Georgia Eyeing Procurement of Polish Piorun MANPADS?

The agreement signed on 12th January this year most probably refers to the procurement of the Piorun systems. Apart from the procurement contract, a memorandum was signed by and between the Georgian MoD and Mesko S.A., covering the potential cooperation, plausibly aimed at the establishment of maintenance and training facilities, to meet the requirements of the Georgian military. No information was provided on the order volume, its value, or delivery deadlines.

Piorun is a Man-Portable Air Defence System designed for countering low-flying rotary- and fixed-wing aircraft, and UAVs, at a distance of up to 6.5 kilometres from the launcher. The operators include, apart from the Polish Armed Forces, Estonia, Norway, Slovakia, and Ukraine. In Ukraine, the Piorun system was combat-proven against modern Russian aircraft, such as the Su-34 strike fighter, or Ka-52 attack helicopter. Piorun systems have also been acquired by the US for experimental purposes. The design is being constantly upgraded and modernized.

Notably, Georgia also had procured the Polish Grom MANPADS. During the Georgian-Russian war in 2008, these were used for downing 9 Russian aircraft and helicopters.