9K34 Strela-3
| 9K34 Strela-3 | |
|---|---|
 A 9K34 Strela-3 (SA-14) missile and launch tube. | |
| Type | Man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS) |
| Place of origin | Soviet Union |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1974–present |
| Used by | See Operators |
| Wars | |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | KBM, Kolomna |
| Specifications | |
| Mass |
|
| Length | 1.47 metres (4.8 ft) |
Operational range | 4,500 metres (14,800 ft) |
| Flight altitude | 1,800 metres (5,900 ft) vs. jets 3,000 metres (9,800 ft) vs. slow moving targets |
| Maximum speed | 470 metres per second (1,700 km/h; 1,100 mph) |
The 9K34 Strela-3 (Russian: 9К34 «Стрела-3», 'arrow', NATO reporting name: SA-14 Gremlin) is a man-portable air defense missile system (MANPADS) developed in the Soviet Union as a response to the poor performance of the earlier 9K32 Strela-2 (SA-7 Grail) system. The missile was largely based on the earlier Strela 2, and thus development proceeded rapidly. The new weapon was accepted into service in the Soviet Army in January 1974.
Description
[edit]The most significant change over the Strela 2 was the introduction of an all-new infra-red homing seeker head. The new seeker worked on FM modulation (con-scan) principle, which is less vulnerable to jamming and decoy flares than the earlier AM (spin-scan) seekers, which were easily fooled by flares and even the most primitive infrared jammers. The new seeker also introduced detector element cooling in the form of a pressurized nitrogen bottle attached to the launcher.
The effect of cooling was to expand the seeker's lead sulphide detector element's sensitivity range to longer wavelengths (slightly over 4 μm as opposed to 2.8 μm of uncooled PbS elements). In practice this made possible the tracking of cooler targets over longer ranges, and enabled forward-hemisphere engagement of jets under favourable circumstances. The seeker also had better tracking rate, enabling the missile to track maneuvering of fast and approaching targets.
A negative side effect from the aforementioned improvements was increased missile weight, which caused a slight decrease in the kinematic performance of the original Strela-2 (SA-7). [citation needed] Against relatively slow, low-altitude battlefield air threats the overall effectiveness was much improved.[citation needed]
Strela-3 missiles have been exported to over 30 countries.
The original Strela-3 missile was the 9M36. The follow-on to the Strela-3 was Igla.
The naval version of this missile has the NATO reporting name of SA-N-8.
Operational history
[edit] |
Iraq
[edit]On 22 November 2003 an Airbus A300 cargo plane was hit by a Strela-3 missile after takeoff from Baghdad International Airport, but managed to land safely despite losing hydraulic power.
On 6 May 2006, a British Westland Lynx AH.7 of the Royal Navy from 847 Squadron was shot down with a Strela-3 over Basra, killing five crewmen and crashing into a house.[1]
Georgia
[edit]During the War in Abkhazia (1992–1993), a Russian Mi-8 helicopter was shot down by a Georgian Army SA-14 on December 14, 1992, resulting in the death of 3 crew and 58 passengers, most of them Russian refugees. A Georgian Air Force Su-25 was shot down over Nizhnaya Eshera on 4 July 1993 by SA-14,[2] and several other aircraft on both sides may have been shot down by SA-14s.[3]
Former Yugoslavia
[edit]A British Sea Harrier FRS1 of 801 Naval Air Squadron, operating from aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal on 16 April 1994, was shot down during its attack on two Republika Srpska T-55 tanks in Bosnia. The pilot, Lieutenant Nick Richardson, ejected and landed in territory controlled by friendly Bosnian Muslims.
DRC Congo
[edit]A Zimbabwe Air Force Il-76 was shot down by Congolese rebels using an SA-14 on 11 October 1998 during the Second Congo War, resulting in the death of 40 troops and crew.[4]
Afghanistan
[edit]SA-14s used by the Northern Alliance are credited with having shot down 8 Taliban MiG-21 and Su-22 fighters during the Taliban's 2000 offensive against Taloqan.[5]
Turkey
[edit]A SA-14 (9K34 Strela-3) MANPADS was found during Operation Claw (2019-2020) in June 2019 in the Hakurk region of northern Iraq belonging to the PKK.[citation needed]
Operators
[edit]Current
[edit]Angola[6]
Azerbaijan[7]
Bosnia and Herzegovina[8]
Croatia[9]
Cuba[10]
Georgia[11]
Iran[12]
Jordan[13]
Nicaragua[14]
North Korea[15]
Peru[16]
Russia − Used by Ground Forces and Airborne units.[17]
Syria[18]
Turkmenistan[19]
Ukraine[20][21]
Non-state
[edit]
Former
[edit]Armenia[26]
Belarus[26]
Bulgaria − Produced under license.[26]
Czechoslovakia[27]
East Germany – Never acquired to military service.[28]
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia[20]
Finland[26]
Germany − Former East German stock, used for training only.[20]
Hungary[20]
India[20]
Iraq[20]
Kazakhstan[20]
Kyrgyzstan[20]
Moldova[20]
Poland[20]
South Africa[20]
Soviet Union[29]
Tajikistan[20]
United Arab Emirates – Used by the Abu Dhabi Royal Guard.[20]
Uzbekistan[20]
Vietnam[20]
Non-state former
[edit]Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front[30]
Jamiat-e Islami[22]
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam[22]
Revolutionary United Front[22]
UNITA[22] – Captured from MPLA and Cuban forces in late 1987.[30]
Comparison chart
[edit]| System | 9K32M Strela-2M (missile: 9M32M) | 9K34 Strela-3 (missile: 9M36)[31] | FIM-43C Redeye[32] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service entry | 1968 | 1974 | 1968 |
| Mass, full system, ready to shoot | 15 kg | 16 kg | 13.3 kg |
| Weight, missile | 9.8 kg | 10.3 kg | 8.3 kg |
| Length | 1.44 m | 1.47 m | 1.40 m |
| Warhead | 1.15 kg (0.37 kg HMX) directed-energy blast fragmentation | 1.17 kg (0.39 kg HMX) directed-energy blast fragmentation, including a 20g secondary charge to set off remaining rocket propellant | 1.06 kg M222 (0.36 kg HTA-3) blast fragmentation |
| Seeker type | AM-modulated (spin scan), uncooled PbS detector element (1–2.8 μm sensitivity range). Tail-chase only. | FM-modulated (con scan), nitrogen-cooled PbS detector element (2–4.3 μm sensitivity range). Limited forward hemisphere (all-aspect) capability | AM-modulated, gas-cooled PbS detector element. Tail-chase only. |
| Maximum range | 4,200 m | 4,500 m | 4,500 m |
| Speed | 430 m/s | 470 m/s | 580 m/s |
| Target's maximum speed, approaching/receding | 150/260 m/s | 310/260 m/s | –/225 m/s |
| Engagement altitude | 0.05–2.3 km | 0.03–3.0 km | 0.05–2.7 km |
See also
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^ "RAF Pursues Common DAS Demonstrator".
- ^ "2005". Archived from the original on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2013-04-20.
- ^ Cooper, Tom. "Georgia and Abkhazia, 1992-1993: the War of Datchas". ACIG.org. Archived from the original on 3 March 2008. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- ^ Cooper, Tom. "Zaire/DR Congo, 1980-2001". ACIG.org. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- ^ Cooper, Tom. "Afghanistan, 1979-2001; Part 2". ACIG.org. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 471.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 180.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 76.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 80.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 428.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 185.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 353.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 364.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 443.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 284.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 447.
- ^ IISS 2024, pp. 193, 201.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 386.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 209.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o O'Halloran & Foss 2002, p. 26.
- ^ "Additional air defense systems are being sent to Ukraine, US official says". 16 March 2022.
- ^ a b c d e "Guided light weapons reportedly held by non-state armed groups 1998-2013" (PDF). Small Arms Survey. March 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 18, 2014.
- ^ IISS 2024, p. 394.
- ^ IISS 2016, p. 492.
- ^ "SA-14 (9K34 Strela-3) MANPADS was found today in Hakurk belonging to the PKK. Additionally, multiple caves, shelters, ammunition and IED's have been found and destroyed in the last couple of days". twitter.com. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
- ^ a b c d e O'Halloran & Foss 2002, p. 25.
- ^ Cullen & Foss 1992, pp. 41.
- ^ "samolotypolskie.pl - 9K34 (9M36) "Strzała-3"". www.samolotypolskie.pl.
- ^ International Institute for Strategic Studies (1989). The Military Balance, 1989-1990. London: Brassey's. p. 34. ISBN 978-0080375694.
- ^ a b Cullen & Foss 1992, pp. 40−41.
- ^ Istorija sozdanija i razvitija vooruzhenija i vojennoi theniki PVO suhoputnyh voisk Rossii
- ^ "General Dynamics FIM-43 Redeye". www.designation-systems.net.
General and cited references
[edit]- Cullen, Tony; Foss, Christopher F, eds. (1992). Jane's Land-based Air Defence 1992-93 (PDF) (5th ed.). Jane's Information Group. ISBN 978-0-7106-0979-3. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
- "Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, FIM-43". Archived from the original on 17 April 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
- International Institute for Strategic Studies (2016). The Military Balance 2016. Vol. 116. Routledge. ISBN 9781857438352.
- International Institute for Strategic Studies (2024). The Military Balance 2024. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-040-05115-3.
- O'Halloran, James C.; Foss, Christopher F., eds. (2002). Jane's Land-Based Air Defense 2002-2003 (15th ed.). Janes Information Group. ISBN 978-0-7106-2437-6.
- Petukhov, Sergei I.; Shestov I.V. (1998). Istorija sozdanija i razvitija vooruzhenija i vojennoi tehniki PVO suhoputnyh voisk Rossii, 1.-2 [History of design and development of missile systems and military systems of AAW of Russian Land Forces]. VPK Publishing.
External links
[edit]Media related to Strela-3 at Wikimedia Commons
