Poland’s Piorun Anti-Aircraft Missile Production Surpasses U.S. Stinger and French Mistral Combined
{loadposition bannertop}
{loadposition sidebarpub}
Poland’s PGZ produces roughly 1,300 Piorun missiles annually and aims to double that within three to four years. That steady, high-volume output gives allies an alternative to strained U.S. and Western lines and boosts NATO short-range air-defense resilience.
The Polish daily Rzeczpospolita’s Radar disclosed on October 7, 2025, that Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ) confirmed it is turning out roughly 1,300 Piorun man-portable air defense missiles a year and plans to double that figure within three to four years. Company officials said this annual output already exceeds the combined production of the U.S. Stinger and France’s Mistral, marking Poland as NATO’s largest source of shoulder-launched anti-aircraft munitions and, by available figures, the global pace setter for modern MANPADS.Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
The Polish-made Piorun MANPADS features a cooled infrared seeker with advanced counter-countermeasures, dual impact and proximity fuze, and a 1.82 kg fragmentation warhead effective against drones, helicopters, and low-flying aircraft up to 6.5 km away and 4 km in altitude (Picture source: Norwegian MoD).
The surge rests on a dense industrial ecosystem that Poland has built methodically. Mesko S.A. leads final assembly and energetics, Telesystem Mesko develops the guidance and cooled infrared seeker suite, and the Military Institute of Armament Technology provides testing and certification. Capacity has been added at Mesko’s Skarzysko Kamienna complex for rocket motors and electronics, alongside supplier upgrades that shorten cycle times and stabilize quality. Backed by the National Armament Plan 2023-2035, Warsaw has poured sustained funding into ammunition, missiles and air defense, treating the Polish defense industry as a national strategic asset rather than a stopgap for wartime demand.
Piorun itself is an evolutionary redesign of the Grom with a distinctly modern sensor and fuzing package. The missile uses a cooled IR seeker with improved sensitivity and electronic countermeasures, paired to pre-launch programming that tunes seeker behavior to weather, background clutter and target class. A dual-mode impact and proximity fuze increases lethality against small drones and cruise missiles. The 1.82 kg fragmentation warhead sits on a missile that engages from roughly 400 meters to 6.5 km and up to about 4,000 meters in altitude. The complete set, including gripstock and launch tube, weighs around 19.5 kg and features day and night sights, user authorization and an IFF interface to reduce fratricide risk.
The system has earned a combat-proven reputation in Ukraine, where operators credit it with numerous kills against attack helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, Shahed-class loitering munitions and low-flying cruise missiles. The proximity fuze and seeker cooling are difference makers against low signature targets that defeat older uncooled seekers. In Polish service, Piorun is integrated with Poprad self-propelled launchers and the PSR-A Pilica and Pilica Plus batteries, which deliver cueing, optical tracking and networked fire control. That layered VSHORAD architecture allows shoulder-fired teams to fight as part of a sensor-rich network rather than isolated two-person crews.
Export momentum reflects both performance and availability. Norway signed and fielded systems to units in Finnmark. Estonia, Latvia and Moldova have joined the user community. Ukraine is a frontline operator. Sweden concluded a major order in 2025 with deliveries expected mid-decade, and Belgium approved funding for launchers and several hundred missiles. The United States has signaled its intent to procure a significant batch to bolster short-range air defense stocks while its next-generation interceptor matures. Several allies, including Lithuania and Norway, have explored joint procurement frameworks that would leverage Poland’s volume and shorten delivery timelines. Georgia has been linked to orders as part of its air defense recapitalization.
Piorun’s nearest Western peers are the U.S. FIM 92 Stinger, France’s Mistral 3 and Britain’s Starstreak. Stinger offers roughly 4.8 km range and about 3.8 km in altitude with a proven track record, but its production line has required redesign and requalification of aging components. Mistral 3 brings a heavier warhead, about 8 km reach and an imaging IR seeker with laser proximity fuze, at the cost of a bulkier package and higher unit price. Starstreak employs laser beam riding guidance and very high speed out to around 7 km, excelling against pop-up targets but requiring uninterrupted line of sight and steady laser energy on the threat. Piorun’s edge lies in a balanced envelope, a modern cooled seeker with robust countermeasures, and a proximity fuze packed into an infantry portable weight class that supports massed fielding.
Poland now anchors a regional supply chain for MANPADS production in NATO, with ripple effects across energetics, optics and precision electronics. New lines for small-caliber ammunition and 155 mm artillery shells complement missiles, while workforce programs in central and southeastern Poland expand the skilled labor base. This rearmament policy has reshaped Poland from a net importer into a net exporter of shoulder-fired missile exports, giving allies an alternative to overstretched U.S. and Western European lines.
Looking ahead, industry officials point to a Piorun NG path that targets extended range beyond 8 km, a fully digital seeker, improved resistance to advanced countermeasures and deeper integration with Pilica Plus and the Narew short-range air defense batteries. The aim is to keep Poland’s VSHORAD competitive against faster, colder and more maneuverable threats while preserving the disposable launch tube and reusable gripstock concept that simplifies logistics in the field. If paired with continuing investments in sensors and command and control, Piorun NG would cement Poland’s role as a long-term supplier and design authority in the segment.
The tactical bottom line for NATO ground forces is clear. Piorun gives platoons and point defense teams an affordable, networkable answer to the full spectrum of low altitude threats, from Group 1 to Group 3 UAVs to helicopters and cruise missiles. Strategically, Poland’s leadership in this category signals a broader shift in European armaments, with a new Polish defense corridor emerging across the Baltic and Central European states. Volume, credible performance and an industrial policy geared to sustainment rather than crisis buys explain why Poland now produces more single-shot launchers than anyone else, and why that matters for NATO’s air defense resilience.
Written by Evan Lerouvillois, Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group.
Evan studied International Relations, and quickly specialized in defense and security. He is particularly interested in the influence of the defense sector on global geopolitics, and analyzes how technological innovations in defense, arms export contracts, and military strategies influence the international geopolitical scene.
{loadposition bannertop}
{loadposition sidebarpub}
Poland’s PGZ produces roughly 1,300 Piorun missiles annually and aims to double that within three to four years. That steady, high-volume output gives allies an alternative to strained U.S. and Western lines and boosts NATO short-range air-defense resilience.
The Polish daily Rzeczpospolita’s Radar disclosed on October 7, 2025, that Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ) confirmed it is turning out roughly 1,300 Piorun man-portable air defense missiles a year and plans to double that figure within three to four years. Company officials said this annual output already exceeds the combined production of the U.S. Stinger and France’s Mistral, marking Poland as NATO’s largest source of shoulder-launched anti-aircraft munitions and, by available figures, the global pace setter for modern MANPADS.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
The Polish-made Piorun MANPADS features a cooled infrared seeker with advanced counter-countermeasures, dual impact and proximity fuze, and a 1.82 kg fragmentation warhead effective against drones, helicopters, and low-flying aircraft up to 6.5 km away and 4 km in altitude (Picture source: Norwegian MoD).
The surge rests on a dense industrial ecosystem that Poland has built methodically. Mesko S.A. leads final assembly and energetics, Telesystem Mesko develops the guidance and cooled infrared seeker suite, and the Military Institute of Armament Technology provides testing and certification. Capacity has been added at Mesko’s Skarzysko Kamienna complex for rocket motors and electronics, alongside supplier upgrades that shorten cycle times and stabilize quality. Backed by the National Armament Plan 2023-2035, Warsaw has poured sustained funding into ammunition, missiles and air defense, treating the Polish defense industry as a national strategic asset rather than a stopgap for wartime demand.
Piorun itself is an evolutionary redesign of the Grom with a distinctly modern sensor and fuzing package. The missile uses a cooled IR seeker with improved sensitivity and electronic countermeasures, paired to pre-launch programming that tunes seeker behavior to weather, background clutter and target class. A dual-mode impact and proximity fuze increases lethality against small drones and cruise missiles. The 1.82 kg fragmentation warhead sits on a missile that engages from roughly 400 meters to 6.5 km and up to about 4,000 meters in altitude. The complete set, including gripstock and launch tube, weighs around 19.5 kg and features day and night sights, user authorization and an IFF interface to reduce fratricide risk.
The system has earned a combat-proven reputation in Ukraine, where operators credit it with numerous kills against attack helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, Shahed-class loitering munitions and low-flying cruise missiles. The proximity fuze and seeker cooling are difference makers against low signature targets that defeat older uncooled seekers. In Polish service, Piorun is integrated with Poprad self-propelled launchers and the PSR-A Pilica and Pilica Plus batteries, which deliver cueing, optical tracking and networked fire control. That layered VSHORAD architecture allows shoulder-fired teams to fight as part of a sensor-rich network rather than isolated two-person crews.
Export momentum reflects both performance and availability. Norway signed and fielded systems to units in Finnmark. Estonia, Latvia and Moldova have joined the user community. Ukraine is a frontline operator. Sweden concluded a major order in 2025 with deliveries expected mid-decade, and Belgium approved funding for launchers and several hundred missiles. The United States has signaled its intent to procure a significant batch to bolster short-range air defense stocks while its next-generation interceptor matures. Several allies, including Lithuania and Norway, have explored joint procurement frameworks that would leverage Poland’s volume and shorten delivery timelines. Georgia has been linked to orders as part of its air defense recapitalization.
Piorun’s nearest Western peers are the U.S. FIM 92 Stinger, France’s Mistral 3 and Britain’s Starstreak. Stinger offers roughly 4.8 km range and about 3.8 km in altitude with a proven track record, but its production line has required redesign and requalification of aging components. Mistral 3 brings a heavier warhead, about 8 km reach and an imaging IR seeker with laser proximity fuze, at the cost of a bulkier package and higher unit price. Starstreak employs laser beam riding guidance and very high speed out to around 7 km, excelling against pop-up targets but requiring uninterrupted line of sight and steady laser energy on the threat. Piorun’s edge lies in a balanced envelope, a modern cooled seeker with robust countermeasures, and a proximity fuze packed into an infantry portable weight class that supports massed fielding.
Poland now anchors a regional supply chain for MANPADS production in NATO, with ripple effects across energetics, optics and precision electronics. New lines for small-caliber ammunition and 155 mm artillery shells complement missiles, while workforce programs in central and southeastern Poland expand the skilled labor base. This rearmament policy has reshaped Poland from a net importer into a net exporter of shoulder-fired missile exports, giving allies an alternative to overstretched U.S. and Western European lines.
Looking ahead, industry officials point to a Piorun NG path that targets extended range beyond 8 km, a fully digital seeker, improved resistance to advanced countermeasures and deeper integration with Pilica Plus and the Narew short-range air defense batteries. The aim is to keep Poland’s VSHORAD competitive against faster, colder and more maneuverable threats while preserving the disposable launch tube and reusable gripstock concept that simplifies logistics in the field. If paired with continuing investments in sensors and command and control, Piorun NG would cement Poland’s role as a long-term supplier and design authority in the segment.
The tactical bottom line for NATO ground forces is clear. Piorun gives platoons and point defense teams an affordable, networkable answer to the full spectrum of low altitude threats, from Group 1 to Group 3 UAVs to helicopters and cruise missiles. Strategically, Poland’s leadership in this category signals a broader shift in European armaments, with a new Polish defense corridor emerging across the Baltic and Central European states. Volume, credible performance and an industrial policy geared to sustainment rather than crisis buys explain why Poland now produces more single-shot launchers than anyone else, and why that matters for NATO’s air defense resilience.
Written by Evan Lerouvillois, Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group.
Evan studied International Relations, and quickly specialized in defense and security. He is particularly interested in the influence of the defense sector on global geopolitics, and analyzes how technological innovations in defense, arms export contracts, and military strategies influence the international geopolitical scene.
