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Aviation History
1962
1962 - 1724.PDF
344 Scimitar with Bullpup Vulcan with Blue Steel "stand-off bomb" has since been developed to have very much greater range and pay- load, and to incorporate other equipment which makes for a larger and more com plicated weapon. It is intended to be carried to within striking distance of a major enemy target beneath a V-bomber of RAF Bomber Command—either a Victor B.2 or a Vulcan B.2—which feeds the missile with full target data, together with missile position, height, direction and speed at the moment of release. The Blue Steel is then dropped, to fly independently a distance of well over 100 miles propelled by its Bristol Siddeley Stentor double-barrel rocket engine, which has one large thrust chamber and one small one both fed with high-test peroxide and kerosine. An Elliotts inertial guidance system steers the missile to its target, and it is worth noting that Blue Steel may be programmed to approach its target from any direction and at any height. Its radar cross-section is only a small fraction of that of the parent aircraft, and its cruising speed is supersonic. After extensive trials from Valiants at Aberporth and from Vulcans at the Weapons Research Establishment at Woomera, the big missile has been brought to operational perfection, and first pro duction deliveries have now been made to No 617 Squadron (Vulcan B.2s) at Scamp- Lightning development aircraft with Red Top FLIGHT International, 30 August 1962 ton (the same squadron and airfield, incidentally, as Guy Gibson's "dam- busters"). Other units are now also receiving operational Mk 1 missiles, and there is no doubt that their ability to penetrate enemy defences is much greater than that of their parent aircraft. Bullpup During the past year discussions have been proceeding to ascertain how bes'. this tactical air-to-surface missile might best be introduced to NATO service. It has now been decided that it will be manu factured by a consortium which includes Hawker Siddeley in Britain, Kongsberg Vapenfabrik in Norway (prime contractor) as well as Denmark and Turkey. Hawker Siddeley have in turn delegated their Bull- pup work to de Havilland Aircraft at Manor Road, and there is no doubt that this is the most experienced member of the NATO team. Bullpup was originally developed jointly by the US Navy and The Martin Company, who have since been joined by the US Air Force in the evolution of a family of advanced Bullpups of increased size with large conventional or nuclear war heads. The Royal Navy will use the weapon from the Buccaneer, Scimitar and Sea Vixen. Guidance is effected by radio command from the launch aircraft, the missile being steered by means of the four fins around the forward part of the body. CF. 299 Announced on August 10, the CF.299 is a project for a new ship-to-air weapon under development by Whitworth Gloster Aircraft at Whitley. The company's extensive experience with the Seaslug has been utilized to the full in producing a simpler system capable of installation in smaller ships than the 5,000-ton vessels needed to accommodate a full-scale Seaslug system. All details of CF.299 are at present restricted, but it would be logical for the missile itself to have minimum overall dimensions, a high-impulse solid rocket motor and some form of advanced radar guidance. Firestreak Developed by de Havilland Propellers (now D.H. Aircraft), the Fire- streak is the standard air-to-air missile for the RAF and Royal Navy. Thousands of rounds are in service with such aircraft as the Lightning (two missiles per aircraft) and Sea Vixen and Javelin (four missiles each). Firestreak weighs about 3001b and is 10ft 5in long. It is propelled by a solid rocket motor, surrounding the blast tube of which is a large rear-mounted fragmentation warhead and a ring of control fins. At the front are pneumatic control actuators, a proximity fuze system and the homing head which steers the missile towards the infra red radiation from the exhausts behind the target aircraft. The stabilized dish heat reflector is mounted behind a nose formed from eight flat glass panels looking like a sharp pencil. Recent RAF and RN firing trials have yielded 85 per cent successes: moreover, although the warhead is deton ated by the proximity fuze on a near miss. 50 per cent of the successful firings resulted in direct hits. Red Top Derived from Firestreak, Red Top is an even more versatile and lethal missile which will be carried by Lightning F.3 intercepters of the RAF. Compared with its predecessor, the components are rearranged, the warhead being moved up next to its fuzing system and the control actuators being repositioned all next to the fins which they drive. The latter. and the wings, are larger than those of Firestreak and of different shape, and
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