Brimstone missile
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| Brimstone | |
|---|---|
| 300px A triplet of Brimstone missiles on display | |
| Type | anti-tank missile |
| Place of origin | UK |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2005- |
| Used by | RAF |
| Production history | |
| Designer | GEC-Marconi initially |
| Manufacturer | MBDA |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 48.5 kg |
| Length | 1.8 m |
| Diameter | 17.8 cm |
| | |
| Warhead | HEAT tandem warhead |
| Detonation mechanism |
Crush fuze |
| | |
| Engine | Solid fuel rocket |
| Operational range |
12 km |
| Speed | Supersonic |
| Guidance system |
Radar and INS autopilot |
| Steering system |
Aerodynamic surfaces |
| Launch platform |
Tornado IDS |
Brimstone is an advanced air-launched anti-tank guided missile developed by MBDA.
Contents
Development
The missile was designed to meet the RAF's requirement for a long range anti-armour weapon, allowing strike aircraft to attack tanks and armoured vehicles at stand-off range, replacing the BL755 cluster bomb. This requirement was issued following an assessment of the British military's performance in the Gulf War. GEC-Marconi (whose missile interests now form part of MBDA) was originally awarded the contract on November 7, 1996.[1]
The first ground firing of the Brimstone missile occurred in August 1999 followed by the first air-launched firing Tornado GR4 in September 2000. Clearance of the missile was delayed by 12 months due to the unavailability of a Tornado trials aircraft, as the RAF chose instead to rush the development of the Storm Shadow.
In March 2005, Brimstone entered service with No. 31 Squadron RAF.[2] Full Operational Capability (FOC) was declared for the Tornado GR4 in December 2005.[2][3]
Design
Brimstone is a "fire and forget" missile, which is loaded with targeting data by the Weapon Systems Officer (WSO) prior to launch. Technically, it is programmable to adapt to particular mission requirements. This capability includes essentially the ability to find targets within a certain area (such as those near friendly forces), and to self-destruct if it is unable to find a target within the designated area. This information is provided to the munition by the WSO from RAF ASTOR, USAF JSTARS aircraft or local troops.
Brimstone has a Tandem Shaped Charge (TSC) warhead that employs a smaller initial charge, designed to initiate reactive armor, followed by a larger, more destructive charge, designed to penetrate and defeat the base armour.
The missile airframe is developed from Boeing's AGM-114 Hellfire, but Brimstone is an all-new design with its own motor, warhead and seeker.[4]
Sensors
In addition to the semi-autonomous ability to decide its own targets, the Brimstone has the capacity to determine where on a target to best impact causing the most damage or resulting in elimination of the target. The missile's advanced sensor package includes its extremely high frequency millimetric wave radar, which allows the weapon to image the target and hence chose a target location. The bandwidth of the MMW radar also makes it less susceptible to inclement weather. With as many as twenty-four missiles in the air, the missile's targeting system also required an algorithm to ensure that missiles hit their targets in a staggered order, rather than all simultaneously.
Launch system
Each launch system incorporates three rails, i.e. one system carries three missiles. This allows a single aircraft to carry large numbers of missiles, for example a Typhoon can carry eight launch systems on eight individual pylons, which gives a maximum payload of twenty-four Brimstone missiles, in addition to a useful air-to-air payload. In RAF service the missile will be carried by the Tornado GR4, the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Harrier GR9.
In addition to air launched platforms Brimstone can also be deployed from surface launchers, vehicles and helicopters.
Specification
- Length: 1.8 m
- Diameter: 17.8 cm
- Weight: 48.5 kg
- Range: 20+ km
- Speed: Supersonic
- Control: Aerodynamic surfaces on missile
- Propulsion: Solid-rocket
- Guidance: 94 GHz Millimetric wave radar (MMW) & digital autopilot
- Warhead: HEAT tandem warhead - initial charge triggers reactive armour followed by the main high explosive anti-tank shaped charge jet
- Fuze: Crush fuze (detonation on impact)
Brimstone 2
MBDA is developing Brimstone 2, a variant which augments the millimeter wave (mmW) radar seeker with a semi-active laser (SAL) and the shaped charge warhead with a blast fragmentation warhead. The weapon would be guided to the general target area by the INS system and terminal laser designation would be provided either by the launch platform or other units.[5]
Operators
See also
Notes
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- Eklund, Dylan (2006). "Fire and Brimstone: The RAF's 21st Century Missiles". RAF Magazine. pp. 19–25.
External links
- MBDA: Brimstone
- Brimstone Project Details and Specifications
- Boeing IDS: Brimstone
- UK Defence Procurement Agency: Brimstone
- RAF page on Brimstone missile
Template:Missile typesde:Brimstone es:Brimstone ja:ブリムストーン (ミサイル) pl:Brimstone (pocisk rakietowy)
pt:Brimstone missile- ↑ Brimstone Contract Announced - November 1996
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 MoD's formidable new anti armour weapon records trials successes
- ↑ BAE SYSTEMS Investor Brief - January 2006
- ↑ British Secret Projects; Hypersonics, Ramjets & Missiles, Chris Gibson and Tony Buttler, Midlands Publishing, 2007, ISBN 978-1-85780-280-0
- ↑ "Boeing: Integrated Defense Systems - Brimstone Home".
