| Umkhonto | |
|---|---|
| Type | Surface-to-air missile |
| Place of origin | South Africa |
| Service history | |
| Used by | See users |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Denel Dynamics |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 130 kg (290 lb)[1] |
| Length | 3.32 m (10.9 ft)[1] |
| Diameter | 180 mm (7.1 in)[1] |
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| Warhead | 23 kg (51 lb)[1] |
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| Wingspan | 500 mm (20 in)[1] |
| Flight ceiling | 8,000 m (26,000 ft)[1] |
| Speed | Approx Mach 2[1] |
| Guidance system |
All-aspect infra-red, command update fire and forget |
| Launch platform |
8-cell (naval version) or 4-cell truck mounted land version |
Umkhonto (Zulu: spear) is a South African, vertical launch (VLS) surface-to-air missile (SAM) manufactured by Denel Dynamics (formerly known as Kentron) available in infrared homing (Umkhonto-IR) and radar homing version (Umkhonto-R).
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Designed for all-round defence against simultaneous air attacks from multiple targets, the Umkhonto-IR missile is the first vertically launched infrared-homing surface-to-air missile, also the first IR-homing missile to use lock-on-after-launch. Upon launch, the missile flies to a lock-on point, following on-board inertial navigation. The missile then activates its two-colour IR-seeker (variant of U-Darter AAM's seeker) and locks on. Target updates are received via data link, enabling the missile to counter evasive manoeuvres by the target.
The Umkhonto has a set of tail-mounted, aerodynamic control fins, as well as thrust vectoring vanes in the motor nozzle (similar to Denel's A-Darter AAM), allowing for 40 g manoeuvring. The system's 3-D fire-control radar enables simultaneous engagement of eight targets for the naval version. The missile uses a low-smoke propellant to avoid detection. In July 2005 it was successfully tested in various scenarios against Denel-made Skua drones.
Extended range versions (Umkhonto-ER) are in development. They will feature a rocket booster and IR or Radar seekers.[2]
This variant of the IR Umkhonto was recently developed for the Finnish Navy. It has a more advanced seeker-head algorithms for differentiating between the target and background clutter often found in and around the Baltic archipelago. Because of the improvement in the seeker head, the newer version has a more efficient flight path allowing for an increase in range of 3km; a new maximum range of 15km.
Denel Dynamics has stated its intention to end production of the Mk1 and continue with Mk2 version of the missile, as a part of the missile's overall growth path.
The radar-homing version's range is extended to 25 km (16 mi) and has a higher operational ceiling 12,000 m (39,000 ft). It is also 65 kg (140 lb) heavier and 98 cm (39 in) longer than the Umkhonto-IR version. Denel Dynamics is currently in negotiations with the Brazilian Navy for joint development of the missile.
| External images | |
|---|---|
| The Denel Umkhonto IR/R surface-to-air missiles on static display | |
In 2004 Brazil expressed an interest in acquiring the missile system for its aircraft carrier São Paulo.
The Swedish government has expressed interest in the Umkhonto-IR system for five Visby class corvettes for at total cost of about 1 bn SEK. Due to budgetary contstraints a decision was taken in 2008 to delete the SAM requirement.
Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering of South Korea proposed this system for their corvette offer for the Bangladesh Navy's Corvette tender in 2011. The offer is under consideration.
