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97-536: Fireflash was the United Kingdom's first air-to-air guided missile to see service with the Royal Air Force . Constructed by Fairey Aviation , the missile utilised radar beam riding guidance. Fireflash had relatively limited performance and required the launching aircraft to approach the target from a limited angle astern. The approximately 300 production Fireflash missiles were mostly expended as

194-678: A combination of any of those three warhead types) is typically used in the attempt to disable or destroy the target aircraft. Warheads are typically detonated by a proximity fuze or by an impact fuze if it scores a direct hit. Less commonly, nuclear warheads have been mounted on a small number of air-to-air missile types (such as the AIM-26 Falcon ) although these are not known to have ever been used in combat. Guided missiles operate by detecting their target (usually by either radar or infrared methods, although rarely others such as laser guidance or optical tracking ), and then "homing" in on

291-451: A cone shape as the distance from the attacking aircraft increases. This will result in less accuracy for the missile because the beam may actually be larger than the target aircraft when the missile arrives. The missile could be securely within the beam but still not be close enough to destroy the target. Infrared guided (IR) missiles home on the heat produced by an aircraft. Early infra-red detectors had poor sensitivity, so could only track

388-399: A cruciform configuration. These were moved by four pairs of pneumatic servos, operated by solenoid valves. An air bottle, pressurized to 3,000 pounds per square inch (21,000 kPa), supplied air for the servos and also supplied the air that spun the three, air-blown gyroscopes in the missile's inertial navigation system . A high pressure air supply from the aircraft was also required to spin

485-477: A military firearm propellant . Like modern gunpowder, cordite is classified as a low explosive because of its slow burning rates and consequently low brisance . These produce a subsonic deflagration wave rather than the supersonic detonation wave produced by brisants, or high explosives . The hot gases produced by burning gunpowder or cordite generate sufficient pressure to propel a bullet or shell to its target, but not so quickly as to routinely destroy

582-605: A more powerful motor that allows the missile to maneuver against crossing targets and launch at greater ranges, gives the launching aircraft improved tactical freedom. Other members of the 4th generation use focal plane arrays to offer greatly improved scanning and countermeasures resistance (especially against flares). These missiles are also much more agile, some by employing thrust vectoring (typically gimballed thrust ). The latest generation of short-range missiles again defined by advances in seeker technologies, this time electro-optical imaging infrared (IIR) seekers that allow

679-782: A mothballed World War I Government-owned cordite factory. 35% of British cordite produced between 1942 and 1945 came from Ardeer and these agency factories. ICI ran a similar works at Deer Park (which was also confusingly known as Ardeer after the adjacent suburb) near Melbourne in Australia and in South Africa. Additional sources of propellant were also sought from the British Commonwealth in both World War I and World War II. Canada , South Africa, and Australia had ICI-owned factories that, in particular, supplied large quantities of cordite. Canadian Explosives Limited

776-576: A narrow (30-degree) field of view and required the attacker to position himself behind the target ( rear aspect engagement ). This meant that the target aircraft only had to perform a slight turn to move outside the missile seeker's field of view and cause the missile to lose track of the target ("break lock"). The second-generation of short-range missiles utilized more effective seekers that were better cooled than its predecessors while being typically "uncaged"; resulting in improved sensitivity to heat signatures, an increase in field of view as well as allowing

873-456: A new ballistite-like propellant in 1889. It consists of (by weight) 58% nitroglycerin , 37% guncotton (nitrocellulose) and 5% petroleum jelly . Using acetone as a solvent , it was extruded as spaghetti -like rods initially called "cord powder" or "the Committee's modification of Ballistite", but this was swiftly abbreviated to "Cordite". Cordite began as a double-base propellant. In

970-411: A rocket of some type and the control actuation system or CAS. Dual-thrust solid-fuel rockets are common, but some longer-range missiles use liquid-fuel motors that can "throttle" to extend their range and preserve fuel for energy-intensive final maneuvering. Some solid-fuelled missiles mimic this technique with a second rocket motor which burns during the terminal homing phase. There are missiles, such as

1067-472: A small cordite charge separates them, leaving the dart to carry on towards the target. Development of Blue Sky was aided by ongoing projects at Fairey in rocket propulsion that were being used to support the development of the Fairey Delta 2 supersonic aircraft. This involved launching scale models of the proposed design using a locally designed liquid-fuel rocket engine, Beta 2. This also required

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1164-523: A smokeless propellant that had some success. It was made out of collodion ( nitrocellulose dissolved in ethanol and ether ), resulting in a plastic colloidal substance which was rolled into very thin sheets, then dried and cut up into small flakes. It was immediately adopted by the French military for their Mle 1886 infantry rifle and called Poudre B (for poudre blanche , or white powder ) to distinguish it from black powder (gunpowder). The rifle and

1261-407: A specified range. Towed decoys which closely mimic engine heat and infra-red jammers can also be used. Some large aircraft and many combat helicopters make use of so-called "hot brick" infra-red jammers, typically mounted near the engines. Current research is developing laser devices which can spoof or destroy the guidance systems of infra-red guided missiles. See Infrared countermeasure . Start of

1358-527: A tail-chase attack and was intended to target piston-engined bombers. The Pink Hawk nickname was soon replaced with the official rainbow code, "Blue Sky". The Red Hawk project continued as well, but only briefly before its specifications were relaxed as well; in November 1951 the Air Staff issued OR.1117, given the code "Blue Jay", for an infrared seeking design which became Firestreak. Fairey Aviation won

1455-565: A target from various angles, not just from behind, where the heat signature from the engines is strongest. Other types rely on radar guidance (either on-board or "painted" by the launching aircraft). In 1999 R-73 missile were adapted by Serb forces for surface to air missiles. The Houthi movement Missile Research and Development Centre and the Missile Force have tried to fire R-27/R-60/R-73/R-77 against Saudi aircraft. Using stockpiles of missiles from Yemeni Air Force stocks. The issue for

1552-592: A training weapon to familiarize RAF pilots with missile firing. It was declared operational very briefly in 1957, thus becoming the RAF's first operational air-to-air missile, but was quickly replaced by the de Havilland Firestreak the next year. In January 1945 the Air Ministry issued Operational Requirement OR.1056, given the Ministry of Supply rainbow code "Red Hawk", for an air-to-air missile. The basic design

1649-428: A very unusual configuration: the missile body was unpowered. It was propelled by a pair of rocket boosters on the forward fuselage that were jettisoned 1.5 seconds after launch. The missile body, now travelling at around Mach 2, would coast the remaining distance to its target under guidance from the launch aircraft (the missile was unguided during the boost phase). The rocket engine nozzles were slightly offset to rotate

1746-463: Is called "off- boresight " launch. For example, the Russian Su-27 is equipped with an infra-red search and track (IRST) system with laser rangefinder for its HMS-aimed missiles. A recent advancement in missile guidance is electro-optical imaging. The Israeli Python-5 has an electro-optical seeker that scans designated area for targets via optical imaging. Once a target is acquired,

1843-538: Is classified as an explosive , it is not employed as a high explosive. It is designed to deflagrate , or burn, to produce high pressure gases. Alfred Nobel sued Abel and Dewar over an alleged patent infringement. His patent specified that the nitrocellulose should be "of the well-known soluble kind". After losing the case, it went to the Court of Appeal . This dispute eventually reached the House of Lords , in 1895, but it

1940-582: Is possible for the system to take missiles straight from an aircraft. After a live-fire test occurred in September 2020 off the coasts of Florida, during which it successfully engaged a simulated cruise missile, in 2022 NASAMS was deployed to Ukraine, where for the first time this missile system was used in real combat conditions, and, according to Ukrainian government, was able to shot down more than 100 aerial targets. A conventional explosive blast warhead, fragmentation warhead, or continuous rod warhead (or

2037-589: Is still a limitation to some degree) and could be distracted by the sun, a reflection of the sun off of a cloud or ground object, or any other "hot" object within its view. More modern infra-red guided missiles can detect the heat of an aircraft's skin, warmed by the friction of airflow, in addition to the fainter heat signature of the engine when the aircraft is seen from the side or head-on. This, combined with greater maneuverability, gives them an " all-aspect " capability, and an attacking aircraft no longer had to be behind its target to fire. Although launching from behind

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2134-489: Is subject to a minimum range, before which it cannot maneuver effectively. In order to maneuver sufficiently from a poor launch angle at short ranges to hit its target, some missiles use thrust vectoring , which allow the missile to start turning "off the rail", before its motor has accelerated it up to high enough speeds for its small aerodynamic surfaces to be useful. Short-range air-to-air missiles (SRAAMs), typically used in " dogfighting " or close range air combat compare to

2231-414: Is that it enables a " fire-and-forget " mode of attack, where the attacking aircraft is free to pursue other targets or escape the area after launching the missile. Semi-active radar homing (SARH) guided missiles are simpler and more common. They function by detecting radar energy reflected from the target. The radar energy is emitted from the launching aircraft's own radar system. However, this means that

2328-512: Is the "home on jam" mode which, when installed, allows a radar-guided missile to home in on the jammer of the target aircraft if the primary seeker is jammed by the electronic countermeasures of the target aircraft. Air-to-air missiles are typically long, thin cylinders in order to reduce their cross section and thus minimize drag at the high speeds at which they travel. Missiles are divided into five primary systems (moving forward to aft): seeker, guidance, warhead, motor, and control actuation. At

2425-537: The R-60M or the Python-3 . The R-73 (missile) ( AA-11 Archer ) entered service in 1985 and marked a new generation of dogfight missile. It had a wider field of view and could be cued onto a target using a helmet mounted sight . This allowed it to be launched at targets that would otherwise not be seen by older generation missiles that generally stared forward while waiting to be launched. This capability, combined with

2522-507: The 105 mm L118 Light Gun ) is now manufactured in Germany. Gunpowder , an explosive mixture of sulfur , charcoal and potassium nitrate (also known as saltpeter ), was the original propellant employed in firearms and fireworks . It was used from about the 10th or 11th century onward, but it had disadvantages, including the large amount of smoke it produced. With the 19th-century development of various "nitro explosives", based on

2619-687: The AI Mk. IX radar signal as the illumination source. In 1947, the various ongoing guided weapon projects in the UK were centralized at the RAE. In the immediately following period, a rationalized development program was laid out that called for the development of a surface-to-air missile (SAM) for the Royal Navy that became Seaslug , a similar SAM design for the British Army and Royal Air Force known by

2716-686: The ASRAAM and Sea Ceptor . The air-to-air missile grew out of the unguided air-to-air rockets used during the First World War . Le Prieur rockets were sometimes attached to the struts of biplanes and fired electrically, usually against observation balloons , by such early pilots as Albert Ball and A. M. Walters. Facing the Allied air superiority, Germany in World War II invested limited effort into missile research, initially adapting

2813-479: The Explosive Company of Stowmarket introduced EC Powder , which contained nitro-cotton and nitrates of potassium and barium in a grain gelatinised by ether alcohol. It had coarser grains than other nitrocellulose powders. It proved unsuitable for rifles, but it remained in long use for shotguns and was later used for grenades and fragmentation bombs. In 1884, the French chemist Paul Vieille produced

2910-743: The Martin-Baker Company . Cordite was also used in the detonation system of the Little Boy atomic bomb dropped over Hiroshima in August 1945. The term "cordite" generally disappeared from official publications between the wars. During World War II, double-base propellants were very widely used, and there was some use of triple-base propellants by artillery. Triple-base propellants were used in post-war ammunition designs and remain in production for UK weapons; most double-base propellants left service as World War II stocks were expended after

3007-558: The Ministry of Supply (MoS). The company of ICI Nobel , at Ardeer, was asked in 1939 to construct and operate six factories in southern Scotland. Four of these six were involved in cordite or firearm-propellant manufacture. The works at MoS Drungans ( Dumfries ) produced guncotton that was converted to cordite at MoS Dalbeattie (triple-base cordite) and at MoS Powfoot (monobase granulated guncotton for small-arms). A smaller site at Girvan, South Ayrshire, now occupied by Grant's distillery, produced cordite and TNT . The ICI Ardeer site also had

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3104-587: The Quebec Arsenal . By November 1915 production had been expanded to 350,000 lb (159,000 kg) of cordite per month (approximately 1,900 tonnes per year). The Canadian Explosives Limited cordite factory at Nobel, Ontario , was designed to produce 1,500,000 lb (681 tonne) of cordite per month (approximately 8,170 tonnes per year). HM Factory, Gretna , and the Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath , both closed after

3201-530: The Royal Air Force soon decided not to retain the type in its inventory as much more advanced designs were on their way. Many of the 300 missiles were expended in testing by No. 6 Joint Services Trials Unit at RAF Valley and Woomera , South Australia from 1955– 1957 using Gloster Meteor NF11 (nightfighter) trials aircraft and subsequently by the Supermarine Swift fighters of No. 1 Guided Weapons Development Squadron at RAF Valley. Fireflash

3298-516: The Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath . Acetone for the cordite industry during late World War I was eventually produced through the efforts of Dr. Chaim Weizmann , considered to be the father of industrial fermentation . While a lecturer at Manchester University Weizmann discovered how to use bacterial fermentation to produce large quantities of many desired substances. He used the bacterium Clostridium acetobutylicum (the so-called Weizmann organism) to produce acetone. Weizmann transferred

3395-840: The Scotland - England border at Gretna , and the Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath . A factory was also established by the Indian Government at Nilgris. Both the Gretna and the Holton Heath cordite factories closed at the end of World War I. By the start of World War II, Holton Heath had reopened, and an additional factory for the Royal Navy, The Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent , opened at Caerwent in Wales . A very large Royal Ordnance Factory , ROF Bishopton,

3492-575: The barrel of the gun . Cordite was used initially in the .303 British , Mark I and II, standard rifle cartridge between 1891 and 1915. Shortages of cordite in World War I led to the creation of the "Devil's Porridge" munitions factory ( HM Factory, Gretna ) on the English–Scottish border, which produced around 800 tonnes of cordite per week. The UK also imported some United States–developed smokeless powders for use in rifle cartridges. Cordite

3589-480: The beyond-visual-range missiles . Most of the short-range air-to-air missiles are infrared guided and few are active radar guided . Those missiles usually classified into five "generations" according to the historical technological advances. Most of these advances were in infrared seeker technology (later combined with digital signal processing ). Early short-range missiles such as the early Sidewinders and K-13 (missile) ( AA-2 Atoll ) had infrared seekers with

3686-485: The "Explosives Committee", chaired by Sir Frederick Abel , monitored foreign developments in explosives and obtained samples of Poudre B and Ballistite; neither of these smokeless powders was recommended for adoption by the Explosives Committee. Abel, Sir James Dewar and W Kellner, who was also on the committee, developed and jointly patented (Nos 5,614 and 11,664 in the names of Abel and Dewar) in 1889

3783-445: The 1930s, triple-base was developed by including a substantial proportion of nitroguanidine . Triple-base propellant reduced the disadvantages of double-base propellant – its relatively high temperature and significant flash. Imperial Chemical Industries 's (ICI) World War II double-base AN formulation also had a much lower temperature, but it lacked the flash reduction properties of N and NQ triple-base propellants. Whilst cordite

3880-542: The 1960s, so there was a discontinuity in the propellant geometry numbering system. An important development during World War II was the addition of another explosive, nitroguanidine , to the mixture to form triple-base propellant or Cordite N and NQ . The formulations were slightly different for artillery and naval use. This solved two problems associated with the large naval guns fitted to British Navy's capital ships : gun flash and muzzle erosion. Nitroguanidine produces large amounts of nitrogen when heated, which had

3977-492: The 21st century missiles such as the ASRAAM use an " imaging infrared " seeker which "sees" the target (much like a digital video camera), and can distinguish between an aircraft and a point heat source such as a flare. They also feature a very wide detection angle, so the attacking aircraft does not have to be pointing straight at the target for the missile to lock on. The pilot can use a helmet mounted sight (HMS) and target another aircraft by looking at it, and then firing. This

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4074-494: The MBDA Meteor, that "breathe" air (using a ramjet , similar to a jet engine) in order to extend their range. Modern missiles use "low-smoke" motors – early missiles produced thick smoke trails, which were easily seen by the crew of the target aircraft alerting them to the attack and helping them determine how to evade it. The CAS is typically an electro-mechanical, servo control actuation system, which takes input from

4171-538: The R-27 and R-77 is the lack of a radar to support their guidance to the target. However the R-73 and R-60 are infra-red heat seeking missiles. They only require, power, liquid nitrogen "to cool the seeker head" and a pylon to launch the missile. These missiles have been paired with a "US made FLIR Systems ULTRA 8500 turrets". Only one near miss has been verified and that was a R-27T fired at Royal Saudi Air Force F-15SA. However

4268-646: The US that early F-4 variants were armed only with missiles in the 1960s. High casualty rates during the Vietnam War caused the US to reintroduce autocannon and traditional dogfighting tactics but the missile remains the primary weapon in air combat. In the Falklands War British Harriers , using AIM-9L missiles were able to defeat faster Argentinian opponents. Since the late 20th century all-aspect heat-seeking designs can lock-on to

4365-473: The USN's AIM-7 Sparrow and AIM-9 Sidewinder . Post-war research led the Royal Air Force to introduce Fairey Fireflash into service in 1957 but their results were unsuccessful. The Soviet Air Force introduced its K-5 into service in 1957. As missile systems have continued to advance, modern air warfare consists almost entirely of missile firing. The use of beyond-visual-range combat became so pervasive in

4462-514: The addition of stabilizers, which was based on German RP C/12 propellant featuring significant amounts of centralite (Called "carbamite" in British parlance) and led to the type commonly used in World War II as the main naval propellant. In Great Britain this was known as Cordite SC (= Solventless Cordite), and it required production facilities separate from classical cordite. Cordite SC

4559-683: The anti-radiation missile (ARM) design, pioneered during Vietnam and used to home in against emitting surface-to-air missile (SAM) sites, to an air intercept weapon. Current air-to-air passive anti-radiation missile development is thought to be a countermeasure to airborne early warning and control (AEW&C – also known as AEW or AWACS) aircraft which typically mount powerful search radars. Due to their dependence on target aircraft radar emissions, when used against fighter aircraft passive anti-radiation missiles are primarily limited to forward-aspect intercept geometry. For examples, see Vympel R-27 and Brazo . Another aspect of passive anti-radiation homing

4656-657: The attack radar to illuminate the target during part or all of the missile interception itself. Radar guidance is normally used for medium- or long-range missiles, where the infra-red signature of the target would be too faint for an infra-red detector to track. There are three major types of radar-guided missile – active, semi-active, and passive. Radar-guided missiles can be countered by rapid maneuvering (which may result in them "breaking lock", or may cause them to overshoot), deploying chaff or using electronic counter-measures . Active radar (AR)-guided missiles carry their own radar system to detect and track their target. However,

4753-429: The benefit of reducing the muzzle flash, and its lower burning temperature greatly reduced the erosion of the gun barrel. N and NQ were also issued in limited amounts to ammunitions used by the British 25-pdr and 5.5-inch land-based artillery pieces. After World War II production of double-base propellants generally ended. Triple-base propellants, N and NQ, were the only ones used in new ammunition designs, such as

4850-493: The cartridge developed to use this powder were known generically as the 8mm Lebel , after the officer who developed its 8 mm full metal jacket bullet . The following year, 1887, Alfred Nobel invented and patented a smokeless propellant he called Ballistite . It was composed of 10% camphor , 45% nitroglycerine and 45% collodion (nitrocellulose). Over time the camphor tended to evaporate, leaving an unstable explosive. A United Kingdom government committee, known as

4947-890: The cartridges for 105 mm Field and for 155 mm FH70 . In Great Britain, cordite was developed for military use at the Royal Arsenal by Abel, Dewar and Kellner, Woolwich , and produced at the Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills from 1889 onwards. At the start of World War I, cordite was in production at Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills and by seven other suppliers (British Explosives Syndicate Ltd, Chilworth Gunpowder Company Ltd, Cotton Powder Company Ltd, Messrs Curtis's and Harvey Ltd, National Explosives Company Ltd, New Explosives Company Ltd and Nobels Explosive Company Ltd). Existing factories were expanded and new ones built, notably by Nobel's at Ardeer, HM Factory, Gretna , which straddled

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5044-424: The category of beyond-visual-range missiles (BVRAAMs), tend to rely upon radar guidance, of which there are many forms. Some modern ones use inertial guidance and/or "mid-course updates" to get the missile close enough to use an active homing sensor. The concepts of air-to-air missiles and surface-to-air missiles are closely related, and in some cases versions of the same weapon may be used for both roles, such as

5141-522: The code name "Red Heathen" , the Blue Boar anti-shipping bomb, and ongoing development of Red Hawk. The initial development contract for Red Hawk was released to Gloster Aircraft in October 1947. They developed what was essentially a drone aircraft resembling a small swept-wing fighter, which would be carried in a recessed bay under the aircraft and lowered into the airstream before launch. The RAE

5238-488: The contract to develop Blue Sky, which they referred to internally as Project 5. Like the original Little Ben, Project 5 called for a beam riding missile able to be launched from the rear aspect within a 15° cone. Wartime German research suggested that the rocket exhaust would ionize the air behind the missile and make it difficult to receive the radar signal, so Fairey based their design on the original Red Hawk layout using separate boosters that fell away during flight, leaving

5335-469: The development of a complex multi-channel telemetry system that proved invaluable during the development of Blue Sky. Fireflash was given its name by the RAF as development continued. It scored its first live-fire success in 1953, successfully destroying a Fairey Firefly drone aircraft flying off RAF Aberporth . In unarmed tests, Fireflash directly hit the drone aircraft, in one case severing its tailwheel. About 300 missiles had been produced by 1955, but

5432-558: The drawback is that these missiles are intended to be fired from one jet fighter against another. So the motors and fuel load are smaller than a purpose built surface to air missile. On the Western side, the Norwegian-American made NASAMS air defense system has been developed for using AIM-9 Sidewinder , IRIS-T and AMRAAM air-to-air missiles to intercept targets. None of these missiles require modifications and hence it

5529-414: The front is the seeker, either a radar system, radar homer, or infra-red detector. Behind that lies the avionics which control the missile. Typically after that, in the centre of the missile, is the warhead, usually several kilograms of high explosive surrounded by metal that fragments on detonation (or in some cases, pre-fragmented metal). The rear part of the missile contains the propulsion system, usually

5626-422: The front or side aspects, as opposed to just the hotter engine nozzle(s) from rear-aspect, allowing for a true all-aspect capability. This significantly expanded potential attacking envelopes, allowing the attacker to fire at a target which was side-on or front-on to itself as opposed to just the rear. While the field-of-view was still restricted to a fairly narrow cone, the attack at least did not have to be behind

5723-488: The guidance system and manipulates the airfoils or fins at the rear of the missile that guide or steers the weapon to target. Nowadays, countries start developing hypersonic air-to-air missile using scramjet engines (such as R-37 , or AIM-260 JATM ), which not only increases efficiency for BVR battles, but it also makes survival chances of target aircraft drop to nearly zero. A number of terms frequently crop up in discussions of air-to-air missile performance. A missile

5820-469: The gyros before the missile was launched. The purpose of the control system was to keep the missile centred in the guidance beam emitted by the launch aircraft. The pilot of the aircraft would keep the beam aligned with the target using his gunsight, which was harmonized with the axis of the radio beam. An advantage of this system was that it would be unaffected by the target aircraft using radar countermeasures such as chaff . The missile's receiver, fitted at

5917-426: The hot exhaust pipes of an aircraft. This meant an attacking aircraft had to maneuver to a position behind its target before it could fire an infra-red guided missile. This also limited the range of the missile as the infra-red signature soon become too small to detect with increasing distance and after launch the missile was playing "catch-up" with its target. Early infrared seekers were unusable in clouds or rain (which

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6014-417: The launch aircraft has to maintain a "lock" on the target (keep illuminating the target aircraft with its own radar) until the missile makes the interception. This limits the attacking aircraft's ability to maneuver, which may be necessary should threats to the attacking aircraft appear. An advantage of SARH-guided missiles is that they are homing on the reflected radar signal, so accuracy actually increases as

6111-574: The military. Prior to World War I , most of the cordite used by the British Government was produced in its own factories. Immediately prior to World War I, between 6,000 and 8,000 tons per year of cordite were produced in the United Kingdom by private manufacturers; between 1,000 and 1,500 tons per year were made by Nobel's Explosives , at Ardeer. However, private industry had the capability to produce about 10,000 tons per year, with Ardeer able to produce some 3,000 tons of this total. At

6208-415: The missile - this increased accuracy by evening out the effect of any slight asymmetry in thrust. This configuration drastically limited both range and flight duration, but was used because of fears that ionised particles in the hot, rocket motor exhaust stream would interfere with the guidance radar signals; further development showed the fears were unfounded. Steering was accomplished by four rudders in

6305-482: The missile close to the target. At a predetermined point (frequently based on time since launch or arrival near the predicted target location) the missile's radar system is activated (the missile is said to "go active"), and the missile then homes in on the target. If the range from the attacking aircraft to the target is within the range of the missile's radar system, the missile can "go active" immediately upon launch. The great advantage of an active radar homing system

6402-500: The missile gets closer because the reflection comes from a "point source": the target. Against this, if there are multiple targets, each will be reflecting the same radar signal and the missile may become confused as to which target is its intended victim. The missile may well be unable to pick a specific target and fly through a formation without passing within lethal range of any specific aircraft. Newer missiles have logic circuits in their guidance systems to help prevent this problem. At

6499-408: The missile that allows it to home in on the jamming signal. An early form of radar guidance was " beam-riding " (BR). In this method, the attacking aircraft directs a narrow beam of radar energy at the target. The air-to-air missile was launched into the beam, where sensors on the aft of the missile controlled the missile, keeping it within the beam. So long as the beam was kept on the target aircraft,

6596-403: The missile will lock-on to it for the kill. Electro-optical seekers can be programmed to target vital area of an aircraft, such as the cockpit. Since it does not depend on the target aircraft's heat signature, it can be used against low-heat targets such as UAVs and cruise missiles . However, clouds can get in the way of electro-optical sensors. Evolving missile guidance designs are converting

6693-405: The missile would ride the beam until making the interception. While conceptually simple, the move is hard because of the challenge of simultaneously keeping the beam solidly on the target (which could not be relied upon to cooperate by flying straight and level), continuing to fly one's own aircraft, and monitoring enemy countermeasures. An added complication was that the beam will spread out into

6790-553: The missiles to "see" images rather than single "points" of infrared radiation (heat). The sensors combined with more powerful digital signal processing provide the following benefits: Examples of fifth generation short-range missiles include: For each missile, short notes are given, including an indication of its range and guidance mechanism. Cordite Cordite is a family of smokeless propellants developed and produced in Britain since 1889 to replace black powder as

6887-481: The possibility of leading a missile within its FOV for an increased probability of kill against a maneuvering target. In some cases, the improved sensitivity to heat signatures allows for a very limited side and even all-aspect tracking, as is the case with the Red Top missile . In conjunction with improved control surfaces and propulsion motors over the first generation of dogfight missiles, the technological advances of

6984-564: The projectile of the unguided 21 cm Nebelwerfer 42 infantry barrage rocket system into the air-launched BR 21 anti-aircraft rocket in 1943; leading to the deployment of the R4M unguided rocket and the development of various guided missile prototypes such as the Ruhrstahl X-4 . The US Navy and US Air Force began equipping guided missiles in 1956, deploying the USAF's AIM-4 Falcon and

7081-518: The reaction of nitric acid mixtures on materials such as cellulose and glycerin , a search began for a replacement for gunpowder. The first smokeless powder was developed in 1865 by Johann Edward Schultze . At the time of this breakthrough, Schultze was a captain of Prussian artillery. Schultze eventually rose to the rank of colonel. His formulation (dubbed Schultze Powder ) was composed of nitrolignose derived from nitrated wood grains, impregnated with saltpetre or barium nitrate . In 1882,

7178-1290: The rear, only detected signals from the launch aircraft. Fireflashes are part of the collections of the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford , the Cornwall Aviation Museum at RAF St. Mawgan and (in May 2014) the Combined Military Services Museum at Maldon. A Fireflash unit, missing the tips of the propulsion sections, is in storage at the RAF Hornchurch Heritage Centre. Air-to-air missile Air-to-air missiles are broadly put in two groups. Those designed to engage opposing aircraft at ranges of around 30 km to 40 km maximum are known as short-range or "within visual range" missiles (SRAAMs or WVRAAMs) and are sometimes called " dogfight " missiles because they are designed to optimize their agility rather than range. Most use infrared guidance and are called heat-seeking missiles. In contrast, medium- or long-range missiles (MRAAMs or LRAAMs), which both fall under

7275-648: The rights to the manufacture of acetone to the Commercial Solvents Corporation in exchange for royalties. After the Shell Crisis of 1915 during World War I, he was director of the British Admiralty Laboratories from 1916 until 1919. Cordite RDB was later found to become unstable if stored too long. Research on solvent-free Cordite RDB technologically extremely similar to ballistite continued primarily on

7372-470: The same muzzle velocity, due to the inherently less powerful nature of Cordite MD. During World War I, acetone was in short supply in Great Britain, and a new experimental form was developed for use by the Royal Navy . This was Cordite RDB (= R esearch D epartment formula B ); which was 52% collodion , 42% nitroglycerin and 6% petroleum jelly . It was produced at HM Factory, Gretna ; and

7469-402: The same time, jamming the missile lock-on is easier because the launching aircraft is further from the target than the missile, so the radar signal has to travel further and is greatly attenuated over the distance. This means that the missile may be jammed or "spoofed" by countermeasures whose signals grow stronger as the missile gets closer. One counter to this is a "home on jam" capability in

7566-471: The second-generation short-range missiles allowed them to be used not just on non-maneuvering bombers, but also actively maneuvering fighters. Examples include advanced derivatives of the K-13 (missile) and AIM-9 such as K-13M ( R-13M , Object 380) or AIM-9D / G / H . This generation introduced much more sensitive seekers that are capable of locking onto the warm heat irradiated by the skins of aircraft from

7663-401: The signal clear while the unpowered "dart" continued on to the target. In place of the original four RP-3 rockets, two custom-designed "Stork" rockets were used. The two solid-fuel motors were connected to the dart about mid-way along the fuselage. The rocket nozzles were canted slightly to spin the missile assembly on launch, evening out any asymmetries in the thrust. When the boosters are empty,

7760-409: The size of the radar antenna is limited by the small diameter of missiles, limiting its range which typically means such missiles are launched at a predicted future location of the target, often relying on separate guidance systems such as Global Positioning System , inertial guidance , or a mid-course update from either the launching aircraft or other system that can communicate with the missile to get

7857-544: The start of World War I, private industry in the UK was asked to produce 16,000 tons of cordite, and all the companies started to expand. HM Factory, Gretna , the largest propellant factory in the United Kingdom, which opened in 1916, was by 1917 producing 800 tons (812 tonne ) of Cordite RDB per week (approximately 41,600 tons per year). The Royal Navy had its own factory at Holton Heath . In 1910, Canadian Explosives Limited produced 3,000 lb (1,362 kg) of rifle cordite per month at its Beloeil factory, for

7954-410: The target increases the probability of a hit, the launching aircraft usually has to be closer to the target in such a tail-chase engagement . An aircraft can defend against infra-red missiles by dropping flares that are hotter than the aircraft, so the missile homes in on the brighter, hotter target. In turn, IR missiles may employ filters to enable it to ignore targets whose temperature is not within

8051-440: The target on a collision course. Although the missile may use radar or infra-red guidance to home on the target, the launching aircraft may detect and track the target before launch by other means. Infra-red guided missiles can be "slaved" to an attack radar in order to find the target and radar-guided missiles can be launched at targets detected visually or via an infra-red search and track (IRST) system, although they may require

8148-446: The target. Also typical of the third generation of short-range missiles are further improved agility over the previous generation as well as their ability to radar-slave; which is acquiring tracking data from the launching aircraft's radar or IRST systems, allowing attackers to launch missiles without ever pointing the nose of the aircraft at an enemy prior to leading the missile. Examples of this generation of dogfight missiles include

8245-548: The war. For small arms it has been replaced by other propellants, such as the Improved Military Rifle (IMR) line of extruded powder or the WC844 ball propellant currently in use in the 5.56×45mm NATO . Production ceased in the United Kingdom around the end of the 20th century, with the closure of the last of the World War II cordite factories, ROF Bishopton . Triple-base propellant for UK service (for example,

8342-442: Was also used for large weapons, such as tank guns , artillery , and naval guns. It has been used mainly for this purpose since the late 19th century by the UK and British Commonwealth countries. Its use was further developed before World War II , and as 2-and-3-inch-diameter (51 and 76 mm) Unrotated Projectiles for launching anti-aircraft weapons . Small cordite rocket charges were also developed for ejector seats made by

8439-491: Was based on studies carried out at the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) on earlier weapons. Their experiments with the manually-guided Air Spaniel concept had convinced them that automatic guidance of some sort was required. This led to Artemis semi-active radar homing system, and the larger Little Ben which used beam riding . OR.1056 was overall similar to Little Ben, using beam riding along

8536-409: Was deployed on a very limited scale by the RAF in August 1957, and "had a limited capability against piston-engine bombers." The RAF deployed the later and more effective de Havilland Firestreak infra-red missile from August 1958. The Fireflash was a beam riding missile - it was designed to fly down a radio beam emitted by the launch aircraft, which the pilot would keep aimed at the target. It had

8633-421: Was finally lost because the words "of the well-known soluble kind" in his patent were taken to mean the soluble collodion, and hence specifically excluded the insoluble guncotton. The ambiguous phrase was "soluble nitro-cellulose": soluble nitro-cellulose was known as Collodion and was soluble in alcohol . It was employed mainly for medical and photographic use. In contrast, insoluble in alcohol, nitrocellulose

8730-421: Was finished on 24 August 1918. It was designed to produce 1,500,000 lb (681,000 kg) of cordite per month. Factories, specifically "heavy industry" (Long, and Marland 2009) were important for the provision of munitions. Cordite factories typically employed women (Cook 2006) who put their lives at risk as they packed the shells. Large quantities of cordite were manufactured in both World Wars for use by

8827-778: Was formed in 1910 to produce rifle cordite, at its Beloeil factory, for the Quebec Arsenal . By November 1915 production had been expanded to produce 350,000 lb (159,000 kg) of cordite per month for the Imperial Munitions Board . The Imperial Munitions Board set up a number of additional explosives factories in Canada . It built The British Cordite Ltd factory at Nobel, Ontario , in 1916/1917, to produce cordite. Production started in mid-1917. Canadian Explosives Limited built an additional cordite factory at Nobel, Ontario. Work started in February 1918 and

8924-643: Was known as gun cotton and was used as an explosive. Nobel's patent refers to the production of Celluloid using camphor and soluble nitrocellulose; and this was taken to imply that Nobel was specifically distinguishing between the use of soluble and insoluble nitrocellulose. For a forensic analysis of the case, see The History of Explosives Vol II; The Case for Cordite, John Williams (2014). However, in her comprehensive 2019 biography of Alfred Nobel Ingrid Carlberg notes how closely Abel and Dewar were allowed to follow Nobel's work in Paris, and how disappointed Nobel

9021-630: Was opened in Scotland to manufacture cordite for the British Army and the Royal Air Force. A new cordite factory at Waltham Abbey and two additional ROF's— ROF Ranskill and ROF Wrexham —were also opened. Cordite produced in these factories was sent to filling factories for filling into ammunition. The British Government set up additional cordite factories, not under Royal Ordnance Factory control but as Agency Factories run on behalf of

9118-771: Was produced in different shapes and sizes, so the particular geometry of Cordite SC was indicated by the use of letters or numbers, or both, after the SC. For example, SC followed by a number was rod-shaped cord, with the number representing the diameter in thousandths of an inch. "SC T" followed by two sets of numbers indicated tubular propellant, with the numbers representing the two diameters in thousandths. Two-inch (approximately 50 mm) and three-inch (approximately 75 mm) diameter, rocket Cordite SC charges were developed in great secrecy before World War II for anti-aircraft purposes—the so-called Z batteries , using ' Unrotated Projectiles '. Great Britain changed to metric units in

9215-515: Was soon superseded, as it caused excessive gun barrel erosion. It has since become known as Cordite Mk I . The composition of cordite was changed to 65% guncotton, 30% nitroglycerin (keeping 5% petroleum jelly), and 0.8% acetone shortly after the end of the Second Boer War . This was known as Cordite MD (modified). Cordite MD cartridges typically weighed approximately 15% more than the cordite Mk I cartridges they replaced, to achieve

9312-465: Was unimpressed, and in late 1947 developed their own design. This called for a smaller weapon using four RP-3 motors for boost which were then ejected, leaving the central projectile to coast onward to the target. It was soon realized that the all-aspect capability of Red Hawk was beyond the state of the art and a simpler weapon would be needed in the interim. In 1949, the RAE developed a watered-down specification they called "Pink Hawk" that called for

9409-502: Was with how this trust was betrayed. The book argues for Nobel as the original inventor and that the case was lost because of an unimportant technicality. It was quickly discovered that the rate of burning could be varied by altering the surface area of the cordite. Narrow rods were used in small-arms and were relatively fast burning, while thicker rods would burn more slowly and were used for longer barrels, such as those used in artillery and naval guns. The original Abel-Dewar formulation

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