An anti-submarine rocket is an anti-submarine weapon type deployed on surface warships for the purpose of sinking or damaging submarines by small explosive charges. They are similar to anti-submarine mortar but a comparably more modern system. This type of weapon used rockets instead of spigot mortars to deliver the explosive. [1]
From World War I submarines posed a major threat to surface ships. Which necessitated the development of effective anti-submarine weapons. During World War II, The US developed first anti-submarine rocket Mousetrap to replace Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar. [2] Both had the common characteristic of throwing multiple depth charges ahead of the attacking vessel, while it was still in sonar contact. After World War II several other countries developed anti-submarine rocket. U.S. developed another system named RUR-4 Weapon Alpha. [3] Norway developed Terne. The Bofors anti-submarine rocket launcher was developed in 1950s by Sweden. [4] It had two or four barrels and fired a 550-pound (250 kg) projectile up to 3,800 yards (3,500 m). Due to the poor sonar conditions of the Baltic Sea, mortars, rocket and missile launchers still retain a place next to torpedoes. The USSR developed its own anti-submarine rockets in the RBU series and these are still in use in Russia. [1] [5] [6] China also developed multiple types of anti-submarine rocket system. [7] In 2015, Turkish company Roketsan unveiled a new 375 mm anti-submarine rocket system. [8] These systems also exported to multiple countries.
The homing torpedo and anti-submarine missiles have largely take the anti-submarine role, although anti-submarine rockets still used as secondary anti-submarine weapon by larger ships and primary anti-submarine weapon by small ships by several nations. [9] [1] [8] Compared to the anti-submarine torpedo and missile, range of the anti-submarine rocket is short. The former Soviet Navy (and by extension, the Russian Navy) is the largest user of anti-submarine rockets. Keeping with the Soviet idea that weapons should be simple and cheap, several versions of anti-submarine rockets were developed. Trials were also conducted on destroying oncoming torpedoes with anti-submarine mortars. The most common is the RBU-6000, which fires twelve 160-pound (73 kg) projectiles in a horseshoe pattern up to 6,500 yards (5,900 m) away. [5]
The RUR-5 ASROC is an all-weather, all sea-conditions anti-submarine missile system. Developed by the United States Navy in the 1950s, it was deployed in the 1960s, updated in the 1990s, and eventually installed on over 200 USN surface ships, specifically cruisers, destroyers, and frigates. The ASROC has been deployed on scores of warships of many other navies, including Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Taiwan, Greece, Pakistan and others.
The Hedgehog was a forward-throwing anti-submarine weapon that was used primarily during the Second World War. The device, which was developed by the Royal Navy, fired up to 24 spigot mortars ahead of a ship when attacking a U-boat. It was deployed on convoy escort warships such as destroyers and corvettes to supplement the depth charges.
An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapon is usually a projectile, missile or bomb that is optimized to destroy submarines.
Moskva was the first of her class of helicopter carriers in service with the Soviet Navy. Laid down at Nikolayev South, Moskva was launched in 1965 and she was commissioned two years later. Moskva was followed by Leningrad, which was commissioned in late 1968; there were no further vessels built, reportedly due to the poor handling of the ships in rough seas. Both were conventionally powered.
The Moskva class, Soviet designation Project 1123 Kondor (condor) and S-703Project 1123M Kiev, was the first class of operational aircraft carriers built by the Soviet Union for the Soviet Navy.
Anti-submarine mortars are artillery pieces deployed on ships for the purpose of sinking submarines by a direct hit with a small explosive charge. They are often larger versions of the mortar used by infantry and fire a projectile in relatively the same manner. They were created during World War II as a development of the depth charge and work on the same principle.
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are typically carried out to protect friendly shipping and coastal facilities from submarine attacks and to overcome blockades.
The RBU-6000Smerch-2 is a 213 mm caliber Soviet anti submarine rocket launcher. The system entered service in 1960–1961 and is fitted to a wide range of Russian surface vessels. It consists of a horseshoe-shaped arrangement of twelve launch barrels, that are remotely directed by the Burya fire control system. It fires RGB-60 rockets, which carry unguided depth charges. The rockets are normally fired in salvos of 1, 2, 4, 8 or 12 rounds. Reloading is automatic, with individual rounds being fed into the launcher by the 60UP loading system from a below deck magazine. Typical magazine capacity is either 72 or 96 rounds per launcher. It can also be used for shore bombardment.
The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) is the naval branch of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the armed forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLAN force consists of approximately 250,000 men and over a hundred major combat vessels, organized into three fleets: the North Sea Fleet, the East Sea Fleet, and the South Sea Fleet.
The Metel Anti-Ship Complex is a Soviet family of anti-submarine missiles. There are different anti-submarine variants ('Metel') for cruisers and frigates, and a later version with a shaped charge ('Rastrub') that can be used against shipping as well as submarines.
The Chikugo-class destroyer escort was a class of destroyer escorts built by the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force as the successor of the Isuzu class, with the same ASW mission. This class was followed by JDS Ishikari. This is the first Japanese destroyer escort class to carry ASROC anti-submarine missiles.
An anti-submarine missile is a standoff anti-submarine weapon, often a specialized variant of anti-ship missile. Anti-submarine missile usually include a jet or rocket engine and a warhead aimed directly at a submarine. In these missiles, a torpedo or a depth charge is used as a warhead. The anti-submarine missile can be either a cruise missile or a ballistic missile.
Terne is a Norwegian anti submarine rocket system, which uses rocket-thrown depth charges. It was developed by the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) in cooperation with the U.S. Navy in the late 1940s-early 1960s. The Terne development project consisted of three phases:
The Parchim-class corvette, Soviet designation Project 1331M, was developed for the East German Navy in the late 1970s, and built by the Wolgast Peene-Werft. The ships were designed for coastal anti-submarine warfare. In case of an all-out NATO-Warsaw Pact war in Europe their prime targets would have been the small U-206 coastal submarines of the West German navy. The first ship, Wismar, was launched on 9 April 1981 in Rostock, and subsequently another 15 ships were built until 1986. To make production more economical, the Soviet Union agreed to purchase another 12 ships from Wolgaster Peenewerft built between 1986 and 1990, thereby effectively subsidising the East German shipbuilding industry.
The RUR-4 "Weapon Alpha" was an American naval ahead-throwing anti submarine rocket launcher. It was designed between 1946 and 1949, and was installed on warships from 1951 to 1969. Unlike depth charges, it was designed to attack enemy submarines without requiring the attacking ship to be located directly above the submarine being attacked.
The UGM-89 Perseus was a proposed U.S. Navy submarine-launched anti-ship (AShM) and anti-submarine (ASW) cruise missile that was developed under the Submarine Tactical Missile (STAM) project, which was also referred to as the Submarine Anti-ship Weapon System (STAWS). This missile system was to be the centerpiece for a proposed third-generation nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine championed by then-Vice Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, the influential but controversial head of the Navy's nuclear propulsion program.
INS Kadmatt (P29) is the second of four anti-submarine warfare corvettes built for the Indian Navy by the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, of Kolkata, under Project 28. She was inducted into the Eastern Naval Command of the Indian Navy.
The 375 mm ASW rocket family is an ahead-throwing anti submarine rocket system developed by Bofors. The system has three types of launcher with either two, four, or six barrels, and entered service in the 1950s. Sweden used the four-barreled system on the Halland and Visby-class destroyers. France built the four-barrelled system under licence then developed the six-barrel system and used it on many classes of warship including T 47 and T 53-class destroyers and A 69-class avisos (corvettes). The Netherlands used it in the Friesland-class destroyers. It was also used by Royal Malaysian Navy on the Kasturi-class corvettes before they removed it from the ships. Indonesia use it on its three Fatahillah-class corvettes and Brazil on six Niterói-class frigates, all of which are still in service. The rocket system is also being used by the Turkish Burak-class corvette's which are all ex-D'Estienne d'Orves-class A69 type aviso corvettes, mainly designed for coastal anti-submarine defense and ocean escort missions.
The RBU-1200 is a anti submarine rocket launcher. The weapon system is remotely similar to the British Hedgehog anti submarine mortar launcher from the Second World War.
