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The 9K32 “Strela-2” (Russian 9К32 “Cтрела-2” — arrow; NATO reporting name SA-7 Grail) is a man-portable, shoulder-fired, low-altitude surface-to-air missile system with a high explosive warhead and passive infrared homing guidance. Broadly comparable to the US Army FIM-43 Redeye, it was the first generation of Soviet man portable SAMs, entering service in 1968, with series production starting in 1970.[3] Described by one expert as being "the premier Russian export line",[4] the Strela and its variants have seen widespread use in nearly every regional conflict since 1968.
[edit] DevelopmentThe end of World War II saw a major shift in Soviet defense policy. The advent of long range, high altitude, nuclear-armed American bombers, capable of penetrating Soviet airspace at heights and speeds unreachable and unmatchable by all existing anti-aircraft guns and most interceptors, at a stroke appeared to render every conventional weapon obsolete. To counter this large vulnerability, numerous long-range, high-altitude SAM systems, such as the SA-1 "Guild" and SA-2 "Guideline", were rapidly developed and fielded, but due to the apparent 'obsolescence' of conventional arms, relatively little development took place to field mobile battlefield air defenses. This direction was soon to change, however, with the beginning of the Korean war. An entirely conventional conflict, it proved that nuclear weapons were not the be all and end all of warfare. In the face of a powerful and modern American air force, carrying non-nuclear payloads, the Soviet Union invested heavily in a multi-tier air defense system, consisting of several new mobile SAMs, to cover all altitude ranges and protect ground forces. The new doctrine listed 5 requirements:
 Both Strela-1 and Strela-2 were initially intended to be man-portable systems. However, as the Strela-2 proved to be a considerably smaller and lighter package, the role of the Strela-1 was changed, becoming a heavier, vehicle-mounted system with increased range and performance, to better support the ZSU-23-4 in the regimental air defense role. As development began in the Turopov OKB (later changed to Kolomna), detailed information on the design of the US FIM-43 Redeye became available. While it was by no means a simple reverse-engineered copy, in many ways the Strela design borrowed heavily from the Redeye, which had started development a few years earlier. Due to the comparatively primitive Soviet technical base, development was protracted, and many problems arose, especially in designing a sufficiently small seeker head and rocket. Eventually the designers settled for a simpler seeker head than that of the Redeye, allowing the initial version, the 9K32 “Strela-2” (US DoD designation SA-7A, missile round 9M32) to finally enter service in 1968, 5 years behind schedule. [edit] ImprovementsAs with many Soviet systems, the Strela-2 was quickly followed by an improved version, the “Strela-2M” (NATO reporting name SA-7b). Introduced in 1971,[5] it proved vastly more capable then its predecessor; the use of higher thrust propellant resulted in increases not only to range, speed and altitude, but allowed the size of its warhead to double.[6] Improvements were also made to the guidance and detection systems, allowing the missiles to engage transport planes and helicopters head-on, unless the aircraft were flying faster than 540 km/h.[7] Finally, improved filters were added, increasing resistance to flares and other countermeasures.[6] The Strela (2M version) was also procured for use on-board Warsaw Pact warships;[6] installed on four round pedestal mounts[6] aboard Soviet amphibious warfare vessels and various smaller combatants, the weapon remained unchanged, but was assigned the NATO reporting name SA-N-5 'Grail'.[6] [edit] Description
The missile launcher system consists of the green missile launch tube containing the missile, a grip stock and a cylindrical thermal battery. The launch tube is reloadable at depot, but missile rounds are delivered to fire units in their launch tubes. The device can be reloaded up to five times.[8] When engaging slow or straight-receding targets, the operator tracks the target with the iron sights in the launch tube and applies half-trigger. This allows the seeker to attempt tracking. If target IR signature can be tracked against the background present, this is indicated by green light and buzzer sound. The shooter then pulls the trigger fully, and immediately applies lead and superelevation. Against fast targets the shooter can immediately pull the trigger completely. Manufacturer lists reaction time measured from carrying position (missile carried at soldier's back with protective covers) to missile launch to be 13 seconds, a figure that is achievable but requires considerable training and skill in missile handling. With launcher on the shoulder, covers removed and sights extended, reaction time from fire command to launch reduces to 6–10 seconds, depending greatly on target difficulty and shooter's skill. After activating the power supply to the missile electronics, the gunner waits for electricity supply and gyros to stabilize, puts the sights on target and tracks it smoothly with the launch tube's iron sights, and pulls the trigger on the grip stock. This activates the seeker electronics and the missile attempts to lock onto the target. If the target is producing a strong enough signal and the angular tracking rate is within acceptable launch parameters, the missile alerts the gunner that the target is locked on by illuminating a red light in the sight mechanism, and producing a constant buzzing noise. The operator then has 0.8 seconds to provide lead to the target while the missiles on-board power supply is activated and the throw-out motor ignited. Should the target be outside acceptable parameters then the light cue in the sight and buzzer signal tell the gunner to re-aim the missile. On launch, the booster burns out before the missile leaves the launch tube at 32 m/s, and rotating the missile at approximately 20 revolutions per second. As the missile leaves the tube the two forward steering fins unfold, as do the four rear stabilizing tail fins. The self-destruct mechanism is then armed, which is set to destroy the missile after between 14 and 17 seconds to prevent it hitting the ground if it should miss the target. Once the missile is five and half meters away from the gunner, approximately 0.3 seconds after leaving the launch tube it activates the rocket sustainer motor. The sustainer motor takes it to a velocity of 430 meters per second, and sustains it at this speed. Once it reaches peak speed at a distance of around 120 meters from the gunner, the final safety mechanism is disabled and the missile is fully armed. All told, the booster burns for 0.5 second and the driving engine for another 2.0 seconds.[8] The missile's uncooled lead sulphide passive infra-red seeker head detects infrared radiation at below 2.8 μm in wavelength. It has a 1.9 degree field of view and can track at 9 degrees per second. The seeker head tracks the target with an amplitude-modulated spinning reticle (spin-scan or AM tracking), which attempts to keep the seeker constantly pointed towards the target. The guidance system tracks the movement of the seeker relative to missile body, and uses proportional convergence logic, also known as angle rate tracking system, to guide the missile towards the target on the basis of this information. In practice this means monitoring the seeker's angular velocity, and issuing steering commands to turn the missile towards the direction where the seeker is turning to (not necessarily where it is pointed at), in an attempt to bring the seeker-to-body angle rate to zero. Given constant missile and target velocities and non-maneuvering target, the angle rate is zero when the missile is headed straight towards the intercept point. [edit] Combat use
As a consequence of their widespread availability and large numbers, the Strela system has seen use in conflicts across the globe. [edit] Middle EastJane's credits the first combat use of the missile as being in 1969 during the War of Attrition by Egyptian soldiers. Between this first firing and June 1970 the Egyptian army fired 99 missiles resulting in 36 hits.The missile proved to have poor kinematic reach against combat jets, and also poor lethality as many aircraft that were hit managed to return safely to base. The missile was used later as well, like in the Yom Kippur war, where Strela were fired by hundreds, scoring not many hits and few kills (A-4s had exhaust pipe lengthened, in order to avoid fatal damages to the engine, a solution made in the previous war, together with flare launchers) but, together with Shilka and SA-2/3/6s they caused very heavy losses to HHA in the first days, after that the Arab SAMs firings were so high, that they almost depleted their ammunitions. SA-7s were not that effective against fast jets, but still, the best weapon that Arab infantry could have in those days. During Operation Desert Storm, an Iraqi soldier armed with a Strela-7 shot down an American AC-130H gunship, AF Serial No. 69-6567, killing all 14 crewmembers.[9] One notable use of the Strela was in Iraq, April 2005, when members of the Iraqi resistance shot down an Mi-8 helicopter operated by Blackwater, killing all 11 crew members. The IAI took responsibility for the action and a video showing the downing was released in the Internet. [10] [edit] South-East AsiaThe Strela-2 system was also given to North Vietnam forces, where along with the more advanced Strela-2M it achieved 204 hits out of 589 firings against US aircraft between 1972 and 1975. These produced a total of approximately 40–50 kills, all but one TA-4 Skyhawk against helicopters and propeller-driven aircraft; US fixed-wing losses are listed in the following table. As in the War of Attrition, the missile's kinematic performance proved insufficient against fast jets and results were very poor, although at least one South Vietnamese F-5 was also shot down by a Strela in addition to the US Skyhawk. Against helicopters, however, the system was lethal until the use of decoy flares became common. The United States lost at least 10 AH-1 Cobras and several UH-1 Hueys to Strela-2/2M hits in SEA.
The table shows heavy losses particularly in the beginning of May, with especially lethal results on 1st-2nd of May, where the shootdown of the O-2 FAC led to further losses when rescue operation was attempted. After the initial success, changes in tactics and widespread introduction of decoy flares helped to counter the threat, but a steady flow of attrition and necessity of minimizing time spent in Strela envelope nonetheless continued to limit the effectiveness of US battlefield air operations until the end of US involvement in South-East Asia. In the late 1980s, Strela-2s were used against Royal Thai Air Force aircrafts by Laotian and Vietnamese forces during the numerous border clashes of that period. A RTAF F-5E was damaged on 4 March 1987 and another F-5E was shot down on 4 February 1988 near the Thai-Cambodian border. [edit] Afghanistan Strela-2M was used also in Afghanistan during the Soviet invasion by the Mujahiddeen. The missiles were obtained from various sources, some from Egypt and China (locally manufactured Sakr Eye and HN-5 versions of the SAM), and the CIA also assisted the guerrillas in finding missiles from other sources. Results from combat use were not dissimilar from experiences with the Strela-2/2M from SEA: while 42 helicopters were shot down by various Strela-2 variants, apparently including also a few Mi-24s until exhaust shrouds made them next to invisible to the short-wavelength Strela-2 seeker, only 5 fixed-wing aircraft were destroyed with the weapon. Due to its poor kinematic performance and vulnerability to even the most primitive infra-red countermeasures, the guerrillas considered the Strela-2 suitable for use against helicopters and prop-driven transports, but not combat jets. [edit] RhodesiaDuring the Rhodesian Bush War (1964–1979) terrorists utilised the Strela against unarmed civilian aircraft and brought down two Vickers Viscount passenger aircraft belonging to Air Rhodesia. There was great loss of life in both instances as the flights were returning from Kariba, a well known tourist attraction.
In the first incident the terrorists followed up the crashed aircraft and systematically murdered survivors from the aircrash as they lay in the wreckage. The Archbishop of Mashonaland described this act as the most barbaric act of the war in a well publicised sermon that subsequently saw him removed from his post.  [edit] Other use[edit] Southern LebanonOn June 24, 1974, Palestinians in southern Lebanon fired 2 SAM-7 missiles against invading Israeli aircraft, though no hits were scored. [11]. In 1983, a famous and unsuccessful air raid flown by USN, resulted in three losses, two A-7 and a A-6 Intruder; all seem to have been downed by IR missiles; while the Intruder seems to have been shot down by a SA-9s or SA-7s, the Corsairs were shot down apparently by SA-7s. [edit] AfricaWhen PAIGC rebels in Guinea started to be supplied with SA-7s in early 1973, these inmediately became a threat to Portuguese air superiority. On 23 March 1973, two Portuguese Air Force (FAP) Fiat G.91s were shot down by SA-7s, followed six weeks later by another Fiat, and a Dornier Do 27.[12] FRELIMO fighters in Mozambique were also able to field some SA-7s with Chinese support, although the weapon is not known to have caused any losses to the FAP, even if it forced Portuguese pilots to change their tactics. In one case a Douglas DC-3 carrying foreign military attaches and members of the senior Portuguese military command was hit by an SA-7 in one of the engines. The crippled plane managed to land safely and was later repaired.[13] There are many reports of SA-7's use in Africa; it must be pointed, however, that it's not easy to say what kind of Russian (or Chinese) MANPADS was used, if SA-7a, -b or newer types, such as the SA-14. In Angola and Namibia many were fired against the South African Air Force with limited success; several were probably used (after having been captured) by UNITA as well, against Cuban and Angolan aircraft. Among the others, they were used by Polisario against the Royal Moroccan Air Force. [edit] Falklands WarStrela-2M missiles were available to Argentinian troops in the Falkland Islands during the Falklands War. A handful of missiles were fired, but no kills were scored.[citation needed]. War Machine Encyclopedia gives no launch recorded, but several missiles were captured, probably they came from Libya.[14] [edit] Northern IrelandThe Irish Republican Army (IRA) acquired some missiles that were reported to been used in 1991 to shoot down a Army Air Corps Lynx helicopter in South Armagh, however it missed its target. To counter the new threat the British helicopters flew in pairs below 50 feet or above 500 feet. There is also evidence that the East Tyrone Brigade of the IRA have used them recently to try and shoot down British Army Helicopters on numerous occasions however too no avail. [edit] Yugoslav WarsThe system was used on a large scale during wars in former Yugoslavia by all Yugoslav successor states and factions engaged in air defence operations. Probably the most famous scene from the Croatian war of independence happened on September 21, 1991, when two JNA Jastrebs flew over the Dalmatian city of Šibenik. Croat soldiers opened fire on both planes. Fighter Filip Gacina shouted: "Both of them! Both of them fell!". The truth is that only one Jastreb was shot down with a SA-7, while the other plane escaped.[15] [edit] 2002 Mombasa attacksTwo missiles were fired during the 2002 Mombasa attacks both missing a Boeing 757. [16][17] It was said that had the attackers waited until the plane had reached a higher altitude, they would have had a better chance of hitting it.[18] [edit] Iraq and Afghanistan WarsThey are used with other MANPAD systems in the ongoing Iraqi and Afghan wars, however has only remained marginally effective[1], while al Qaeda is said to have produced an hour-long training video on how to use SA-7s.[19][20] In 2006, an Apache helicopter was reportedly downed by an SA-7; the helicopters were designed to be able to withstand such hits, but this one did not.[21] [edit] Versions
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