Latest news with #AA-13Axehead
India.com
29-05-2025
- India.com
Bad news for Pakistan, China, Bangladesh as Putin offers India weapon that can destroy..., the name is....
China, Bangladesh as Putin offer India Missile that can destroy..., Russia's R-37M missile to... New Delhi: In a significant development amid the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan, the Vladimir Putin-led Russian government has reportedly offered India the R-37M missile. The moot idea behind this is aimed at equipping the fleet of Su-30MKI fighter jets with this missile. The R-37M is a hypersonic long-range air-to-air missile. The R-37M has a range of 300 to 400 kilometers and a maximum. Known by the NATO name AA-13 Axehead, the R-37M has a speed of Mach 6, making it one of the most dangerous beyond-visual-range (BVR) missiles in the world. This means it has the capability to strike enemy targets in the air without needing to visually track them. Here are some of the key features of R-37M Missile: The R-37M Missile was developed by Russia's Vympel Design Bureau R-37M Missile is designed to neutralize high-value airborne targets such as Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS), tanker aircraft, and enemy fighter jets. R-37M Missile is a jettisonable rocket booster enables the missile to achieve an extended range of 300–400 km (160–220 nautical miles) R-37M Missile's hypersonic speed of up to Mach 6 (around 7,400 km/h) The speed of the missile allows it to strike fast-moving targets quickly, making it difficult for enemies to evade. The missile weighs approximately 510 kilograms and is equipped with a sophisticated guidance system, which includes mid-course updates, active radar homing, and terminal-phase navigation. The R-37M can be deployed on several fighter jets including the Su-30, Su-35, Su-57, MiG-31BM, and MiG-35. Russia has offered it for India's Su-30MKI fighter jets, which are planned for upgrades. The R-37M missile represents a significant upgrade over its predecessor, the R-37, with enhancements in range, speed, and guidance systems. It features a jettisonable rocket booster that allows it to achieve a range of 300 to 400 kilometers [160-220 nautical miles], making it one of the longest-reaching air-to-air missiles in service globally.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia Fielding New Nuclear-Armed Air-To-Air Missiles: U.S. Intel
Russia is introducing new nuclear-tipped air-to-air missiles as part of an overall expansion of its nuclear forces, according to an assessment from the Pentagon's Defense Intelligence Agency, or DIA. While nuclear-armed air-to-air missiles were part of the Soviet Union's arsenal during the Cold War, their current status within the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) is little-known, which makes the disclosure from this U.S. intelligence agency all the more intriguing. Since this is described as a new weapon, it's almost certainly a reference to a version of the R-37M, a very long-range air-to-air missile known to NATO as the AA-13 Axehead. The information is published in the DIA's unclassified 2025 Worldwide Threat Assessment, presented to the Armed Services Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations United States House of Representatives, and available online here. The air-to-air missiles reference was brought to our attention by Hans Kristensen, the director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) think tank. According to this report, 'Russia is expanding its nuclear forces by adding new capabilities, including nuclear air-to-air missiles and novel nuclear systems. Russia probably maintains a nuclear stockpile of about 1,550 deployed strategic warheads and up to 2,000 non-strategic warheads.' The same passage, which outlines Russia's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) capabilities, also highlights the establishment of nuclear-capable missiles and aircraft in Belarus, something you can read more about here. Sukhoi Su-35S fighter jet. R-37M long-range AAM. "bortzhyrnal". — Massimo Frantarelli (@MrFrantarelli) April 29, 2025 The report briefly describes Russia's use of nuclear-related rhetoric and military exercises in relation to the war in Ukraine, before noting that Moscow would be 'very unlikely to use nuclear weapons in the conflict unless Russian leadership judged it faced an existential threat to the regime.' Mention is also given to Russia's likely expansion of its chemical and biological warfare programs. However, the undisclosed type of nuclear-armed air-to-air missile is the only specific type of tactical (or strategic) weapon named as such in this section. The R-37M, a product of the Vympel missile design bureau, was developed for the MiG-31 Foxhound heavy interceptor before later being adopted for the Su-30SM and Su-35S Flanker multirole fighters, and the Su-57 Felon stealth fighter. Prior to the war in Ukraine, in which the R-37M has apparently been a notable threat to Ukrainian air operations, in-service examples of the weapon were very rarely seen. Speaking to TWZ before his death in a 2023 flying accident, Ukrainian MiG-29 pilot Andrii 'Juice' Pilshchykov said that the R-37M, typically fired from within Russian airspace, was 'limiting our capabilities to conduct our missions. Of course, if you're maneuvering, we are not able to provide an airstrike or something else, so the game is still very, very, very tough in the air and very, very risky. If you're not aware of the launch of a missile, you're dead.' Don't want to get into that med/high alt SAM envelope. — Tyler Rogoway (@Aviation_Intel) November 1, 2022 The R-37M program dates back to the early 1990s when it began life as the R-37, intended to arm the Foxhound in its much-improved MiG-31M version. An example of the original missile, also known by the in-house designation izdeliye 610, was first launched from a MiG-31M in 1993, destroying an aerial target at a reported range of 142 miles. Tests of the missile were successfully completed early the following year, but the demise of the Soviet Union meant the improved MiG-31M was canceled as a cost-saving measure, together with its planned armament. However, with subsequent efforts to upgrade in-service Foxhounds to MiG-31BM standard, the program was revisited at the beginning of the 2000s. Development was now focused on the enhanced R-37M, or izdeliye 610M. The revised missile was first launched from a MiG-31 in 2011 and completed its service trials in early 2014 before entering production. The first operational unit began to receive R-37Ms in 2018. Weighing 1,124 pounds and 13 feet long, the R-37M is intended to engage targets at considerable range. This has led to suggestions that it might have been optimized to defeat airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft and other high-value assets. However, since the R-37M was developed to serve as the primary armament of the MiG-31 interceptor, it should be capable of engaging a wide range of targets, including low-flying cruise missiles. According to data from the manufacturer, the R-37M, at least in its RVV-BD export form, can defeat 'some types' of aerial targets at a range of up to 124 miles. The reference to 'some types' of targets likely indicates that only larger and less agile aircraft can be engaged at the outer edges of the missile's flight envelope. As always, such figures likely refer to missile performance in optimum conditions. In an operational context, they will vary greatly depending on the type of engagement and the energy and altitude state of the launching aircraft. By way of comparison, the MiG-31's original R-33 (AA-9 Amos) air-to-air missile can destroy targets out to a reported range of 68 miles. The furthest-flying in-service version of the U.S.-made AMRAAM, the AIM-120D, is thought to have a range of up to 100 miles, although official performance numbers are classified. Meanwhile, the appearance of the R-37M as well as various Chinese-made very long-range air-to-air missiles has prompted the United States to develop new weapons in this class as well, notably the AIM-260 and an air-launched version of the Standard Missile-6 (SM-6), designated the AIM-174B, the range of which is also classified but should be far in excess of the AIM-120D, likely at least double and possibly triple the range. Looking at the R-37M in detail, it is powered by a dual-pulse solid-propellant rocket motor, which propels it toward its target while the missile receives mid-course updates from the launch aircraft. During the terminal phase of the engagement, an onboard dual-band active radar seeker can reportedly lock on to a target with a 54-square-foot radar cross-section at 25 miles or more. Since a nuclear warhead is also available for the missile's predecessor, the R-33, it would make good sense that the R-37M is also capable of being armed with an alternative nuclear warhead, which would be better able to destroy larger formations of aircraft or missiles. The R-33S (the suffix denoting Spetsyalnaya, or special) reportedly entered service in 1991. A new and more powerful engine provided a range increase to a reported 87 miles. Examples of the R-33 were seen in footage of 'non-strategic nuclear forces' exercises released by the Russian Ministry of Defense in the summer of 2024, prompting speculation that the R-33S nuclear versions were on show, although this cannot be confirmed. As part of the same third stage exercises the #Russian air force practised mounting a R-33 missile with a #nuclear warhead to a MIG-31. — Ninjamonkey (@Aryan_warlord) August 2, 2024 Presuming the new missile mentioned by the DIA is a version of the R-37M, this and the older R-33S would be the only nuclear-armed air-to-air missiles in service anywhere in the world. Back in the Cold War, the U.S. Air Force also had a nuclear-tipped air-to-air missile, the GAR-11, later redesignated the AIM-26A, or 'Nuclear Falcon,' which carried a W54 warhead with a yield of 0.5 kilotons. The GAR-11 was the only guided nuclear-armed air-to-air missile ever deployed by the U.S. military, although the Air Force also received the nuclear-armed AIR-2 Genie unguided air-to-air rocket. Efforts to develop a version of the infrared-guided Sidewinder with a nuclear warhead were eventually abandoned, as you can read about here. Nuclear-armed air-to-air missiles were originally intended to take out formations of bomber aircraft at the height of the Cold War. They were very much area-effect weapons. Today such bomber formations aren't as relevant, but not having to get within the blast-fragmentation range of a missile warhead to take down a target could be seen as advantageous in the modern era, possibly against stealthy aircraft that can be detected but are hard to lock up, especially by a small radar on a missile during its terminal attack phase. Swarms of drones and waves of cruise missiles are another possibility. Still, exactly what prompted Moscow to pursue such a capability now is unclear. While Russia is unlikely to reveal much in the way of information about its new nuclear-armed air-to-air missile, it is significant that it has been referred to specifically in the DIA's report. While the R-37M is, by all accounts, a very formidable long-range weapon, the apparent existence of a nuclear-tipped version is another complicating factor for any adversary and provides a capability likely unmatched by any contemporary air-to-air missile. Contact the author: thomas@
