avia.wikisort.org - Weapon

The Vympel R-37 (NATO reporting name: AA-13 "Axehead")[1] is a Russian hypersonic air-to-air missile with very long range. The missile and its variants also had the names K-37, izdeliye 610 and RVV-BD (Ракета Воздух-Воздух Большой Дальности (Raketa Vozduh-Vozduh Bolshoy Dalnosti), "Long range air-to-air missile"), and the NATO codenames "Axehead" and "Andi".[2] It was developed from the R-33.

Vympel R-37M NATO reporting name: AA-13 Axehead
R-37M at 2013 MAKS Airshow
Type	Long range, air-to-air BVR missile
Place of origin	Russia
Service history
In service	2019
Used by	Russian Air Force
Production history
Designer	Tactical Missiles Corporation
Designed	1980s
Manufacturer	Tactical Missiles Corporation
Produced	1985
Variants	R-37M
Specifications
Mass	600 kilograms (1,320 lb)
Length	4.20 metres (13 ft 9 in)
Diameter	38 centimetres (15 in)
Warhead	HE, fragmenting
Warhead weight	60 kg (135 lb)
Wingspan	0.7 m (2 ft 4 in)
Propellant	Boost-Sustain Solid Rocket
Operational range	150–398 km [1]
Maximum speed	Mach 5 – Mach 6 (6,100–7,400 km/h; 3,800–4,600 mph)
Guidance system	Inertial with mid-course update, semi-active and active radar homing

It is designed to shoot down tankers, AWACS and other C4ISTAR aircraft[1] while keeping the launch platform out of range of any fighters that might be protecting the target.

History

The missile was designed in the early 1980s and first flown in 1989.[2] Testing of the R-37 continued through the 1990s,[2] and in 1994, a trial round scored a kill at a range of 162 nautical miles (300 km).[1] However, the program appears to have been dropped around 1998 on grounds of cost.[2]

Work on the missile appears to have restarted in late 2006,[2] as part of the MiG-31BM program to update the Foxhound with a new radar and ground attack capability.[2]

In 2018, the R-37M had finished its operational validation tests.[3][4]

On October 19, 2022, Russian media claimed that the Su 57 Stealth fighter shot a Ukrainian Su 27 using the R37m missile.[5]^{[unreliable source?]}

MiG-31BM have reportedly shot down Ukrainian fighters using R-37M missiles

Production

The R-37 is now in production to equip upgraded Russian MiG-31BM interceptor.

Design

The R-37 was developed from the R-33. For compatibility with aircraft that did not have the MiG-31's sophisticated radar, the semi-active seeker was replaced with a variant of the Agat 9B-1388 active seeker.[1] Similarly, folding tail controls allow semi-conformal carriage[1] on planes that are not as big as the MiG-31.

Mid-body strakes enhance lift[1] hence increases range. According to Defence Today, the range depends on the flight profile, from 80 nautical miles (150 km) for a direct shot[1] to 215 nautical miles (398 km) for a cruise glide profile.[1] According to Jane's speculation there could be two variants, the R-37 and the R-37M; the latter has a jettisonable rocket booster that increases the range to "300–400 km" (160–220 nm).[2]

The R-37M designation has since been used for a modernized variant of the missile, also known as RVV-BD (Raketa Vozduh-Vozduh Bolyshoy Dalnosty, or Long-Range Air-to-Air Missile). R-37M's range exceeds 200 km, and it is capable of hypersonic speed (~Mach 5) in the final stage of its flight.[6] It will be carried by the modernized MiG-31BM interceptors and Su-35S and Su-57 multirole fighters.[7] It is not known whether the long-range air-to-air missile for the Su-57, designated as Izdeliye 810, is a derivative of the R-37M.^{[citation needed]}

The missile can attack targets at altitudes of 15–25,000 meters, guided semi-actively or actively through the Agat 9B-1388 system.[8]

Operational History

The R-37M has, since October 2022, been the main threat against the Ukrainian Air Force. The Ukrainian Air Force has a significant lack of fire and forget missiles. They relied on the R-27 missiles, both the R-27ER and R-27ET, the R-27ET's range is 60 miles. The Ukrainian pilot must illuminate the Russian aircraft with their radar to guide the missile to the target. Russian pilots firing active radar, fire and forget, R-77 give the Russian pilots the ability to launch their missiles and then take evasive action. Ukrainian pilots were forced to "exploit ground clutter and terrain-masking to get close enough to fire before being engaged".

During the first three days of the war both sides lost aircraft. The Ukrainians replaced them with older airframes that were made flyable. However the Russian Air Force turned to the MiG-31 with the R-37M missile that has a range of 200 miles. Combined with its superior radar, on the MiG-31, the Ukrainian Air Force has started losing more aircraft. A report by the Royal United Services Institute states that in October some six R-37Ms were being fired at the Ukrainian Air Force a day. The Su-35S is also used as a carrier for the R-37M. Four MiG-31 were also deployed to Crimea. Due to the protection offered by the range of R-37M missiles Ukraine has been forced to try and attack the air bases directly to destroy MiG-31s with the attack on the before the attack on the Belbek airbase and an attempted drone attack in August. Only one MiG-31 has been lost due to an accident.

In August Russian forces maintained a Combat Air Patrol of either a pair of Su-35S or MiG-31s on station to shoot down Ukrainian aircraft. Since Ukrainian forces launched a counteroffensive in August they have lost "four MiG-29s, six Su-25s, a Su-24, and one Su-27". The Royal United Services Institute has credited most of the kills to the R-37M writing: “The VKS has been firing up to six R-37Ms per day during October. The extremely high speed of the weapon, coupled with very long effective range and a seeker designed for engaging low-altitude targets, makes it particularly difficult to evade,” [9] [10] [11] [12] [13]

Similar weapons

• AIM-54 Phoenix
• AIM-152 AAAM
• AIM-260 JATM
• KS-172
• PL-21
• Long-Range Engagement Weapon
• Meteor (missile)
• Astra Mark 3

References

External links

• R-37 at airwar.ru

На других языках

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[de] Wympel R-37

Die R-37 (russisch Вымпел Р-37) ist eine Luft-Luft-Langstreckenrakete aus russischer Produktion. Der NATO-Codename lautet AA-13 Axehead.

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- [en] R-37 (missile)

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[fr] Vympel R-37

Le R-37, nom de code OTAN : AA-X-13 / AA-13 « Arrow », est un missile air-air russe à longue portée fabriqué par la firme Vympel, destiné à éliminer ou dissuader les avions de surveillance et les ravitailleurs.

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[it] R-37

Il Vympel R-37 (nome in codice NATO: AA-X-13/AA-13 Arrow)[2] è un missile aria-aria Russo a lunga gittata. Il missile e le sue varianti sono anche conosciuti come K-37, izdeliye 610 e R-VD (Raketa-Vysokaya Dalnost, "Missile a lunga gittata") e in occidente con il codice NATO di 'Andi'.[3] Fu sviluppato a partire dal missile R-33.

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[ru] Р-37

Р-37 (по кодификации НАТО AA-13 «Arrow», буквально «Стрела») — советско-российская ракета класса «воздух—воздух» большой дальности (более 300 км). (РВВ-БД в экспортном варианте, до 200 км).

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