UK's Surface to Air defense capability

Email Me When A New Comment Is Made
Show Only Poster Name and Title Newest to Oldest

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 NEXT

metalbanger RE:UK's Surface to Air defense capability 8/10/2005 2:27:06 PM

I assume Blood hound is now defunct, I spent a time on a bloodhound base as an air cadet, and it was sooooooooooo dull

Quote Reply

Yimmy RE:UK's Surface to Air defense capability 8/10/2005 3:05:59 PM

Army have Rapier, the RAF Rapier units are being disolved. All services have Starstreak manpads, with the army having them mounted on APC hulls also. I think our 230 odd Eurofighter Typhoons will take care of our air defence.

Quote Reply

jamiestrat RE:UK's Surface to Air defense capability 8/10/2005 5:49:49 PM

hey that's good to know.....Is the Starstreak an effective platform?

Quote Reply

Heorot RE:UK's Surface to Air defense capability 8/10/2005 6:16:43 PM

Very effective. The missile consists of a two-stage solid propellant rocket motor, a separation system and three high density darts. A pulse of power from the missile firing unit causes the first-stage motor to ignite, which accelerates the missile. Canted nozzles on the missile cause it to roll. The centrifugal force of the roll causes the fins to unfold for aerodynamic stability in flight. Once clear of the canister, the motor is jettisoned. The second-stage motor ignites and accelerates the missile to a velocity greater than Mach 4. A separation system at the front end of the motor contains three darts. When the second stage motor is burnt out, the thrust triggers the three darts to automatically separate. The darts maintain a high kinetic energy as they are guided to the same single target. Each dart contains guidance and control circuitry, a thermal battery, and a high-density penetrating warhead with fuse. The separation of the darts initiates the arming of the individual warheads. Each dart is guided independently using a double laser beam riding system. As the dart impacts the target, the inertial forces activate the delay fuse, allowing the warhead to penetrate before detonation.

Quote Reply

Heorot RE:UK's Surface to Air defense capability 8/10/2005 6:19:30 PM

I found this too on the Lockmart site. Even more interesting. tarstreak is a two-stage, hypervelocity missile in use with the United Kingdom (UK) Army in shoulder-launched, tracked, and wheeled vehicle applications. Currently, the Lockheed Martin and Thales team is adapting it for use as a rotary wing air-to-air missile system. This beam-riding, three-dart missile will provide air-to-air defense for attack and reconnaissance fleet operations. The Starstreak laser window designed for TADS/PNVS will be integrated on the Apache helicopter in Mesa, Arizona, in December 2001 followed by live-fire demonstrations and competitive testing in 2002. Starstreak is impervious to known countermeasures, inherently low-risk to friendly aircraft and has a low exposure time to acquire and fire. It has a range in excess of 5 km and is effective in clutter and battlefield obscurants. The TADS FLIR and TV are boresighted to the Starstreak laser, which has an embedded on-turret training capability. The missile requires neither a periodic maintenance program nor a smart launcher, and it meets requirements at a fraction of the cost of a missile recapitalization program. Starstreak is quick, decisive, and effective against enemy targets, making it useful in multi-mission defense roles.

Quote Reply

jamiestrat RE:UK's Surface to Air defense capability 8/10/2005 9:02:44 PM

Thanks for the info Heorot...I suppose along with those the Royal Navy could park a few Daring class in the English Channel if 'Old Europe' decides to attack....given a few more years

Quote Reply

flamingknives RE:UK's Surface to Air defense capability 8/11/2005 2:29:46 PM

Starstreak and Rapier are pretty much top of their class - heavier missiles are left out as the UK is an island and we have dedicated air defence fighters. A description of the Starstreak is that "it doesn't fire, it just f*£(s off" From a Squaddie, unsurprisingly. link link If there is a future need for long-range AAD, the ASTER missile developed for the PAAMS (Principal Anti-Air Missile System) on the Type 45 is also being developed for ground use.

Quote Reply

ArtyEngineer Starstreak 8/11/2005 2:40:36 PM

Starstreak has also been tested in air to ground and ground to ground with very impressive results.

Quote Reply

neutralizer RE:Starstreak 8/12/2005 5:50:11 AM

At peak the army operated considerably more Rapier fire units that the RAF, including the SP version originally developed for the Shah of Iran. Post Cold War they reduced to 2 regiments and disbanded one of these last year (it had Rapier Field Standard B2) when it was decided that FS C was unaffordable for the second regt. Subsequently, after a review of GBAD led by a senior RN officer, the RAF is loosing all their Rapier FS C having disposed of their FS B some years ago. FS C is substantially improved on FS B, including a new missile and is basically a new system. For example one FU can engage 2 tgts simultaneously, one on the optical channel one on the radar, the optical channel can be used at night. Starstreak (correctly called HVM (high velocity msl)) is the UK's 3rd or 4th gen msl of this class, like all the others (Blowpipe, Javelin, S15) it was developed by Shorts, Belfast (now Thales). It's launched either from the SP lnchr (Stormer), lightweight launcher or off the shoulder. The SP FUs each have the capability to use the other two modes because they have the seperate aiming unit. Obviously the non-SP FUs have just lt wt or shoulder fire. This is useful for deploying on building tops, etc. The latest enhancement is a night firing capability using a pssive device. FUs have always had a passive surveillance device. The only users of HVM are RA and RM. It's actually the result of the 'great debate' in 1983, the army was given the resources for an additional regt and there was much argument over SPAG vs msls. Basically msls are vastly better value for money, eg SPAG about 50 FUs whole life costs of about 120 SP msl FUs, not to mention far longer max effective range which means fewer can cover the same area.

Quote Reply

Worcester RE:Starstreak:reaction time and bearing rate 8/12/2005 5:07:38 PM

Some of you may know I amnot a great believer in ground-based air def; too much like skeet shooting! The only real air def is fighters. Neutralizer mentions the 1983 decision re missiles vs SPAG. Part of the problem was that Rapier performed terribly in the Falklands - it was the worst performing system and had the highest "overclaim" with 14 hits officially claimed in the 1982 White Paper, later reduced by 1985 to just one confirmed kill. Lord knows how many missiles they shot off; well at least 14! The conclusion was that Rapier was good at head-on point defense but couldnt handle "crossing targets" - i.e. those flying across it's front with little warning and a very high bearing rate, because the time interval between target masking (i.e the time between target exposure from behind one hill before it flys behind another hill) was too short. It took some 5-7 seconds from search/detect/IFF/acquire/track to actual launch, by which time the missile had only a few seconds before the target was masked from the launcher. A bit like shooting at low flying Snipe or Grouse. The effectiveness is how long the target is in view of the launcher, not the missile. I am told (Neutralizer may know) that the FSC RApier has an acquire to launch of 2-4 seconds; may not sound like a lot but it does increase success exponentially. If you have say a 140' arc in front of your launcher and the bearing rate of a fast jet at say 1/2 mile is 20' per second that gives 7 seconds exposure; with the old Rapier youd be launching from behind the target as it disappeared; with FSC the missile would have at least 3 seconds to hit which might just be possible. Bit essentially, no matter how fast the reaction or the missile, unless a crossing target is very close you will be unlikely to hit it. Good for protecting runways in flat countryside, not so good for defending in masked terrain. Starstreak also has a bearing rate problem since it rides the laser beam from the launcher - if the launcher loses the target, so does the missile. One feature of Starstreak which hasnt been mentioned is the IR/laser alarm which alerts to attack helos using lasers; and the kinetic penetrators can pass though trees and brush without problem. It should be a very effective detterent to attack helos loitering behind a tree-line. But against fast jets, same probs as any other ground-based system.

Quote Reply

1 2 3 4 5 NEXT