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Aim 1201/9/2024 ![]() (Photo: Boeing) Theme: Air Warfare MT 2/2021 Illustrated are clipped-fin AIM-120C-7s on an F-15 SILENT EAGLE, lacking a built-in weapons bay. Sergio Coniglio Air-to-Air Weapons – the Next Twenty Years The ‘low density’ issue of current AAMs – caused primarily by fin span rather than body volume – is a fundamental issue for internal weapons bays. Two SRAAM – of the latest, highly agile, AIM-9X type – can be carried on the outer under- wing pylons, but to the detriment of the aircraft’s fundamental low-ob- servable qualities, a clear indication of the lesser importance of such air- to-air weapon versus the MRAAM types. The F-35, in its typ- ical configuration for surface attack, carries a couple of medium-range AIM-120 for self-defence, while future planning envisions increasing the internal air-to-air configuration with up to six AIM-120s. The former, by definition an air dominance fighter, carries six AIM-120 as its standard air-to-air loadout, with just two short-range AIM-9s. Representative of such established trends are the tactics adopted by the two most recent US combat aircraft – the F-22 RAPTOR and F-35 LIGHTNING II. In fact, the current combat tactic inevitably centres on using radar-guided MRAAM to engage hostile targets in a BVR attack profile, possibly in a rapid successive launch of multiple missiles. ![]() The two latter weapons are purposely reserved as self-defence assets, should the engagement degrade to a dogfight within visual range, possibly due to some unanticipated event or mishap disrupting the now standard, be- yond visual range (BVR) attack procedure with radar-guided missiles. It is also a fact that, considering most combat aircraft as configured for aerial combat, the armament carried consists primarily of MRAAMs, with perhaps a pair of short-range IR-guided missiles and an internal gun. Nearly all recent aerial kills have been credited to the current generation of MRAAMs, of which the Raytheon AIM-120 AMRAAM, in widespread use in dozens of air forces, is the dominant marque. Such missiles have, for a considerable time, been much criticised for exhibiting a marginal probability of kill (Pk), particularly against hard manoeuvring agile fighters: the short-range, infrared- guided missile has been valued as a more reliable aerial ‘killer.’ In reality, however, as evidenced in all the most recent conflicts, this is no longer the case. Short-Range Engagements At this point, given the accepted reliability and flexibility of medium- range radar-guided fire-and-forget missiles, the decision to retain – in a sense, as a back-up weapon – the IR-guided shorter-ranged types, can be attributed to the ever-present risk of jamming of radar-guided missiles, It is a fact that the radar-guided, so-called ‘fire-and-forget’ medium- range air-to-air missile (MRAAM) has today become established as the leading fighter weapon for successful engagement of airborne targets. It is than possible, at a relatively short range, to launch the medium-range type as well, using its active radar seeker immediately in fire-and-forget mode, which adds to the flexibility of the MRAAM when used in place of the short-range types. In addition, current MRAAMs have guidance systems based, for the final part of the engagement, on an active radar, the in- itial trajectory being flown following the target information provided by the launching aircraft via datalink. A contributing factor is the somewhat limited number of air-to-air missiles which can typically be carried, hence the marked preference for those seen as the most efficient and flexible weapons based on fundamental Pk parameters achieved in actual combat. The trend appears well established for most of the world’s major air forces, including the Russian and Chinese, with a marked preference for medium/long-range fire-and-forget missiles. ![]() These latter two models, while considered short-range missile and with infrared guidance seekers, albeit of the latest Imaging InfraRed (IIR) type, have a longer engagement range, which over- laps into the medium-range arena. Initially, the missile of choice fell upon the AIM-120, but now the MBDA METEOR is being introduced, complemented by only a couple of shorter-range Diehl BGT Defence IRIS-T (or AIM-132 ASRAAM for the RAF) on underwing pylons. ![]() On the other side of the Atlantic, since its operational debut, the main European air superiority fighter, the Eurofighter TYPHOON, has been armed with a typical ratio of 2:1 medium- and short-range AAMs – again in favour of the longer range radar-guided types, four of the latter being carried in the aerodynamically efficient semi-recessed under-fuselage po- sitions. ![]()
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