Military Knowledge: R-73 Air-to-Air Missile

Military Knowledge: R-73 Air-to-Air Missile

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Originally published by IslamicWorldNews

The R-73 missile is a short-range, infrared-guided air-to-air missile designed by Vympel NPO. Entering service in 1984, it is known in NATO designation as the AA-11 Archer.

Work on the R-73 began in 1973, with the goal of replacing the R-60 (AA-8 ‘Aphid’) missile. The R-60 was considered the lightest infrared missile in the world, weighing only 43.5 kilograms, but its small warhead of 3 kilograms made it largely ineffective against fighter aircraft. After twelve years of development, the R-73 entered service with the Soviet Air Force in 1985.

At the nose of the R-73 is an infrared seeker, responsible for directly tracking the target. Behind it are four proximity fuzes, which allow the missile to detonate when it comes close to the target. Following this section are two rows of canards, placed sequentially, enabling rapid directional changes. Next comes the control unit and additional sensors, followed by the warhead, then the solid-fuel propellant and rocket motor. At the rear, in addition to the motor, the missile is equipped with four stabilizing fins to ensure flight stability.

Military Knowledge: R-73 Air-to-Air Missile

R-73 missile components

The seeker of the R-73 missile is an infrared seeker that tracks the heat emitted by aircraft—particularly from the engine section—and can detect targets up to 60 degrees off the missile’s central line of sight. The R-73 also features an “off-boresight” capability. This means that a helmet-mounted sight (HMS) allows the pilot to simply look at a target and fire, without turning the aircraft toward it. In this mode, the missile rotates in the direction of the pilot’s gaze, locks on with its nose-mounted seeker, and then attacks the target.

After the reunification of Germany in 1990, several R-73 missiles came into the possession of the United States. Tests revealed that the R-73 was superior to the American AIM-9M Sidewinder. Compared to the Sidewinder M variant, the R-73 demonstrated greater maneuverability and stronger target acquisition and tracking capabilities. However, its performance was degraded in cloudy conditions. This limitation prompted the development of newer short-range infrared missiles such as the AIM-132 ASRAAM, IRIS-T, MICA IR, Python IV, and AIM-9X, all designed to surpass the R-73.

Military Knowledge: R-73 Air-to-Air Missile

R-73 missile (AA-11 Archer)

The R-73 missile has been produced since 1994 under the designation R-73M, also known as R-74EM, and entered service with the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in 1997. This upgraded missile was designed to resist Infrared Counter-Counter Measures (IRCCM). It is carried by aircraft such as the MiG-29, Su-27, Su-34, and Su-35, and can also be deployed by newer versions of the MiG-21, MiG-23, Su-24, and Su-25. Additionally, it is compatible with Russian attack helicopters including the Mil Mi-24, Mil Mi-28, and Kamov Ka-50. India has also sought to integrate this missile into its light combat aircraft.

In 2009, a version called RVV-MD was introduced as the export model of the R-74 (izdeliye 740). These missiles are expected to complement earlier R-73 variants still in service.

An enhanced version was unveiled in 2016 under the name R-74M (izdeliye 750). This model features fully digital, reprogrammable systems and is designed for use on advanced fighters such as the MiG-35, MiG-29K/M/M2, Su-27SM, Su-30MK, and Su-35S.

Military Knowledge: R-73 Air-to-Air Missile

An image of the RVV-MD missile, an export version of the R-74M, with its infrared seeker in its nose and control fins

A more advanced version, designated R-74M2 (izdeliye 760), has been developed specifically for the fifth-generation Su-57 fighter jet. This missile is equipped with an inertial navigation system, features a smaller radar cross-section, and its fin span has been reduced to 434 millimeters to fit inside the Su-57’s internal weapons bay.

The R-74M2 incorporates Infrared Counter-Countermeasure (IRCCM) technology, designed to achieve performance comparable to the AIM-9X, IRIS-T, and ASRAAM. Testing of the R-74M2 was completed in 2019, and its export version, known as RVV-MD2, was unveiled in 2023.

Military Knowledge: R-73 Air-to-Air Missile

Military Knowledge: R-73 Air-to-Air Missile

RVV-MD2 mock-up at the 2023 Dubai Airshow

A futuristic design project known as K-MD (izdeliye 300) is currently under development as a short-range air-to-air missile intended for close combat. It is expected that this version will eventually replace the R-74M2.

The Yemeni military also possesses a variant of this missile, designated Thaqib-1, which has been modified for use as a surface-to-air defense weapon. This version was unveiled by Yemen in March 2020 and has reportedly achieved several successful interceptions of fighter aircraft and drones.

Specifications of the R-73 Air-to-Air Missile

Type: Short-range air-to-air missile
Designer: Former Soviet Union and Russian Federation
Manufacturer: Vympel NPO
Design Year: 1973
Service Entry: 1985
Length: 2.93 meters
Wingspan: 0.51 meters (51 cm)
Diameter: 0.165 meters (16.5 cm)
Weight: 105 kilograms
Engine: Single-stage solid-fuel rocket motor
Range: Up to 30 kilometers
Speed: Maximum of Mach 2.5
Warhead: 7.4 kilograms
Guidance: Passive infrared homing with proximity fuse
Seeker Off-Boresight Angle: ±45° to ±75° depending on variant
Launch Platforms: MiG-29, Su-27, Su-34, Su-35; selected versions of MiG-21, MiG-23, Su-24, Su-25 and Mil Mi-24, Mil Mi-28, Kamov Ka-50


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guber peenut bundy

americunts invent swiss cheese

hash
hashed
Sarah

i get paid $7000 per post on x
from israeli.com

Felix

hahahaha you’ obviously know nothing about jews.

Felix

no they modelled it on your orifice. .

Patrick

btw princess anne was in queensland last week fir dome reason ,unknown and then headed off to singapore meanwhile eddy’s wife s down in peru 🇵🇪 jetsetting too ..the princess ,duchess of edinburgh, countess of wessex and wife of the head of freemasonry..what would she want to do in peru?

Patrick

a temple for the worship of man .you tube.
see the shiny balls ,is there 3 one for the first, and one for the second and one for the third world too? do they govern
them all .? shiny balls that reflect the god created man in his own image?

Patrick

33 degrees of the sun in the ceiling which is inverted eye from below .etcetera .everywhere a sign read the signs.

Patrick

33 degrees of the sun in the ceiling which is inverted eye from below .etcetera .everywhere a sign read the signs.
every word ever issued even whispered becomes light ( not visible to our eyes ) which escape into the universe as energy for eternity all energy, like gold and water us immutable, cannot be created or destroyed. according to science

Felix

as if they couldn’t use ai

Felix

thanks to our wonderful friends in science class. ❤️

hash
hashed
player- unknown

nice missile but air combat is being won by bvr missiles for the last 50 years , and soviet engineers completely mismanaged this issue .. bvr missiles were never integrated into mig21,integrating 25km range r-27 into mig23 instead of 70km r40, same with mig29 … mig29 could not even carry r27 with drop tanks ..whole generations of useless planes ..no wonder reagan never took the ussr military seriously

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Wake UP

the r-77 is russia’s counterpart to the aim-120 amraam, with newer variants like the k-77m featuring advanced active electronically scanned array (aesa) seekers and longer ranges. the r-37m is a much longer-range missile designed to engage targets like awacs aircraft, with an operational range of up to 400 kilometers for domestic variants.

player- unknown

my post was about the cold war , russian post-cold war bvr missiles are irrelevant bcs of american yf-22 designed from the get go as fully functional, flying in 1990 . ruaf has no chance against f22 at all.. tens of billions of wasted funds for useless non-stealth fighters

Антон

ha-ha, you are funny. ask then, why regime of washington produced just 188 f-22 instead ~800 and why they reviving production of f-15, if f-22 so brilliant?

player- unknown

bcs it is more than enough to wipe out any and every non-stealth air force in the world

Антон

sure, the grape was green… this is not the answer for f-15 reviving. looks like 188 f-22 not enough. and this is really not enough even close.

Антон

true. proven combat range of r-37 is 230 km. now its the longest strike in air combats. distance over 200 km was also achieved by s-400 against 4th generation fighters of rural nazis. both missiles can fly even further. india claim shot down of awacs at 314 km distance. rvv-ae or aam-mr (air to air missile of medium range) can fly up to 190 km in r-77m variant with aesa. though combat range depends from several parameters, technical data is a landmark.

player- unknown

r-37 is the so-called awacs killer , but predictably it didn´t kill any awacs , the whole russian air war doctrine was wrong ..why they didn´t put r-37 radar and guidance system on 800km range onyx missile , or 1000km x-32 … because of negligence ofc

Антон

don’t stop you funny crap, please!