AIM-132 ASRAAM

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

AIM-132 ASRAAM
AIM-132 ASRAAM
Basic data
Function	short-range air-to-air missile
Manufacturer	MBDA
Unit cost	> 200000£ Deployment=1998
Entered service	{{{Deployment}}}
General characteristics
Engine	solid rocket motor
Launch mass	88 kg
Length	2.90 m
Diameter	166 mm
Wingspan	450 mm
Speed	Mach 3.5
Range	300 m – 18 km
Flying altitude	N/A
Warhead	10 kg blast/fragmentation
Guidance	Imaging infra-red, 128×128 element focal plane array, with lock-on after launch (LOAL)
Fuzes	laser proximity and impact
Launch platform	Aircraft: Royal Air Force: Tornado, Harrier, Typhoon Royal Australian Air Force: F/A-18

The AIM-132 Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missile is a British air-to-air missile with infra-red guidance.

1 History
2 Characteristics
3 ASRAAM P3I
4 Operators
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] History

In the 1980s, NATO countries had an agreement that the United States would develop a medium-range air-to-air missile (the AIM-120 AMRAAM) to replace the AIM-7 Sparrow, and Britain and Germany would develop a short-range air-to-air missile (the ASRAAM) to replace the AIM-9 Sidewinder.

Germany left the ASRAAM project in the early 1990s, and in the spring of 1995 initiated a separate project, the IRIS-T. This decision was motivated by new insights into the performance of the Russian Vympel R-73 (AA-11 'Archer') missile carried by the MiG-29s which Germany inherited during reunification. Specifically, Germany wanted to redesign the ASRAAM to match or exceed the maneuverability of the Archer (which had been seriously underestimated by NATO), while Britain favored a high-speed, low-drag solution with relatively limited maneuverability but significantly extended range compared to the Sidewinder. As the two countries could not come to any agreement on this issue, Germany chose to terminate its involvement in the ASRAAM program.

Due to the numerous developmental delays caused by the British-German bickering over ASRAAM design, the U.S. also decided to drop out and instead developed an improved version of the Sidewinder, the AIM-9X. Somewhat ironically, the ASRAAM, AIM-9X, and IRIS-T all use the same Raytheon-developed imaging infrared seeker head.

[edit] Characteristics

The main improvement compared to the existing AIM-9L/M Sidewinder is a new Focal Plane Array IIR (128x128 resolution imaging infrared) seeker built by Raytheon-Hughes. This seeker has a long acquisition range, high countermeasures resistance, 90 degrees off-boresight lock-on capability, and the possibility to designate specific parts of the targeted aircraft (like cockpit, engines, etc). The ASRAAM also has a LOAL (Lock-On After Launch) ability which is a distinct advantage when the missile is carried in an internal weapons bay such as in the upcoming F-35 Lightning II, which uses internal weapon bays for stealth.

[edit] ASRAAM P3I

In 1995, Hughes and British Aerospace proposed the "P3I ASRAAM". The P3I would have been very much like the AIM-132, but with the addition of thrust vectoring to provide increased agility and to carry a larger warhead.