The Ukrainian Armed Forces have a mind-boggling array of air defence missile systems ranging from Patriot, NASAMS and S-300 to Stinger and Igla MANPADS. We’ve already covered some of the UK-led efforts to equip Ukraine with additional ad-hoc surface-to-air systems such as Raven and Gravehawk, which utilise air-to-air missiles like the ASRAAM. At the end of 2025, footage surfaced showing a new air defence platform, Tempest, which intriguingly utilises Hellfire AGM-114L missiles.
The system was first spotted in a video released by the Air Command Center at the start of 2026. A brief clip shows a nighttime launch of a missile, the flash of the launch briefly lights up the weapons platform showing a small vehicle with launch rails. The footage is low resolution but the vehicle is easily identifiable as V2X’s Tempest – a missile-armed buggy. It appears that the footage may date from November 2025, when a version of the clip had been previously posted with the vehicle itself blurred out.
V2X debuted the Tempest platform at the 2025 Association of the United States Army (AUSA) exhibition in October. V2X describe Tempest as:
“…a rugged, commercially based combat vehicle engineered for rapid, low-exposure missions. Outfitted with dual weapon launchers and a proven Counter-UAS capability, Tempest detects, engages, and defeats Class 2–3 UAS in adverse weather conditions—then withdraws before the enemy can cue effective counterfire. Stationary, trailer-mounted variants are also available for fixed-site defense.”
Described as a high-mobility air defence vehicle the Tempest pairs a Can-Am Maverick X3 off-road 4×4 vehicle, fitted with a pair of launch rails and what appears to be a Leonardo DRS Multi-Mission Hemispheric Radar (MHR). The transfer of Tempest to Ukraine had not been publicly announced by either the company or the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
You may be thinking but isn’t Hellfire a surface to surface or anti-armour missile? AGM-114L Longbow is a radar-guided variant of the Hellfire which features an active millimeter-wave seeker giving it a fire-and-forget capability which can home in on its target. This also enables it to engage aerial targets. AGM-114L was initially selected to arm the Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) variant of the Stryker AFV to counter drones. In the summer of 2024, however, the concept was abandoned due to safety concerns that Hellfire missiles were not robust enough to withstand prolonged deployment in the field over rough terrain. The Ukrainian units operating Tempest may mitigate these potential issues by only mounting the missiles before deploying and their high operational tempo may also mean that the missiles are used relatively quickly once mounted.
On 11 January, a volunteer affiliated with the unit operating the Tempest system shared a series of photos of the vehicle on an online forum. These are believed to have been taken during crew training. The most notable of the photos appears to be one showing the delivery of Tempest to the unit, with not one but two of the vehicles seen on the back of a lorry. This indicates multiple vehicles may be operational in Ukraine. Another, lower resolution, photo showed one of the vehicles with a series of victory tallies painted on a door, with approximately 17 outlines of Shahed drones visible. Intriguingly, the series of photos shared by the individual show two vehicles equipped with a Houser Racing bolt-on enclosure doors while another photo shows the vehicle with stock buggy-style doors.
Following the identification of the vehicle in the initial clip and the sharing of additional photos of the system online Air Command Center shared a longer video, on 14 January, showing off Tempest, complete with an interview from the vehicle commander. In the clip the vehicle commander noted that they had successfully engaged 21 Shahed drones since they began operating the vehicle. Other details remain vague, it isn’t clear when the vehicles entered operation service, nor is it clear how many might be in theatre. How the vehicles are employed is also vague, are they used behind the lines as a means of rapidly engaging enemy drones in a sector or are they a defensive element for a larger unit.
While the vehicle is clearly highly manoeuvrable its unclear if this is enough to protect it in the high threat environment it is likely to be operating in, if it is near the front-line. It’s also unknown how the vehicle is resupplied in the field, with only two launch rails and little space onboard to carry additional missiles Tempest must be paired with equally manoeuvrable logistics vehicles. Much remains unknown about Tempest and how it is being fielded. However, it is an intriguing concept for a highly mobile short-range air defence platform.
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The Armourers Bench 