Wednesday 1 December 2021

Ballistic Missile Defence and Surface to Air Missiles (SAMs)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8nH9YAHJv4

 
All Surface-to-Air missiles (SAMs) are not Anti-Ballistic missile (ABM systems. The missiles shown in the video like SA-2 (HQ-2B), Spada-2000, Crotale, FM-90, Mistral etc have no capability of interception against Medium-Range Ballistic Missiles (MRBMs) or ICBMs. They may be effective against some Surface-to-Surface cruise missiles flying at an altitude above radar coverage. The Antey-2500 air defence and anti-ballistic missile system can intercept missiles of upto 2500 km range and velocity of upto 4500 m/s. This is an exact description of ABM capability. Discussion of radar and RCS are omitted. Furthermore, a weapon system optimised for intercepting a short-range ballisitc missile (SRBM like the ones having 500 km range) don't work against MRBMs (from 1000 to 2750 km range). The reason is that longer range ballistic missiles have higher speeds during re-entry and then during flight into the atmosphere above their targets. The usual approach is to engage them (MRBMs and ICBMs) at higher altitudes above or at the edge of earth's atmosphere when they are relatively slow.

  Missiles for ABM role also have higher speeds themselves. The SA-12A missile is noted to be able to intercept ballistic missiles of range upto 1100 km and going at speeds of upto 3000 m/s with SA-12A being able to attain speed of 1700 m/s itself. Therefore, a relationship between range and speed of ballistic missile exists and similarly ABM has to attain higher speeds to intercept longer range ballistic missiles. Nowadays we hear again and again the term Hypersonic missile tests. These very high speed missiles shall be very difficult or impossible to intercept with current ABM systems. To sum it up, all SAMs are not ABM weapons although some SAM systems are optimized for this role.

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