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MICA
MICA
	;
Type	Short to Medium-Range Air to Air Tactical Missile
Place of origin	France
Service history
In service	1996 (MICA-EM) and 2000 (MICA-IR)
Used by	See Users
Production history
Manufacturer	MBDA
Specifications
Weight	112 kg
Length	3.1 m
Diameter	160 mm
Warhead	12 kg focused splinters HE warhead
Detonation; mechanism	RF proximity fuze, impact fuze
Engine	One SNPE solid-propellant rocket motor;
Wingspan	560 mm
Operational; range	from < 500 m to > 60 km
Flight altitude	up to 11,000 m
Speed	Mach 4
Guidance; system	MICA-EM: Inertial guidance; Active radar homing; MICA-IR: Imaging Infrared homing
Launch; platform	Dassault Rafale, Mirage 2000, F-16E Block 60

MICA infrared on a Rafale Marine

The MBDA MICA (Missile d’interception et de combat aérien, “Interception and Aerial Combat Missile”) is an anti-air multi-target, all weather, fire-and-forget short and medium-range missile system. It is intended for use both by air platforms as individual missiles as well as ground units and ships, which can be equipped with the rapid fire MICA Vertical Launch System. It is fitted with a thrust vector control (TVC) system.

It was developed from 1982 onward by Matra. The first trials occurred in 1991, and the missile was commissioned in 1996 to equip the Rafale and Mirage 2000. It is a replacement for both Super 530 (interception) and Magic II (dogfight). Two can be fired in a two-second interval.

[edit] Description

Depending on the variant, MICA is guided to its target by either an active radar homing seeker (MICA RF, also commonly known as MICA EM) or an imaging infra-red homing seeker (MICA IR). Both seekers are designed to filter out counter-measures such as chaff and decoy flares. A thrust vector control unit fitted to the rocket motor increases the missile's agility. MICA is designed to be capable of "lock-on after launch," meaning the missile can be launched at targets which its seeker can not yet detect.

The MICA can be employed as a short-range surface-to-air missile, currently available fired from a truck-mounted box launcher. This system is known as VL MICA SHORAD. It has recently shown its capabilities with a successful test: 23 October 2008, 15:30, at CELM, Biscarosse (Landes), one MICA VL was launched against a small RPV Banshee. The RPV was flying at low level, on the sea, 12 km away; despite this distance (roughly twice the range of Sea Wolf), the MICA (with an active radar seeker) locked the target and shot it down. This was the last of 14 firings, and now the weapon is ready to be mass-produced. Corvettes too small to have the costly Aster missile systems will be the best customer for this weapon, that basically is an Aster without its booster and PIF-PAF vectorial control(as example, the diameter and radar are roughly the same in both Mica and Aster)^[2]. The Armeé de l'Air had its first MICA batch with 37 Mirage 2005 in the '90s, and currently an unknown number is produced, several thousands, for both Mirage and the newer Rafale.

The various MICA variants are offered for export, the first sale being made to Taiwan in the mid-1990s when the Republic of China Air Force (ROCAF) submitted an order for both RF and IR versions totalling around 960 missiles to arm their new Dassault Mirage 2000 fighter aircraft.

[edit] Variants

MICA RF
MICA IR
VL MICA RF
VL MICA IR

[edit] Operators

France

Greece

Hellenic Air Force

Qatar

Qatar Air Force

Republic of China (Taiwan)

Republic of China Air Force

Sultanate of Oman

Royal Navy of Oman - VL MICA to be installed on three ocean patrol vessels

United Arab Emirates

United Arab Emirates Air Force

Possible future operators: Morocco is upgrading its Mirage F1 fleet to operate the MICA and India could retrofit its Mirage 2000C to use this missile as well. Pakistan has also been offered this missile to equip its JF-17 fighters with RC-400 radars. It has now also been offered to India with the upgrade package of its Mirage 2000-5.