Donetsk, Feb 15 - DAN. Ukraine has formed a special mobile air defense unit armed with portable anti-aircraft Stinger missiles to send to the Donbass conflict zone, the Donetsk People’s Republic People’s Militia reported on Tuesday.
“1129th Air Defense Missile Regiment (stationed in Belaya Tserkov outside Kiev - eds Donetsk News Agency) set up a special mobile unit with Stinger portable missile systems mounted on Humvee vehicles, to fulfill missions in the Joint Forces Operation zone,” the report said.
The new unit is staffed with 28 Ukrainian servicemen who had accelerated training under the guidance of Canadian military instructors, the DPR militia said.
“We believe that the fact of forming such air defense units of the Ukrainian army, staffed with poorly trained servicemen, was one of the reasons behind the ban on international airlines’ flights over Ukraine,” it said.
The U.S.-made Stinger system is intended for engaging aircraft including supersonic targets and helicopters at low altitudes. Manufactured by General Dynamics, it is a mass-produced anti-aircraft weapon which is in service with armies of foreign states. *jk