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Aviation History
1988
1988 - 0639.PDF
WORLD NEWS South Africa unveils new missile SANTIAGO South Africa's Armscor has unveiled a new all-aspect air- to-air missile at the Feria Internacional del Aire (FIDA) show, reports Mike Gaines from Chile. Called Darter, the missile is based on the combat-proven V3C Kukri. However, there are significant differences between Kukri and Darter. The latter is more manoeuvr able, and has a more-sensitive infrared seeker head and active proximity fuze. Darter is better at detecting targets against difficult backgrounds and also at longer ranges. Darter has three selectable acquisition modes. Reduced- scan cage mode is capable of target acquisitions within a few degrees of the aircraft and uses a normal gunsight for aiming. The pilot may also authorise lock-on and the system will continue to track the target to 20° off the aircraft axis. In helmet mode, an optional missile-aiming reticle is projected on to the helmet visor. The aiming reticle is then placed on to the pilot's selected target, which may be up to 20° off axis. Helmet mode is a useful tool enabling the pilot to engage a particu lar high-velocity target in a situation where numerous targets may exist, including infrared decoys. A conventional-scan mode may be used without the designating helmet. The missile's IR seeker scans up to 14° off-axis and can be instructed to lock on to the most powerful IR source it can find. The missile will then continue to track the source until fired, or until the target breaks lock by exceeding the 20° off-axis limit or by pilot intervention. Darter has a new level of infrared filtering and signal processing which makes the seeker less sensitive to decoy flares once it is locked on to the target. Rejection of spur ious IR sources such as the horizon or cloud glint provides a look-down shoot- down capability against high IR backgrounds. Targets may be engaged within 15° of the Sun. The missile's motor burns for 2sec, accelerating it to 650m/sec above launch air craft speed. Once launched, the seeker head is capable of the high look angle, up to 55° off-axis, demanded of an all- aspect missile. A laser proximity fuze discriminates between high speed head-on approaches and the lower target closing rate of a stern shot, thus increasing the effectiveness of the pre-fragmented 16kg RDX/Kraton warhead. The effective range of Darter is from 300m to 10km. The 2 • 7m-long missile weighs 89kg. Flight understands that Darter has just entered ser vice with South Africa on its Mirage F.lCZs. BAe cuts weapons workforce STEVENAGE British Aerospace is to cut 2,800 jobs over three years in its Dynamics Division and stop divisional manufacturing at Filton and Bracknell, because of a slump in work load. The greatest number of jobs will go from the Filton fac tory, near Bristol, where a cut of 1,200 jobs is planned, along with an end to production manufacturing. The southern half of the Bracknell site will close, manufacturing will stop, and 500 jobs will go. Most of BAe Dynamic's seven sites, spread across England and employing 18,700, are affected, and all categories of employee will be trimmed. The company describes the overall production workload as "unsatisfactory", but adds that the long-term prospects are "encouraging", with a number of projects in advanced development that could lead some sites to hire staff within the next three years. These projects include the Rapier 2000, Alarm, and vertical-launch Seawolf. US Army midair kills 17 FORT CAMPBELL A midair collision between two US Army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks on a night training mission last week killed all 17 men on both aircraft. It is the worst acci dent in US Army aviation since the Arrow Air DC-8 disaster in December 1985, when 248 were killed. Initial reports suggest that the first in a line of three heli copters flying at about 250ft altitude and 90kt forward speed was hit by another heli copter on the same mission, but from a different group. All of the crewmembers and passengers were from the 101st Airborne Assault Division at Fort Campbell. The first UH-60 had 13 people aboard, the second four. Visibility was apparently good, at about seven miles. The Army says there was no evidence of mechanical mal function on either aircraft. Flight Fax Please note that Flight International's editorial office now has a new number for facsimile transmissions. It is 01-661 3840. Long-range A300 gets ticket TOULOUSE ~ Airbus Industrie's A300- 600R, the extended-range version of the stretched A300, received European certifica tion on March 10. The marque first flew on December 9, and it has completed a 99hr, 57-flight test programme. The main new features of the -600R are the fuel-carrying tailplane trim tank and its higher maximum take-off weight (increased by 170 tonnes). The type's range with full passenger load is 4,350 n.m. Launch customer American Airlines takes delivery of its first CF6-80C2-powered A300-600Rs next month. Astovl tests delayed Windtunnel tests of the General Dynamics/de Havilland Canada E-7 ejector-lift short take-off and vertical landing fighter have been delayed until May, as Nasa Ames completes calibration of the full-scale aerodynamics complex. FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL, 19 March 1988
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