IRIS-T (infra-red imaging system - tail / thrust vector controlled) is an air-to-air guided missile manufactured by Diehl BGT Defence as part of a Germany-led multinational programme. The missile is intended to replace AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles used by the Nato member countries
In the 1980s, NATO countries signed a Memorandum of Agreement that the United Stateswould develop a medium-range air-to-air missile to replace the AIM-7 Sparrow, while Britain and Germanywould develop a short-range air-to-air missile to replace the AIM-9 Sidewinder. The US design developed as the AIM-120 AMRAAM, while the UK-German design developed as the AIM-132 ASRAAM
The roots of the ASRAAM dated back to 1968 when development began on the Hawker Siddeley SRAAM ('Taildog'), but this project ended in 1974 with no production orders. This work was dusted off for the UK/German effort, with the Germans providing a new seeker, and the British providing most of the remaining components. In the intervening time, the need for high manoeuvrability was downgraded in favor of greater range.
As the AIM-120 worked at long ranges well in excess of 20 miles, the very short-range Sidewinders and original Taildog left a wide performance gap that needed to be filled. The original design was re-worked to produce a much less manoeuvrable design, removing the thrust vectoring, and thereby greatly improving speed and range
After German reunification in 1990, Germany found itself with large stockpiles of the Soviet Vympel R-73 missiles (NATO reporting name: AA-11 Archer) carried by the MiG-29 Fulcrum and concluded that the AA-11's capabilities had been noticeably underestimated. In particular, it was found to be both far more manoeuvrable, and far more capable in terms of seeker acquisition and tracking than the latest AIM-9 Sidewinder. These conclusions led Germany to question certain aspects of the design of ASRAAM related to the airframe which was a British responsibility. Of particular concern was the lack of thrust vectoring to aid manoeuvrability in close-in air combat. When these concerns were raised, Germany and Britain could not come to an agreement about the design of ASRAAM, so in 1990 Germany withdrew from the ASRAAM project, while Britain resolved to find another seeker and develop ASRAAM according to the original requirements
In late 1990, the US partnership expressed similar concerns and embarked on an upgrade to the existing Sidewinder design to provide increased manoeuvrability and IRCCM (infrared counter counter measures) performance, i.e. measures to counter infrared countermeasures (IRCM). This program was designated AIM-9X.
The IRIS-T development phase began in 1998. The missile was developed by a six-nation consortium comprising European countries Germany, Greece, Norway, Italy, Spain and Sweden. Diehl BGT Defence is a prime contractor for the programme. Other major companies involved in the programme are MBDA, Hellenic Aerospace, Nammo Raufoss, Internacional de Composites and Saab Bofors Dynamics
The IRIS-T missile incorporates a tail-controlled, winged airframe design using completely newly developed components.
The main segments of the missile include the guidance section, warhead, rocket motor and control section with fins and jet vane.
The missile has an overall length of 2.94m, a body diameter of 127mm and a total weight of 89kg. It is equipped with both lock-on before launch (LOBL) and lock-on after launch (LOAL) capabilities for successful target engagement.
It can intercept flying targets within a range of 25km.
The imaging infra-red (IR) seeker with high-target tracking rate and intelligent image processing generates high-resolution images.
The missile offers 360° degree defence capability due to its very large look angle and targets can be assigned by the airborne radar or the helmet mounted sight.
The IRIS-T is equipped with a proximity fuse and a high-explosive fragmented war head delivering anti-missile capability against incoming missiles. The lock-on-after launch feature allows the engagement of targets in the rear hemisphere.
The IRIS-T missile is propelled by a solid propellant motor, developed by Nammo.The propulsion mechanism provides the missile with a maximum speed of Mach 3 and the thrust vector control module enables the missile to engage targets behind the firing aircraft.
The first IRIS-T missile fired from an F-4F acheived a successful hit in March 2002. In October 2003, Diehl BGT received the final approval from the Federal Office for Military Technology and Procurement (BWB) to start the preparations for series production. In December 2004, the BWB on behalf of all six European nations involved, placed a €1bn contract with Diehl for series production of the IRIS-T missile.
The full compatibility of the IRIS-T with the Sidewinder missile enables the usage of the IRIS-T missile on both analogue and the latest digital interfaces of advanced fighter aircraft. The missile was successfully integrated on the Lockheed Martin F-16 aircraft. The Spanish Air Force and Swedish Air Force also integrated the IRIS-T on their F/A-18 and JAS 39 Gripen aircraft respectively.
The German Air Force has started the integration of IRIS-T onto their Tornado aircraft. The integration of the IRIS-T into the Eurofighter Typhoon is currently underway as four out of five Eurofighter operators opted for the missile.
 |
The new IRIS-T SL surface-to-air guided missile is designed and developed by Diehl BGT Defence.
|
Variants of the IRIS-T missile
The IRIS-T family of missiles includes three variants: IRIS-T air-to-air guided missile, IRIS-T SL (Surface Launched) medium range guided missile and IRIS-T SLS (Surface-Launched, Short-Range) guided missile.
The IRIS-T SL is an upgraded variant with enhanced rocket motor for extended range. It can be easily integrated with existing and future air defence systems. IRIS-T SLS is a vertically launched variant which uses the same IRIS-T missile. Within the MEADS program, the German Air Force plans to integrate a land-launched radar-guided version of the missile, called IRIS-T SL. It has a pointed nose, unlike the normal IRIS-T
The IRIS-T variants are tailor-made for a variety of carrier platforms conducting air, ground and naval operations.
The Swedish Army plans to develop a ground launched version of the IRIS-T to replace the RBS 70 missile system.