Howard Altman
Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki demanded to know whether an air-to-air missile fired by one of its F-16 fighters during last week’s Russian drone incursion destroyed a house. The calls for an investigation follow a Polish media report that an AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) fired at a drone, went off course and caused the damage.
Regardless of what happened, Russia is ultimately to blame for the destruction because it launched the drones, Poland’s prime minister proclaimed.
Nawrocki “expects the government to promptly clarify the incident in the town of Wyry,” the Polish National Security Bureau (BBN) stated on X . “It is within the Government’s purview to utilize all tools and institutions to resolve this matter as quickly as possible.”
Shortly after the drone incursion became public, Polish officials showed pictures of a house in Wyry that had been destroyed during the wave of about 19 drones.
“It was an AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missile from our F-16, which experienced a guidance system malfunction during flight and failed to fire,” the Polish RMF24 news outlet reported on Tuesday, citing an anonymous state security agency source. “Fortunately, it did not arm or explode because the fuse safety devices were activated.”
The publication said a former Polish military intelligence officer emphasized that the damage to the house was caused by kinetic impact.
“There was no explosion, no detonation, as can be seen in the photos of the destroyed house,” Lt. Col. Maciej Korowaj explained.
The AIM-120 has about a 40-pound blast fragmentation warhead.
An AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM). (Raytheon)
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