Explained | What is the Patriot missile defense system, that Ukraine will receive from the U.S.?

Here’s what you need to know about the Patriot missile system that Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country urgently needs to fend off Russian attacks

Ahead of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's visit to Washington on Wednesday, the Biden administration said it would provide another $1.85 billion in military aid to Ukraine, including the Patriot air defense system that the Ukrainian leader has said his country urgently needs to fend off Russian attacks.

Here's what you need to know about the Patriot:

The Patriot, which stands for Phased Array Tracking Radar for Intercept on Target, is a theater-wide surface-to-air missile defense system built by Raytheon Technologies Corp and considered one of the most advanced air defense systems in the U.S. arsenal.

The system was first used in combat during the 1991 Gulf War, with batteries protecting Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Israel, and later used during the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.

It is a mobile system that usually includes powerful radar, a control station, a power generator, launch stations and other support vehicles.

The system has different capabilities depending on the type of interceptor used.

The PAC-2 interceptor uses a blast-fragmentation warhead, while the newer PAC-3 missile uses more advanced hit-to-kill technology.