Robot 17 (RBS-17) short-range anti-ship missile (Swedish Armed Forces photo)
The Swedish-made RBS-17 precision-guided missile system has been spotted with Ukrainian forces for the first time ever.
On October 21, a video showing personnel from the Armed Forces of Ukrainian (AFU) launching an RBS-17 missile at Russian forces on an unidentified front in Ukraine surfaced online.
The RBS-17, officially known as Robot 17, is based on the American AGM-114C Hellfire missile. Sweden’s defense giant Bofors developed the guided missile to be able to work against naval targets. A special portable launcher was made to allow infantry to transport and fire the system from land.
The missile is guided with semi-active laser and has a maximum engagement range of up to eight kilometers. It is armed with a warhead weighting nine kilograms.
While the RBS-17 was especially developed to engage naval target, it is also possible to use it against ground targets like any Hellfire missile. The AFU is apparently taking advantage of this capability.
In June, more than three months after the beginning of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine, Sweden announced that it will be supplying the AFU with RBS-17 missile systems, without providing any details.
Russian forces have not contributed any losses to RBS-17 missiles, so far. However, the remains of what appears to be an RBS-17 were found after an attack by the AFU on the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant last August. Back then, the missile was identified as a British Brimstone which was also developed from the Hellfire.
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