Swedish Robot 17 short-range anti-ship missile - Hellfire 'portable' version

Robot 17 is a coastal defense missile system developed by Sweden based on the famous American AGM-114 Hellfire missile and produced in the 80s by Bofors Defense (now Saab Bofors Dynamics).

Robot 17 is a coastal defense missile system.

While the Hellfire is designed to disable armored vehicles from attack helicopters such as the AH-64 Apache, the Robot 17 can be carried by infantry and launched from shore to target warships.

Robot 17 would be ideal against amphibious invasions.

The Swedish defense ministry said the delivery of Robot 17 was in response to a special request from the Ukrainian government in light of Russia's growing presence in the country's southeastern coast. Robot 17 would be ideal against amphibious invasions, the system being easy to set up and fire by infantry. Besides warships, Robot 17 also has the secondary ability to attack land targets.

Robot 17 carries a 9 kg warhead, laser guidance, a range of about 8 km. The system is part of the Swedish amphibious force (AMF), which is transported by speedboat between the mainland and the islands. AMF soldiers will quickly deploy Robot 17 in strategic locations. By posing a threat of unpredictable movement, Robot 17 will make it difficult for opponents to maneuver ships into Swedish islands or ports.

For Ukraine, Robot 17 is not the first anti-ship missile system to be delivered. Previously, the UK supplied Brimstone guided missiles while the US was said to be delivering to Ukraine RGM-84 Harpoon or NSM missiles.

Robot 17 does not bring significant impact because of its limited range.

Experts say that Robot 17 does not bring significant impact because of its limited range. However, if combined with other anti-ship missiles that Ukraine has, Robot 17 is said to strengthen Odesa defenses against Russia's black sea fleet. Earlier, Ukraine is said to have used Neptune missiles to sink the Moscow flagship. Both Neptune and Harpoon with a range of 75 nautical miles will be able to hit Russian units at long range.

Meanwhile, the British Brimestone will be able to block the enemy's advance at medium range and Robot 17 at short range. It can be said that Robot 17 will fill the gap in close-range combat because both Harpoon and Neptune cannot attack ships at such a close distance due to the minimum range limit. In addition, Robot 17 can be effectively used against surface targets in an amphibious assault.