SS.11

Last updated

SS.11
Ss11 01.jpg
SS.11 at the U.S. Army Redstone testing ground
Type MCLOS wire-guided anti-tank missile
Place of originFrance
Production history
Designer Nord Aviation
Designed1953
Produced1956 – mid 1980s
No. built180,000
Specifications
Mass30 kg (66 lb)
Length1,190 mm (3 ft 11 in)
Diameter165 mm (6.5 in)
Wingspan500 mm (1 ft 8 in)
Effective firing range500–3,000 m (1,600–9,800 ft)
WarheadType 140AC anti-armour
Warhead weight6.8 kg (15 lb)
Maximum speed 190 m/s (620 ft/s)
Guidance
system
 Manual command to line of sight

The SS.11 is a French manual command to line of sight wire-guided anti-tank missile manufactured by Nord Aviation. It is also available in the air-to-ground version, AS.11, which featured a stabilized sighting system. The AS.11 was also known as the AGM-22 in American service. It is among the earliest guided anti-tank missiles, entering service with the French Army in 1956 and remaining in service into the 1980s. It also formed the basis for the larger and longer-ranged SS.12/AS.12 series.

Contents

The missile was guided manually by comparing the location of the target to flares on the back of the missile and using a small joystick to adjust its flight. The original manual guidance system was replaced in 1967 to produce the Harpon version, which used SACLOS guidance using an infrared homing sensor tracking the original flares. This greatly eased the operation of the system, the operator simply had to keep the sights pointed at the target and the missile would automatically fly along the line of sight.

Production of the SS.11 and later SS.12/AS.12 series missiles ceased some time in the 1980s, by which time over 170,000 had been sold. [1] The price of the SS.11 in the late 1960s was stated at approximately $1,900 U.S. dollars. [2]

History

SS.11 anti-tank missile-launcher version of the French tank AMX-13 Amx13 ss11 010.jpg
SS.11 anti-tank missile-launcher version of the French tank AMX-13

The first combat use of the SS.11 was in 1956 by the French Air Force, fired from a Dassault MD 311 light twin-engine transport, as a method of attacking fortified caves located in steep mountain gorges during the Algerian war. The combat experiment proved extremely successful and became standard on other French Air Force MD 311s stationed in the Algerian war theater. [3] From this early combat experience in Algeria with fixed wing aircraft firing the SS.11, the French Army took note and introduced the world's first specialized combat helicopter firing antitank missiles, based on the Aérospatiale Alouette II and later the Aérospatiale Alouette III that fired both the earlier surface-to-surface SS.11 and the AS.11 developed for air-to-surface firing from aircraft, both of which saw extensive combat in that conflict from 1958 to 1962. [4]

The SS.11 was integrated with the UH-1B Huey with the US Army and even saw limited combat use in Vietnam. Een Bell UH-1 Iroquois met SS-1 draadgeleide anti-tank missiles (2157 033002).jpg
The SS.11 was integrated with the UH-1B Huey with the US Army and even saw limited combat use in Vietnam.

After the cancellation of the SSM-A-23 Dart in 1958, the United States began evaluating the SS.11, and accepted it into service in 1961 as the AGM-22A. The missile was deployed from UH-1B Huey helicopters using either the XM11 or M22 armament subsystems. In U.S. Army service, the SS.11 was used mainly to develop tactics employing antitank helicopters and to train future helicopter crews. In September 1965, 12 U.S. Army UH-1B helicopters belonging to a special unit, fitted with the XM-58 stabilized sight arrived in South Vietnam. One month later, they fired AGM-22s in combat. [5] In May 1972 in response to the North Vietnamese armor used in the Easter Offensive six UH-1s equipped with AGM-22s were deployed in Quang Tri Province. The system was rated moderately effective against tanks, but was extensively used against bunkers and fortified structures. All units were withdrawn to the U.S. by 31 October 1972. [6]

During the Arab-Israeli Six-Day War in 1967, the Israeli Army was equipped with a large number of SS.11s supplied by France. SS.11s were used during the battle of Abu-Ageila. [7]

Shooting a missile from a SS.11 VLRA French in 1971. Vlra-ss11-b-bis.jpg
Shooting a missile from a SS.11 VLRA French in 1971.

In 1966, the French Navy did an evaluation of the SS.11(M) and SS.12(M) from the fast patrol boat La Combattante . [2] In 1966, the Libyan Navy ordered three Vosper Thornycroft fast patrol boats (the Sebha, Sirte and Susa). Delivered in 1968, these were the first naval vessels to be armed with the SS.11(M) and AS.12(M) being armed with four on each side of the vessel's bridge; [8] the Libyan fast patrol boats proved that this was a very low-cost way to give long-range heavy firepower to small naval vessels. Other navies soon followed Libya and bought the SS.12(M) and SS.11(M) for their light naval vessels; among them Brunei, Ethiopia, France, Greece, Ivory Coast, Malaysia, Senegal, and Tunisia. NORD also developed a ten-missile trainable launcher for either the SS.11(M) or SS.12(M), which was sold in numbers due to its extremely cost-effective firepower for both light and medium size naval craft. [2]

During the Falklands War, both the British Army and the British Royal Marines used Westland Scout helicopters armed with the SS.11. [9] On 14 June 1982, two Army and two Marine Scouts attacked Argentine positions on the south-west outskirts of Port Stanley. Of the ten missiles fired, nine hit their targets and one was lost due to a command wire breaking. [9]

Development

Development of an improved version of the SS.10 (Nord-5203) began in 1953 as the Nord-5210. The missile was intended as a heavy version of the man-portable SS.10 for use from vehicles, ships and helicopters. The missile entered service with the French army as the designation SS.11. It was used as the first helicopter-mounted anti-tank missile in the world (on Alouette IIs). [10]

From 1962, [11] a "B" model of the missile was produced, which replaced some of the original electronics with solid state components. The transistorization improved response time and handling, which reduced the tendency to over-correct during flight. [10] This was the version used for the development of an infantry version, in which the operator carried three warheads and had a "waist belt fire-control," and three other men carried the missile minus its warhead. [2]

One of the most unusual uses of the SS.11 was that of probably the smallest anti-shipping missile in the world, with the Swedish Marines employing it in the anti-landing craft role for decades, until it was replaced by a specialized version of the AGM-114 Hellfire. It was also used by the Finnish coastal artillery for covering narrow channels in the archipelago, being replaced in this role by the Israeli SPIKE ER (Rannikko-Ohjus 06).

Description

A variety of warheads are available for the missile: [10]

On launch, the SNPE rocket booster, with two outlets on the side of the missile body, burns for 1.2 seconds, after which the Sophie sustainer engine, with single outlet in the rear of the missile body burns for 20 seconds. [2]

Unlike the earlier SS.10, which steered similarly to an airplane with small flight controls called "spoilers" located on the missiles wings, the SS.11 is steered in flight by a unique system developed by NORD for France's first air-to-air missile, the AA.20, called TVC (thrust vectoring control) in which four small vanes are located around the sustainer's exhaust, which under command momentarily push into the sustainer's thrust causing the missile to move in the direction commanded. Since the missile spins slowly in flight by having the four swept wings slightly offset, a gyroscope is needed to determine the missile's relative orientation to the ground, that is, up, down and right, left. Unlike the earlier spoiler flight control, TVC is a far more precise method of controlling a missile in flight. TVC has been copied by other missile designs, including the Russians with their 9M14 Malyutka (NATO name: AT-3 Sagger) and the Euromissile HOT and MILAN developed by joint venture of the French and Germans. [2]

Due to the manual nature of the guidance, called MCLOS, where the operator had to first gain control of the missile and bring it into his line of sight with the target, engagements of targets at short range were poor, but beyond 500 meters accuracy was good to excellent for a well trained operator. In 1967 (by which time NORD had been merged with Aerospatiale), a version of the SS.11, called Harpon, was developed with a much improved guidance system called SACLOS in which the missile is automatically tracked in flight and brought to the gunner's line of sight. This guidance system drastically increases the SS.11 accuracy, especially at engagement ranges of less than 500 meters. [2]

Models

Operators

See also

Notes

    Related Research Articles

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-tank guided missile</span> Guided missile for combat against armored targets

    An anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), anti-tank missile, anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) or anti-armor guided weapon is a guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy heavily armored military vehicles. ATGMs range in size from shoulder-launched weapons, which can be transported by a single soldier, to larger tripod-mounted weapons, which require a squad or team to transport and fire, to vehicle and aircraft mounted missile systems.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">AGM-114 Hellfire</span> American air-to-surface missile

    The AGM-114 Hellfire is an American air-to-surface missile (ASM) first developed for anti-armor use, later developed for precision drone strikes against other target types, especially high-value targets. It was originally developed under the name "Heliborne laser, fire-and-forget missile", which led to the colloquial name "Hellfire" ultimately becoming the missile's formal name. It has a multi-mission, multi-target precision-strike ability and can be launched from multiple air, sea, and ground platforms, including the MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper. The Hellfire missile is the primary 100-pound (45 kg) class air-to-ground precision weapon for the armed forces of the United States and many other nations. It has also been fielded on surface platforms in the surface-to-surface and surface-to-air roles.

    Semi-automatic command to line of sight (SACLOS) is a method of missile command guidance. In SACLOS, the operator must continually point a sighting device at the target while the missile is in flight. Electronics in the sighting device and/or the missile then guide it to the target.

    Manual command to line of sight is a method for guiding guided missiles.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Javelin (surface-to-air missile)</span> British man-portable surface-to-air missile

    Javelin is a British man-portable surface-to-air missile, formerly used by the British Army and Canadian Army. It can be fired from the shoulder, or from a dedicated launcher named the Lightweight Multiple Launcher (LML), that carries three rounds, and can be vehicle mounted.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">BGM-71 TOW</span> American anti-tank missile

    The BGM-71 TOW is an American anti-tank missile. TOW replaced much smaller missiles like the SS.10 and ENTAC, offering roughly twice the effective range, a more powerful warhead, and a greatly improved semi-automatic command to line of sight (SACLOS) that could also be equipped with infrared cameras for night time use.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Eurocopter AS565 Panther</span> Military utility helicopter

    The EurocopterAS565 Panther is the military version of the Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin medium-weight multi-purpose twin-engine helicopter. The Panther is used for a wide range of military roles, including combat assault, fire support, anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, search and rescue, and medical evacuation.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Attack helicopter</span> Ground-attack military helicopter

    An attack helicopter is an armed helicopter with the primary role of an attack aircraft, with the offensive capability of engaging ground targets such as enemy infantry, military vehicles and fortifications. Due to their heavy armament they are sometimes called helicopter gunships.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Brimstone (missile)</span> British air-to-surface missile

    Brimstone is a ground or air-launched ground attack missile developed by MBDA UK for the UK's Royal Air Force. It was originally intended for "fire-and-forget" use against mass formations of enemy armour, using a millimetre wave (mmW) active radar homing seeker to ensure accuracy even against moving targets. Experience in Afghanistan led to the addition of laser guidance in the dual-mode Brimstone missile, allowing a "spotter" to pick out specific and the highest priority targets, particularly useful to minimise collateral damage when friendly forces or civilians were in the area. The tandem shaped-charge warhead is much more effective against modern tanks than older similar weapons such as the AGM-65G Maverick missile. Three Brimstones are carried on a launcher that occupies a single weapon station, allowing a single aircraft to carry many missiles.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Eryx (missile)</span> Anti-tank guided missile

    Eryx is a French short-range portable semi-automatic command to line of sight (SACLOS) based wire-guided anti-tank missile (ATGM) manufactured by MBDA France and by MKEK under licence. The weapon can also be used against larger bunkers and smaller pillboxes. It also has some anti-aircraft warfare ability, to bring down low flying helicopters, due to its wire-guidance system. An agreement was reached in 1989 between the French and Canadian governments to coproduce the Eryx missile system.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">HOT (missile)</span> French/German anti-tank missile

    The HOT is a second-generation long-range anti-tank missile system. It was originally developed to replace the older SS.11 wire guided missile in French and West German service. The design was a collaboration between the German firm Bölkow and the French firm Nord. Bölkow and Nord later merged into MBB and Aérospatiale respectively, both of which then formed Euromissile to design and produce the MILAN, Roland and HOT. This ultimately became part of MBDA.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">9M14 Malyutka</span> Anti-tank missile

    The 9M14 Malyutka is a manual command to line of sight (MCLOS) wire-guided anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) system developed in the Soviet Union. It was the first man-portable anti-tank guided missile of the Soviet Union and is probably the most widely produced ATGM of all time—with Soviet production peaking at 25,000 missiles a year during the 1960s and 1970s. In addition, copies of the missile have been manufactured under various names by at least six countries.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">3M6 Shmel</span> 1950s Soviet anti-tank missile

    The 3M6 Shmel is an MCLOS wire-guided anti-tank missile of the Soviet Union. Its GRAU designation is "3M6" and its NATO reporting name is AT-1 Snapper.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">9K114 Shturm</span> Soviet/Russian anti-tank missile system

    9K114 Shturm - is a SACLOS radio guided anti-tank missile system of the Soviet Union. Its GRAU designation is 9K114. Its NATO reporting name is AT-6 Spiral. The missile itself is known as the 9M114 Kokon (Cocoon).

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">9M120 Ataka</span> Soviet/Russian anti-tank guided missile

    The 9M120 Ataka is an anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) originating from the Soviet Union. The NATO reporting name of the 9M120 missile is the AT-9 Spiral-2. It is the next major generation in the 9K114 Shturm family. The missile has radio command guidance and is also a beam riding SACLOS. This missile's primary variant was designed to defeat tanks with composite armour and explosive reactive armor. The 9M120 Ataka system is often confused with the 9K121 Vikhr system, despite being different weapons systems developed by different companies. The former was designed by the KBM machine-building design bureau and manufactured by the Degtyarev plant. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Russia exported the Ataka ATGM to Iran, Kazakhstan, and Slovenia.

    The SS.12 and AS.12 are two variants of the same missile: SS for surface-to-surface and AS for air-to-surface. It was designed in 1955–1957 by Nord Aviation, later Aérospatiale. It was a derivative of the NORD SS.10 and SS.11 missiles which were surface-to-surface wire-guided missiles for use by infantry, vehicle or a helicopter primarily in the anti-tank role, but also anti-material, anti-personnel and against light field fortifications. The SS.12/AS.12 was basically a scaled-up version of the SS.11/AS.11, with a massive increase in range and warhead weight. The SS.12/AS.12 original mission was primarily to be anti-shipping from naval helicopters and combat aircraft or ground launchers, and secondarily for use against heavy field fortifications. The range and the destructive power of its warhead are roughly equivalent to a 127 mm (5-inch) artillery shell.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">9K112 Kobra</span> Anti-tank missile

    The 9K112 Kobra is a SACLOS anti-tank missile system of the Soviet Union. It is fired from the 125 mm main guns of the T-64 and T-80 series of tanks. A newer design based on the same concept is the 9M119.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">9M123 Khrizantema</span> Anti-tank guided missile

    The 9M123 Khrizantema is a Russian anti-tank guided missile (ATGM). Khrizantema was designed to deal with current and future generations of main battle tanks and can also be used to engage slow and low flying aerial targets like helicopters. The 9M123 missile, and its associated guidance system, forms the 9K123 missile system.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Military helicopter</span> Helicopter which is built or converted for use by military forces

    A military helicopter is a helicopter that is either specifically built or converted for use by military forces. A military helicopter's mission is a function of its design or conversion. The most common use of military helicopters is transport of troops, but transport helicopters can be modified or converted to perform other missions such as combat search and rescue (CSAR), medical evacuation (MEDEVAC), airborne command post, or even armed with weapons for attacking ground targets. Specialized military helicopters are intended to conduct specific missions. Examples of specialized military helicopters are attack helicopters, observation helicopters and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters.

    References

    1. ↑ "Missiles". Flight International. 15 November 1980. p. 1888. Archived from the original on 18 October 2017.
    2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gunston, Bill (1978). Rockets & Missiles. Salamander Books Ltd. pp. 239–240.
    3. ↑ "COIN: French Counter-Insurgency Aircraft, 1946-1965". worldatwar.net.
    4. ↑ Venter, Al J (1977). The Chopper Boys - Helicopter Warfare in Africa. Greenhill Books. p. 42.
    5. ↑ Everett-Heath, Col. E. J. (1983). "The Development of Helicopter Air to Ground Weapons". International Defense Review (3): 323.
    6. ↑ "United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam 1972-1973 Command History Annex B" (PDF). United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. 15 July 1973. p. B-48. Retrieved 10 September 2020.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
    7. ↑ Gawrych, G.W. Key to the Sinai, The Battles for Abu-Ageila in the 1956 and 1967 Arab-Israeli Wars (PDF). Combat Studies Institute, Research Survey. p. 103. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 August 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
    8. ↑ Jane's Fighting Ships 1976-77 page 214
    9. 1 2 Burden 1986, pp.34-342
    10. 1 2 3 Helicopters at War - Blitz Editions, Page, 63, ISBN   1-85605-345-8
    11. ↑ R.T. Pretty; D.H.R. Archer. Jane's Weapon Systems 1969-70.
    External images
    Nord SS.11
    Searchtool.svg SS.11 firing from AMX-13 tank
    Searchtool.svg SS.11 on ground mount
    Searchtool.svg SS.11 Fitted to U.S. Army UH-1
    Searchtool.svg SS.11 HEAT warhead
    This page is based on this Wikipedia article
    Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
    Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.