Sea cruise missile SCALP hit the target in the first full-scale test
The long-range sea cruise missile SCALP, created by MBDA, hit the target in the first field test, which was conducted at the Biscarros test site in the Bay of Biscay.
According to the MBDA company, the rocket was launched from a coastal launcher simulating a frigate, flying along a trajectory simulating an attack of a target, and then hit the designated target. The test was carried out in the framework of the development of the rocket, which is to enter service with the French Navy in 2014.
According to the developers, all the test objectives were achieved, the evaluation of the performance of the onboard systems of the rocket on the final part of the trajectory with autonomous guidance and scene recognition by a working thermal imaging system was carried out.
The maritime version of the cruise missile was developed by France and includes a number of components of the general-purpose cruise missile SCALP EG, which is part of the SCALP / Storm Shadow / Black Shaheen family of cruise missiles of the air-based missile. In 2011, SCALP EG missiles were used to destroy the highly protected components of the infrastructure of the Libyan armed forces in the interior of the country. The missiles were launched from the Rafale fighter aircraft that were part of the aircraft wing of the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier.
All SCALP / Storm Shadow / Black Shaheen missiles have a Broach combat unit developed by BAE Systems, a guidance system for the terrain profile, and a thermal imaging homing head created jointly by the British Marconi Electronic Systems company, which is now part of BAE Systems, and the French Thomson Missiles Electronics (Thomson Missile Electronics), part of the Thales company, as well as the French Microturbo TRI 60-30 turbojet engine, and the low-profile French glider quipment.
The offshore version of the Kyrgyz Republic, the first underwater launch of which took place in June 2011, is implemented mainly on French technologies obtained under the programs launched from submarines of the ExXet missile SM39, and the M4 / M45 / M51 family of ballistic missiles also launched from submarines .
Compared to the earlier version of the SCALP EG rocket, the marine version of the SCALP Naval is equipped with a modified Microturbo engine and has a glider of a modified design compatible with the universal vertical launchers (SILver) and torpedo tubes.
Unitary warhead Broach penetrating type is replaced by a new multi-purpose warhead, although the guidance system on the marine version of the missile remained the same. The maximum range of the KR flight exceeds 1000 km.
The French Navy plans to acquire 200 offshore KR SCALPs, of which 150 will be deployed on the Akiten-type multipurpose FREMM frigates under construction, and 50 missiles will be deployed on the advanced Barrakuda-type Sufren nuclear submarines.
According to the latest information, the maritime version of the Kyrgyz Republic will go into service in 2014 on the second frigate FREMM Normandie, which is currently being built at the shipyard of DCNS in Lorient. SCALP missiles will be launched from certain A70 Silver units in the UHFU, which will house up to 16 missiles of this type. A variant of the SCALP missile for launching from submarines will go into service with the Syufren platinum in 2017.
Information