Patriot reference card · ARC Warning Reference card
Patriot U.S. air and missile defense system. The card is about the published Patriot family. It does not explain how to defeat the system or how to fire it.
These cards are encyclopedic. They are not targeting, manufacturing, or acquisition guidance. A field says unknown/disputed when the cited open source does not state it. ARC Warning is not an emergency service.
Catalog revised 2026-10-11 . Also known as MIM-104, PAC-2, PAC-3.
Published description Names, aliases, and NATO designation Patriot. U.S. designation MIM-104. Principal variants on the CSIS page include PAC-2 and PAC-3. Confidence: high. The cited page states this. A separate NATO reporting name is not used on that page. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Type and role Surface-to-air missile system for aircraft, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles, as CSIS describes the family. Confidence: high. The cited page states this. Role is the published mission. Engagement envelopes are not copied. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Manufacturer and country United States. A manufacturer web page checked for this card did not resolve, so the company is not named from memory. Confidence: medium. The cited page supports this, with a stated limit. Country of origin is not in doubt. The corporate credit waits on a page that loads. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Operators United States. CSIS describes other operators on its Patriot page; this card does not copy a roster it has not re-checked line by line. Confidence: medium. The cited page supports this, with a stated limit. U.S. operation is stated. A partial ally list would be easy to get wrong. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Launch platform Truck-towed launchers. CSIS describes the M901, M902, and M903 launcher variants. Confidence: high. The cited page states this. Launcher model names are published. Loadout counts are omitted. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Guidance CSIS describes radar direction of the system and an active radar seeker on the PAC-3. Confidence: high. The cited page states this. Frequencies and modes are not stated here. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Propulsion Solid-fuel interceptors. CSIS describes the PAC-3 as a newer, more maneuverable missile than PAC-2. Confidence: medium. The cited page supports this, with a stated limit. The propellant class is the published description. Performance envelopes are not. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Published speed unknown/disputed Confidence: unknown. The cited page does not state this, so the card does not guess. The CSIS summary used here does not state a single speed. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Range unknown/disputed Confidence: unknown. The cited page does not state this, so the card does not guess. CSIS compares defended area between variants. A single range number is not copied, because the figures depend on the interceptor and the target. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Warhead type and weight CSIS: PAC-2 uses a blast-fragmentation warhead. PAC-3 is described as hit-to-kill. CSIS gives a PAC-3 weight of about 312 kg. Confidence: high. The cited page states this. The warhead contrast is the published one. Lethal radius is not inferred from the weight. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Blast and fragmentation radius unknown/disputed Confidence: unknown. The cited page does not state this, so the card does not guess. The sources cited here give a warhead class or mass where they give one. They do not state a blast or fragmentation radius, and none is inferred. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Interceptability and countermeasures Patriot is itself an interceptor. How to defeat it is not described. Confidence: high. The cited page states this. CSIS describes what the family is designed to engage. Counter-Patriot measures are out of scope for this card. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Reported unit cost unknown/disputed Confidence: unknown. The cited page does not state this, so the card does not guess. No unit price is stated on the CSIS page used here. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Service history CSIS describes Patriot as a fielded U.S. system with PAC-2 and PAC-3 variants in service. Confidence: high. The cited page states this. A first-in-service year is not taken from a page that was not opened for that sentence. CSIS Missile Threat: Patriot Media Verified government media
Patriot live-fire b-roll
Source: Sgt. Christian Morton / U.S. Army, DVIDS
ARC Warning did not create this.
Taken 2023-11-04 . Public-domain exercise launch at El Paso, Texas. Official DVIDS player only. ARC Warning does not copy the file. Not casualty footage.
Seen in ARC Warning No approved ARC Warning record currently names this system.
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