| Starstreak | |
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Starstreak missile on display at the Africa Aerospace & Defence exposition, September 2006 |
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| Type | Manportable/Vehicle mounted surface-to-air missile |
| Place of origin | UK |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1997 - Present |
| Used by | See Operators |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1980s |
| Manufacturer | Thales Air Defence |
| Produced | November 1986 |
| Number built | 7,000 |
| Variants | See Variants |
| Specifications (Starstreak High Velocity Missile) | |
| Weight | 16.82 kg (37.1 lb) |
| Length | 1.397 m (4 ft 7 in) |
| Diameter | 13 cm (5.1 in) |
| Crew | 1 |
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| Effective range | 0.3–7 km (0.19–4.3 mi) |
| Warhead | Three explosive sub-munitions ("darts") |
| Warhead weight | 0.9 kg (2 lb) |
| Detonation mechanism |
Impact Delay |
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| Engine | First stage: Royal Ordnance 'Brambling' cast double-based propellant blip rocket motor. Second stage: Royal Ordnance 'Titus' cast double-based propellant |
| Speed | Mach 3.5 at second stage burnout |
| Guidance system |
SACLOS system |
Starstreak is a British short range surface-to-air missile (also known as MANPADS) manufactured by Thales Air Defence (formerly Shorts Missile Systems), in Belfast. It is also known as Starstreak HVM where HVM stands for "High Velocity Missile". After launch the missile accelerates to approximately Mach 3.5, at which point it launches three laser beam riding submunitions. The use of three submunitions increases the likelihood of a successful hit on the target. Starstreak has been in service with the British Army since 1997.
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Development on the missile began in the early 1980s after a study into a weapon system to supplement the Rapier missile system showed that a high velocity missile system was the best solution to the problem. A General Staff Requirement (GSR 3979) [1] was drawn up with the requirements of the system, specifying the requirement of 3 launch platforms for the missile:
In 1984 the British Ministry of Defence awarded development contracts to British Aerospace (BAe) and Shorts Missile Systems. The BAe missile was known as Thunderbolt. Shorts won the competition and were awarded the £356 million. Further development and a production contract materialized in November 1986, and the missile was officially accepted into service in September 1997. The missile is intended to replace the Javelin surface-to-air missile in British service.[1] The LML and shoulder-launched versions have been in use since 2000.[1]
In July 2001, Thales received a contract for a Successor Identification friend or foe system for Starstreak.[1]
In mid-2007 Thales UK in Northern Ireland revealed that it had developed Starstreak II, a much improved successor to the Starstreak missile. Some of the advantages included in this new missile are an improved range of 7 kilometres, an improved targeting system and the ability to operate it at much higher altitudes.[2]
In 2011, when it won a contract for the Lightweight Multirole Missile, Thales announced it agreed with the MOD to "re-role previously contracted budgets to facilitate the full-scale development, series production and introduction of the LMM." The contract affected is speculated to have been Starstreak.[3]
The Starstreak missile is transported in a sealed launch tube. This tube is attached to an aiming unit for firing. The operator tracks the target using the aiming unit's optically stabilized sight. The process of tracking the target allows the aiming unit to compute the right trajectory to bring the missile together with the target. The operator can indicate wind direction to the unit, and in the case of a long range target provide super elevation. When the initial tracking is complete, the operator fires the missile by pressing a button.[1]
The missile then fires the first stage rocket motor, which launches the missile from the tube - but burns out before leaving the tube to protect the operator. When the missile is a safe distance from the operator the second stage fires, which rapidly accelerates the missile to burn out velocity of about Mach 3.5 four hundred meters away from the operator. As the second stage burns out the three dart sub-munitions are released. The darts are each 396 millimetres (15.6 in) long with a diameter of 22 millimetres (0.87 in) and weigh about 900 grams (32 oz). Each dart consists of a rotating fore-body with two canard fins attached to a non-rotating rear assembly which has four fins. The rear assembly also houses the electronics that guide the missile. The dart housing is made from a tungsten alloy, and contains approximately 450 g (16 oz) of explosive with a delayed impact activated fuze.[1]
The missiles are guided by two laser beams projected into a two dimensional matrix by the aiming unit. The laser is modulated according to its position in the projected matrix, this modulation is detected by each sub-munition and allows it to determine any steering correction. The sub-munitions steer by briefly decelerating the rotating fore-body with a clutch. The front wings then steer the missile in the appropriate direction. The three sub-munitions fly in a formation about 1.5 meters in radius, and have enough kinetic energy to maneuver to meet a target evading at 9G at 7,000 meters.[1]
On impact with the target a delayed action fuze is triggered. This gives time for the projectile to penetrate the target before the explosive warhead detonates. The tungsten housing is designed to fragment and produce maximum damage inside the target.[1]
A demonstration was conducted in September 1999 that showed the missile being used against an FV432 armoured personnel carrier, showing the missile's effectiveness as surface-to-surface weapon.[1] Each sub-munition dart travelling at 1,250 meters per second (2,800 mph) has comparable kinetic energy to a shell from a Bofors 40 mm gun and probably has sufficient energy to penetrate the front armour of an infantry fighting vehicle. However it lacks the armour penetration capabilities of a purpose-built anti-tank guided missile or a dual purpose missile such as Air Defence Anti-Tank System.
The Starstreak has never been used in combat, so its operational effectiveness is unknown.
Starstreak has a number of advantages over infrared guided, radar guided, and radio command MCLOS/SACLOS (Blowpipe or Javelin) missiles:
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