short-, medium-, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles in the exoatmospheric phase.
The system’s key feature is its ability to destroy aerial targets both in the upper atmosphere and beyond it—at altitudes ranging from 40 to 150 km and at ranges of up to 200 km.
To detect and track ballistic threats out to 1,000 km, the system uses a powerful AN/TPY-2 active phased array radar (APAR).
The Island of Guam
Guam hosts key U.S. military facilities, including Andersen Air Force Base, which can accommodate strategic bombers, and a naval base that serves as a homeport for nuclear submarines and support ships.
Beyond hosting combat units, the island serves as the main logistics and supply hub for U.S. military operations in the region, with massive fuel storage tanks and ammunition depots.
The U.S. Marine Corps previously formed the first battalion designed to launch medium-range missile strikes.
The upgraded unit’s main weapon is the NMESIS (Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System) missile system.
