Danish Test of 500km HIMARS Rocket System Worries Russia

A simulated launch of the HIMARS system by Denmark during Defender Europe 2022, a large multinational U.S -led joint military exercise, has become a concern for Russia.

The simulated missile launch that is considered to have the potential of hitting Russia's Kaliningrad was carried out on the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea. The HIMARS system which has a range of 500km was transported to the island on a U.S. C17 transport aircraft.

At the time of the launch, a battalion of Royal Life Guards arrived on Bornholm to strengthen the defense of Denmark's easternmost island which has a population of 42,000.

“The goal was to show that the Armed Forces are able and willing to defend Bornholm militarily," Lieutenant-Colonel and battalion commander Thomas Lunau was quoted as saying by Danish radio.

This year's version of Defender Europe was designed to build readiness and interoperability between U.S., NATO and its military partners, and featured more than 8,600 troops from 11 European countries, as well as the U.S.

Major and military analyst Esben Larsen of the Danish Defence Academy said the aim of the drill was to show that NATO is ready to come to the rescue of a country should it come under attack.

Danish Defence Minister Morten Bødskov emphasised that Denmark has a “central role in the Baltic Sea region” and went so far as to call the drill “a signal of solidarity” between the allies, who are ostensibly “standing together in a difficult time”, and a signal to Russia that “(Russian President) Putin won't win."

Representatives from Sweden and Norway were present during the simulated launch. Sweden recently applied for a NATO membership.

Russia registered its protest in response to the excercise and its Ambassador to Denmark, Vladimir Barbin, warned that the Danish-American military activity on Bornholm risks turning Denmark’s Baltic Sea island from a “peaceful haven into a potential military bridgehead."

The High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) is the newest member of the MLRS launcher family. It is a lightweight mobile launcher, transportable via C-130 and larger aircraft for rapid deployment, that fires Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) rockets, Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles, the next-generation Precision Strike Missile (PrSM), and Extended-Range GMLRS rockets. The HIMARS carries six rockets or one MGM-140 ATACMS missile on the U.S. Army's new Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) five-ton truck and can launch the entire Multiple Launch Rocket System Family of Munitions (MFOM). HIMARS ammunition is interchangeable with the MLRS M270A1, however, it is only able to carry one pod rather than the standard two for the M270 and A1 variants.