Kh-59
| Kh-59 Ovod (NATO reporting name: AS-13 'Kingbolt') Kh-59M Ovod-M (AS-18 'Kazoo') |
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 Kh-59MK2 at MACS 2009 |
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| Type | air-to-surface missile anti-shipping missile |
| Place of origin | Soviet Union |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1991-current |
| Used by | Russia,China, India |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Raduga |
| Manufacturer | Tactical Missiles Corporation |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 930 kg (2,050 lb)[1] |
| Length | 570 cm (220 in) [1] |
| Diameter | 38.0 cm (15.0 in) [1] |
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| Warhead | Cluster or shaped-charge fragmentation[1] |
| Warhead weight | 320 kg (705 lb) [4] |
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| Engine | Kh-59 :two-stage rocket Kh-59ME :rocket then turbofan |
| Wingspan | 130 cm (51.2 in) [1] |
| Operational range |
Kh-59ME(export) :115 km (62 nmi)[1] Kh-59ME : 200 km (110 nmi) Kh-59MK : 285 km (150 nmi) |
| Speed | Mach 0.72-0.88[1] |
| Guidance system |
inertial (then TV-guided), millimeter wave radar seeker (Kh-59MK, Kh-59MK2 land attack version)[2] |
| Launch platform |
Kh-59ME :Su-30MK[1] Kh-59 : Su-24M, MiG-27, Su-17M3/22M4, Su-25 and Su-30[3] |
The Kh-59 Ovod (Russian: Х-59 Овод 'Gadfly'; AS-13 'Kingbolt') is a Russian TV-guided cruise missile with a two-stage solid-fuel propulsion system and 115 km range. The Kh-59M Ovod-M (AS-18 'Kazoo') is a variant with a bigger warhead and turbojet engine. It is primarily a land-attack missile but the Kh-59MK variant targets shipping.[2]
Contents |
[edit] Development
The initial design was based on the Raduga Kh-58 (AS-11 'Kilter'), but it had to be abandoned[citation needed] because the missile speed was too high for visual target acquisition.
Raduga OKB developed the Kh-59 in the 1970s as a longer ranged version of the Kh-25 (AS-10 'Karen'),[5] as a precision stand-off weapon for the Su-24M and late-model Mig-27's.[3]. The electro-optical sensors for this and other weapons such as the Kh-29 (AS-14 'Kedge') and KAB-500 Kr bombs were developed by S A Zverev NPO in Krasnogorsk.[5]
It is believed that development of the Kh-59M started in the 1980s.[2]. Details of the Kh-59M were first revealed in the early 1990s.[2]
[edit] Design
The original Kh-59 is propelled by a powder-fuel engine, and incorporates a powder-fuel accelerator in the tail. The folding stabilizers are located in the front of the missile, with wings and rudder in the rear. The Kh-59 cruises at an altitude of about 7 meters above water or 100-1,000 meters above ground with the help of a radar altimeter. It can be launched at speeds of 600 to 1,000 km/h at altitudes of 0.2 to 11 kilometers and has a CEP of 2 to 3 meters.[4] It is carried on an AKU-58-1 launch pylon.[3]
The Kh-59ME has an external turbofan engine below the body just forward of the rear wings, but retains the powder-fuel accelerator. It also has a dual guidance system consisting of an inertial guidance system to guide it into the target area and a television system to guide it to the target itself.[1]
The 36MT turbofan engine developed for the Kh-59M class of missiles is manufactured by NPO Saturn of Russia.[6]
Target coordinates are fed into the missile before launch, and the initial flight phase is conducted under inertial guidance. At a distance of 10 km from the target the television guidance system is activated. An operator aboard the aircraft visually identifies the target and locks the missile onto it.
[edit] Operational history
Although the original Kh-59 could be carried by the MiG-27, Su-17M3, Su-22M4, Su-24M, Su-25 and Su-30 family if they carried an APK-9 datalink pod, it was only fielded on the Su-24M in Russian service.[3]
[edit] Variants
- Kh-59 (AS-13 'Kingbolt') - original version with dual solid-fuel rocket engines. First shown in 1991; exported as Kh-59 or Kh-59E.[5]
- Kh-59M (AS-18 'Kazoo') - adds turbojet engine and larger warhead. Range 115 km.[1]
- Kh-59ME - 200 km-range variant offered for export in 1999.[2]
- Kh-59MK - 285 km-range anti-shipping variant with turbofan engine and ARGS-59 active radar seeker.[2]
- Kh-59MK2 - Land attack variant of Kh-59MK (fire-and-forget).[2]
- Kh-59M2 - Kh-59M/Kh-59MK with new TV/IIR seekers, reported in 2004.[2]
- Kh-20 - possible name for nuclear-tipped variant carried by Su-27 family.[2]
- Kh-59L - laser-guided variant that was developed but may not have been deployed. Kh-59T was the parallel name for the TV-guided version that became the basic Kh-59.[3]
Proposed development options for the Kh-59M/ME have included alternative payloads (including cluster munitions) but their current development status is unclear.[7][3]
[edit] Operators
[edit] Former operators
[edit] Similar weapons
- AGM-84E/H/K Standoff Land Attack Missile
- AGM-62 Walleye II - TV-guided glide bomb with 83 km range
- Kh-37 variant of Kh-35U (AS-20 'Kayak') - 145 kg warhead, 250 km range
- Kh-58 (AS-11 'Kilter') - Raduga anti-radar missile, 120 km range
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rosoboronexport Air Force Department and Media & PR Service, AEROSPACE SYSTEMS export catalogue, Rosoboronexport State Corporation, p. 124, http://www.rusarm.ru/cataloque/air_craft/aircraft.pdf
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Kh-59M, Kh-59ME Ovod-M (AS-18 'Kazoo')", Jane's Air-Launched Weapons, 2010-12-03, http://articles.janes.com/articles/Janes-Air-Launched-Weapons/Kh-59M-Kh-59ME-Ovod-M-AS-18-Kazoo-Russian-Federation.html, retrieved 2011-04-28
- ^ a b c d e f Kh-59 Ovod (AS-13 'Kingbolt'), 2007-10-24, http://www.janes.com/articles/Janes-Air-Launched-Weapons/Kh-59-Ovod-AS-13-Kingbolt-Russian-Federation.html, retrieved 2009-02-03
- ^ a b "Raduga Kh-59 (AS-13 Kingbolt) and Kh-59M (AS-18 Kazoo)". http://personal.inet.fi/cool/foxfour/sovmis/sovmis-as.html. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
- ^ a b c "Kh-59 (AS-13 'Kingbolt'/Ovod)", Jane's Strategic Weapon Systems, 2008-09-09, http://www.janes.com/articles/Janes-Strategic-Weapon-Systems/Kh-59-AS-13-KingboltOvod-Russian-Federation.html, retrieved 2009-02-03
- ^ "Saturn military engines for unmanned aerial vehicles". NPO Saturn website. http://www.npo-saturn.ru/?pid=95. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
- ^ Wiebe, Virgil; Titus Peachey (2000). "Clusters of Death". The Mennonite Central Committee Global Report on Cluster Bomb Production and Use. Mennonite Central Committee. http://clusterbombs.mcc.org/clusterbombs/resources/research/death/chapter2.html. Retrieved 28 April 2011. "Also known as the Kh-59M Ovod-M, the AS-18 is modernized version of AS-13 Kingbolt ... The warhead can be either a 705-lb high explosive or 617-lb cluster submunitions."
[edit] References
- Gordon, Yefim (2004), Soviet/Russian Aircraft Weapons Since World War Two, Hinckley, England: Midland Publishing, ISBN 1-85780-188-1
