9K34 Strela-3
Encyclopedia
The 9K34 Strela-3 man-portable air defence missile system (MANPADS) was developed in the Soviet Union
as a response to the poor performance of the earlier 9K32 Strela 2 (SA-7 Grail)
system. "9K34" is its GRAU
designation and its NATO reporting name
is SA-14 Gremlin. The missile
was largely based on the earlier Strela 2
, and thus development proceeded rapidly. The new weapon was accepted to service in the Soviet Army
in January 1974.
The most significant change 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 flare
s and even the most primitive infrared
jammer
s. Most importantly, 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 wavelength
s (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). Against relatively slow, low-altitude battlefield air threats the overall effectiveness was much improved.
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.
was shot down during its attack on Serbian tank T-55
in Bosnia in 1994.
It is reported that one Su-27 in the process of landing, was shot down by an Strela-3 fired by UNITA
forces on 19 November 2000.
An Airbus A300 cargo plane was hit by a Strela-3 missile after takeoff from Baghdad International Airport
, and despite losing hydraulic power managed to land safely.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
as a response to the poor performance of the earlier 9K32 Strela 2 (SA-7 Grail)
Strela 2
The 9K32 “Strela-2” is a man-portable, shoulder-fired, low-altitude surface-to-air missile system with a high explosive warhead and passive infrared homing guidance...
system. "9K34" is its GRAU
Grau
Grau is a German word meaning "gray" and a Catalan word meaning "grade". It may refer to:* BAP Almirante Grau , a De Zeven Provinciën class cruiser in service with the Peruvian Navy* Grau Käse, Tyrolean grey cheese...
designation and its NATO reporting name
NATO reporting name
NATO reporting names are classified code names for military equipment of the Eastern Bloc...
is SA-14 Gremlin. The missile
Missile
Though a missile may be any thrown or launched object, it colloquially almost always refers to a self-propelled guided weapon system.-Etymology:The word missile comes from the Latin verb mittere, meaning "to send"...
was largely based on the earlier Strela 2
Strela 2
The 9K32 “Strela-2” is a man-portable, shoulder-fired, low-altitude surface-to-air missile system with a high explosive warhead and passive infrared homing guidance...
, and thus development proceeded rapidly. The new weapon was accepted to service in the Soviet Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in January 1974.
The most significant change was the introduction of an all-new infra-red homing seeker
Seeker
Seeker may refer to:Religion* Seeker, a member of the 17th century religious group the Seekers, a forerunner of the Quakers*Seeker, a person perceived by Quakers as likely to become an adherent and thus come to be a "convinced Friend"Fictional characters...
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 flare
Flare (pyrotechnic)
A flare, also sometimes called a fusee, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a brilliant light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for signalling, illumination, or defensive countermeasures in civilian and military applications...
s and even the most primitive infrared
Infrared
Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
jammer
Jammer
Jammer may refer to:* Jammer keyboard* Jammer, a device used in radar jamming and deception, a technique in electronic warfare to inhibit or halt the transmission of signals* Swim jammer, a type of male competitive swimwear...
s. Most importantly, 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 wavelength
Wavelength
In physics, the wavelength of a sinusoidal wave is the spatial period of the wave—the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.It is usually determined by considering the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same phase, such as crests, troughs, or zero crossings, and is a...
s (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). Against relatively slow, low-altitude battlefield air threats the overall effectiveness was much improved.
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
SA-18 Grouse
The 9K38 Igla is a Russian/Soviet man-portable infrared homing surface-to-air missile . "9K38" is the Russian GRAU designation of the system...
.
The naval version of this missile has the NATO reporting name of SA-N-8.
Operational history
One BAE Sea HarrierBAE Sea Harrier
The British Aerospace Sea Harrier is a naval VTOL/STOVL jet fighter, reconnaissance and attack aircraft, a development of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier. It first entered service with the Royal Navy in April 1980 as the Sea Harrier FRS1 and became informally known as the "Shar"...
was shot down during its attack on Serbian tank T-55
T-55
The T-54 and T-55 tanks were a series of main battle tanks designed in the Soviet Union. The first T-54 prototype appeared in March 1945, just before the end of the Second World War. The T-54 entered full production in 1947 and became the main tank for armored units of the Soviet Army, armies of...
in Bosnia in 1994.
It is reported that one Su-27 in the process of landing, was shot down by an Strela-3 fired by UNITA
UNITA
The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought with the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola in the Angolan War for Independence and then against the MPLA in the ensuing civil war .The war was one...
forces on 19 November 2000.
An Airbus A300 cargo plane was hit by a Strela-3 missile after takeoff from Baghdad International Airport
Baghdad International Airport
Baghdad International Airport, originally Saddam International Airport, , BIAP is Iraq's largest airport, located in a suburb about west of downtown Baghdad in the Baghdad Governorate...
, and despite losing hydraulic power managed to land safely.
Comparison chart
| System | 9K32M Strela-2M Strela Strela may refer to:A series of Russian-manufactured anti-aircraft missiles* The 9K31 Strela-1, aka SA-9 Gaskin* The 9K32 Strela-2, aka SA-7 Grail* The 9K34 Strela-3, aka SA-14 Gremlin* The 9K35 Strela-10, aka SA-13 GopherOther... (missile: 9M32M) |
9K34 Strela-3 (missile: 9M36) | FIM-43C Redeye FIM-43 Redeye The General Dynamics FIM-43 Redeye was a man-portable surface-to-air missile system. It used infrared homing to track its target. Production was terminated in September 1969 after about 85,000 rounds had been built - in anticipation of the Redeye II, which later became the FIM-92 Stinger... |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 HMX HMX, also called octogen, is a powerful and relatively insensitive nitroamine high explosive, chemically related to RDX. Like RDX, the name has been variously listed as High Melting eXplosive, Her Majesty's eXplosive, High-velocity Military eXplosive, or High-Molecular-weight rdX.The molecular... ) directed-energy blast fragmentation |
1.17 kg (0.39 kg HMX HMX HMX, also called octogen, is a powerful and relatively insensitive nitroamine high explosive, chemically related to RDX. Like RDX, the name has been variously listed as High Melting eXplosive, Her Majesty's eXplosive, High-velocity Military eXplosive, or High-Molecular-weight rdX.The molecular... ) directed-energy blast fragmentation, including a 20g secondary charge to set off remaining propellant |
1.06 kg M222 (0.36 kg HTA-3 HMX HMX, also called octogen, is a powerful and relatively insensitive nitroamine high explosive, chemically related to RDX. Like RDX, the name has been variously listed as High Melting eXplosive, Her Majesty's eXplosive, High-velocity Military eXplosive, or High-Molecular-weight rdX.The molecular... ) blast fragmentation |
| Seeker type | AM-modulated (spin scan), uncooled PbS detector element (1–2.8 µm sensitivity range). Tail-chase Tail-chase engagement A tail-chase engagement is one where a surface-to-air missile system or jet aircraft engages another aircraft while the target aircraft is flying away from the attacker... only. |
FM-modulated (con scan), nitrogen-cooled PbS detector element (2–4.3 µm sensitivity range). Limited forward hemisphere (all-aspect All-aspect An all-aspect missile is one which is able to track a target no matter which way the target faces relative to the missile. In other words, an all-aspect missile can be launched against a target in a tail-chase engagement, in a head-on engagement, in a side-on engagement, from above, from below,... ) capability |
AM-modulated, uncooled PbS detector element. Tail-chase Tail-chase engagement A tail-chase engagement is one where a surface-to-air missile system or jet aircraft engages another aircraft while the target aircraft is flying away from the attacker... only. |
| Maximum range | 4200 m | 4100 m | 4500 m |
| Speed | 430 m/s | 410 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 | 0.03-2.3 km | 0.05-2.7 km |