U.S. Army tests Patriot battalion’s readiness in Texas

A U.S. Army Patriot air defense battalion at Fort Hood, Texas, has put its launchers, radars and support vehicles into the field for a battalion-wide readiness exercise, according to photos released by the service on Oct. 21, 2026.

The exercise involves the 1st Battalion, 62nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, part of the 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, and tests the unit’s ability to set up, operate and sustain its Patriot systems while coordinating across all of its firing batteries.

Patriot is the U.S. Army’s main system for defending troops, bases and cities against ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and aircraft. A Patriot battery brings together a radar, a control station, several launchers and support vehicles, and the exercise photos show three key pieces of that chain.

The centerpiece is the M903 launching station, the current version of the Patriot launcher, which can carry up to 16 PAC-3 interceptors, 12 of the newer and longer-range PAC-3 MSE, or four of the larger PAC-2 GEM-T missiles, depending on the configuration. Delta Battery positioned one of these launchers during the exercise, while soldiers from Alpha Battery performed maintenance on another.

An OE-349 antenna mast is deployed during a mission readiness exercise at Fort Hood, Texas, Oct. 21, 2026.

Alpha Battery also set up an OE-349 antenna mast group, a raised communications mast that links Patriot units so they can share data and coordinate engagements across a wider area. Charlie Battery positioned an M985 guided missile transporter, a heavy truck fitted with a crane that carries reload missiles to the launchers, a job that becomes critical once a battery has fired its first load of interceptors.

The battalion has recent operational experience in Europe. In late 2023, 1-62 ADA deployed to southeastern Poland, where it operated under the 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade as part of the U.S. Army’s air defense presence on NATO’s eastern flank, and in February 2024 the U.S. Army extended that deployment by three months.

U.S. Army soldiers maintain a Patriot M903 launcher during a mission readiness exercise at Fort Hood, Texas, Oct. 21, 2026.

The unit has continued regular field training since returning to Texas, including an April 2026 exercise in which Alpha Battery soldiers drilled on equipment maintenance and crew proficiency at Fort Hood.

The October exercise is focused on the full battalion, with the batteries working together to establish their positions, keep the systems running and maintain coordination across the formation through the course of the training.