The ZvezdaKh-66andKh-23Grom(Russian:Х-23 Гром'Thunder';NATO:AS-7 'Kerry') are a family of earlySoviettacticalair-to-surface missileswith a range of 10 km. They were intended for use against small ground or naval targets. The Kh-66 was effectively a heavy-warhead, beam-riding version of theK-8 (AA-3 'Anab')air-to-air missile rushed into service in Vietnam in 1968. The Kh-23 was an improved Kh-66 with command-guidance, similar to theAGM-12 Bullpup.
| Kh-66/Kh-23Grom (NATO reporting name:AS-7 'Kerry') | |
|---|---|
 AS-7 'Kerry' | |
| Type | Tacticalair-to-surface missile |
| Place of origin | Soviet Union |
| Service history | |
| In service | Kh-66:20 June 1968[1] Kh-23:1973[2] Kh-23M:1974[2] |
| Used by | FSU, Warsaw Pact, Iraq, India[3] |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Yurii N. Korolyov[1] |
| Manufacturer | Zvezda-Strela |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | A921:287 kg (633 lb)[3] |
| Length | A921:3.525 m (11 ft 7 in)[3] |
| Diameter | 27.5 cm (10.8 in)[3] |
| Wingspan | 78.5 cm (2 ft 6.9 in)[3] |
| Warhead weight | 111 kg (245 lb)[3] |
| Engine | Solid fuel rocket[3] |
Operational range | 2–10 km (1.1–5.4 nmi)[3] |
| Maximum speed | 2,160–2,700 km/h (1,340–1,680 mph)[3] |
Guidance system | Kh-66:Line-Of-SightBeam riding Kh-23:Radiocommand guidance Grom-B:TV guidance |
Launch platform | Yak-38,MiG-21PFM,MiG-23,MiG-27, Su-17M3/20/22/22M3/M4,[3] |
Development
editWork on air-to-air missiles had started at the Kaliningrad Engineering Plant (then known as Plant #455, and later merged into Zvezda-Strela) in 1955.[1]This had resulted in theKaliningrad K-5(AA-1 'Alkali') family of beam-guided missiles, including the K-51 (RS-2-US) carried by theSu-9'Fishpot'.OKB-4 Molniya(laterVympel NPO) underMatus Bisnovatwould go on to produce missiles such as theAA-6 Acrid.[1]Meanwhile, in 1963 the RS-2-US was tested as an air-to-surface missile.[1]It was concluded that the small warhead and inaccurate guidance made such an application "pointless".[1]
However, in 1965North Vietnamrequested an air-to-surface missile from the Soviet government;[1]theAGM-12 Bullpuphad entered service with the US Air Force before the start of theVietnam War.In April 1965 OKB-134 (later NPO Vympel) started work on this missile under the project name Kh-23, but they had problems developing a guidance system that would work with existing aircraft.[3]As a result, Yurii N. Korolyov came up with his own proposals based on the earlier experiments with the RS-2-US. A design bureau to develop the RS-2-US for surface targets was set up under Korolyov by decree #100 of 12 March 1966 of the Ministry of the Aircraft Industry;[1]this bureau would become the Zvezda OKB in 1976.[4]
The resulting weapon used the body of aK-8 (AA-3 'Anab'),K-5 guidance and propulsion systems, but increased the warhead from 13 kg (29 lb) to 100 kg (220 lb).[5]This had the big advantage of allowing the new weapon to be fitted to any aircraft capable of firing the K-5.[3]Design began in 1966,[4]so the project was known asKh-66orIzdeliye 66('Article 66'). The Kh-66 was a beam-riding weapon that was first tested on theMiG-21PFM,[4]with the first launches of the missile in September 1966[6].It entered production in 1968 for that aircraft. The Kh-66 was only an interim solution as it required the launch aircraft to dive towards the target to maintain lock on the target.It entered service on 20 June 1968[1].The reason it was only carried on the MIG-21PFM was, since it was a beam-riding missile, it was paired with a radar, the RP-21M, which other aircraft did not have.
Meanwhile, Korolyov took over work on theKh-23project intended for carriage on the Soviet Union's new MiG-23.[3]The Kh-23 became a development of the Kh-66 design with an improved propellant and new Delta-R1M guidance system.[3]The main practical difference was that it was a line-of-sight radio-command weapon similar to the Bullpup, allowing it to be fired in level flight (unlike the Kh-66). The first ten were tested in early 1968,[3]but significant delays were caused by problems with unreliable guidance which was eventually traced to the smoke generator which interfered with the antenna.[3]Once the receiver had been moved to a tail extension,[3]the government tested the missile on the MiG-23 and MiG-23B between 20 March 1970 and 3 October 1973.[1]and it entered service in 1973.[2]A laser-guided version of the Kh-23, the Kh-25, became the basis for the AS-10 'Karen' family of missiles.[1]Technology from these was 'backported' to the Kh-23 to create the Kh-23M in 1974.[2]
The Kh-23 was later licensed for local production in both Romania and Yugoslavia.[3]In 1977 a dummy Kh-23 was fired from a Ka-252TB helicopter,[1]the prototype of theKamov Ka-29TB 'Helix-B' assault transport.
Design
editThe Kh-66 used the airframe of theKaliningrad K-8(AA-3 'Anab') air-to-air missile, with the nozzle split to make room for the antenna of the beam-riding guidance system of theKaliningrad K-5(AA-1 'Alkali').[3]It has cruciform control fins on the nose, and four clipped-tip delta-wings at the rear with elevators for control.
Operational history
editThe Kh-66 entered production for the MiG-21 in 1968, and the Kh-23 was certified for the MiG-23 'Flogger' in 1973.
Variants
edit
- Kh-66- the original beam-riding missile based on the K-8
- Kh-23(Izdeliye 68)[4]- First command-guidance version with improved propellant
- Kh-23M- improved Kh-23 with technology from the Kh-25 family[2]
- Kh-23L- Western name for a laser-guided version that in fact was the baselineKh-25(AS-10 'Karen')[4]
- A921- Version made in Romania[3]
- Grom(Grom 02) - Yugoslav version that appeared in the 1980s.[7]This should not be confused with thePolish SAM
- Grom-B(Grom 2) - TV-guided version from Serbia's Vojno-Tehnički Institut in the mid-late 1990s; uses seeker based on that of theAGM-65B Maverick[7]
Operators
edit
Current
edit
Former
edit
Afghanistan[9]
Algeria[9]
Angola[9]
Azerbaijan[9]
Belarus[9]
Bulgaria[3]
Cambodia[9]
Congo[9]
Cuba[9]
Czechoslovakia− Passed on to successor states[9]- Czech Republic[9]
East Germany[10]− Passed on to the unified German state[9]
Egypt[9]
Finland[9]
Georgia[9]
Germany[9]
Hungary[9]
India[3]
Iraq[3]
Kazakhstan[9]
Libya[11]
Nigeria[9]
Poland[3]
Romania− Locally produced as the A-921[3][9]
Serbia−Grom[3]
Slovakia[9]
Soviet Union[3]− passed on to successor states[9]
Sudan[9]
Syria[12]
Ukraine[9]
Vietnam[9]
Yugoslavia− Passed on to successor states[9]
Similar weapons
edit- AGM-12 Bullpup
- AS-20- French air-to-ground missile based on an early air-to-air missile
Notes
edit
- ^abcdefghijklHistory of JSC Tactical Missile Corporation,pp. 3–4, archived fromthe original(Word 97 DOC)on 2011-07-27,retrieved2009-02-15
- ^abcde"Russian Air-to-Ground Missile Update",Jane's Missiles and Rockets,1998-02-01,retrieved2009-02-18
- ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzaaFriedman, Norman (1997),The Naval Institute Guide to World Naval Weapons Systems,Naval Institute Press, p. 235,ISBN978-1-55750-268-1
- ^abcde"Kh-23, Kh-66 Grom (AS-7 'Kerry')",Jane's Air-Launched Weapons,2008-08-01[dead link]
- ^FAS,Zvezda Kh-23 (AS-7 Kerry),retrieved2007-04-15
- ^[1].
- ^ab"Serbia and Montenegro develops 'smart' strike weapons",Jane's Missiles and Rockets,2005-05-12, archived fromthe originalon August 24, 2005,retrieved2009-02-18
- ^IISS 2024,p. 284.
- ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyLennox, Duncan, ed. (1997). "AS-7 'Kerry' (Kh-23/Kh-66 GROM)".Jane's Air-Launched Weapons(35th ed.). Surrey: Jane's Information Group.
- ^"Arms transfer database".SIPRI.Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.Retrieved10 September2024.
- ^Cooper 2018,p. 16
- ^Cooper 2018,p. 64
References
edit- Cooper, Tom (2018).MiG-23 Flogger in the Middle East, Mikoyan i Gurevich MiG-23 in Service in Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Libya and Syria, 1973-2018.Warwick: Helion & Company Publishing.ISBN978-1-912-390328.
- Gordon, Yefim (2004),Soviet/Russian Aircraft Weapons Since World War Two,Hinckley, England: Midland Publishing,ISBN1-85780-188-1
- International Institute for Strategic Studies(2024)."Chapter Five: Asia".The Military Balance.124(1): 218–327.doi:10.1080/04597222.2024.2298593.ISSN0459-7222.Retrieved7 September2024.