Jump to content

9M113 Konkurs

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Djuice (talk | contribs) at 22:04, 30 June 2007 (Update). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

9M113 Konkurs missile (AT-5 Spandrel)

The 9M113 Konkurs (Russian: 9М113 «Конкурс»; English: contest) SACLOS wire-guided Anti-tank missile of the Soviet Union. "9M113" is the GRAU designation of the missile. Its NATO reporting name is AT-5 Spandrel.

Development

The 9M113 Konkurs was developed by the Tula Machinery Design Bureau (Tula KBP). Development began in 1962 with the aim of producing the next generation of SACLOS ATGM's, for use in both the man portable role and the tank destroyer role. The 9M113 Konkurs was developed alongside the AT-4; both missiles use similar technology, only differing in size.

There was some speculation that the missiles were based on the Euromissile HOT/MILAN - which employ similar concepts.

The missile entered service in 1974. Iran began producing a copy, the Towsan-1/M113, sometime around 2000 [1].

Description

The missile is designed to be fired from vehicles, although it can also be fired from the later models of AT-4 Spigot launchers. It is an integral part of the BMP-2, BMD-2 and BRDM-2 vehicles. The missile is stored and carried in a glass reinforced plastic container/launch tube.

The system uses a gas generator to push the missile out of the launch tube. The gas also exits from the rear of the launch tube in a similar manner to a recoilless rifle. The missile leaves the launch tube at 80 m/s. It is quickly accelerated to 200 m/s by its solid fuel motor. This initial high speed reduces the deadzone of the missile, since it can be launched directly at the target, rather than in an upward arc. The missile spins in flight at between 5 and 7 revolutions per second.

The launcher tracks the position of an incandescent infrared bulb on the back of the missile relative to the target and transmits appropriate commands to the missile via a thin wire that trails behind the missile. The system has an alarm that activates when it detects jamming from a system like Shtora. The operator can then take manual control, reducing the missile to MCLOS. The SACLOS guidance system has many benefits over MCLOS. Accuracy of the system is quoted in some sources as 90%, though its performance is probably comparable to the TOW or later SACLOS versions of the Sagger.

In its ground-launched form the 9K113 Konkurs missile is launched from the same 9P135M-1 launcher as the 9K111 Fagot missile (qv). It may also be launched from various vehicle mountings for which there is a special system using a 9P148 launcher. The operational range of the missile is from 75 to 4,000 m using SACLOS wire guidance.

9K113 Konkurs missiles are supplied in sealed containers placed directly on the launcher in the same manner as Fagot and MILAN. After launch, initial propulsion is from a booster unit, which falls away to leave the main sustainer motor providing propulsion to the target. The Fagot/Konkurs 9P135M1 launcher can be provided with a thermal imager for night or poor visibility conditions. When fitted, the thermal imager, which weighs 13 kg, allows engagements at ranges up to 2,500 m. A 9S451M2 launcher with a night sight featuring an anti-dazzle system has been developed.

On target, the 9K113 Konkurs missile 135 mm diameter 9N131 HEAT warhead (weight 2.7 kg) can penetrate 750 to 800 mm of armour set at 90º. Against armour set at 60º the figure is 400 mm. A revised version of the Konkurs is known as the 9K113M Konkurs-M. It has a tandem warhead with an extending nose probe to defeat explosive reactive armour before the main warhead functions to penetrate 750 to 800 mm of main armour. One thermal imaging sight available for this missile is the 1PN86-1 Mulat weighing 11 kg.

A range of maintenance equipment, including a simple test device and more involved control and missile test equipment, is available for field use. Simulation and other training equipment is also available. The Konkurs missile system forms part of the armament of the Gorchak universal pillbox, a field fortification unit based on an armoured cylindrical housing buried in the ground up to the level of the top plate. From within the protection afforded by the Gorchak a crew of two operate the Konkurs system, an externally-mounted 30 mm AGS-17 automatic grenade launcher, a 12.7 mm NSV machine gun and a 7.62 mm PKM machine gun.

History

Israel's military has unveiled that Hezbollah used 9M113 Konkurs in the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict. The Israel Defense Forces asserted that Hezbollah has employed the AT-5 Spandrel against Israeli main battle tanks in Lebanon. The Spandrel is a Russian-origin anti-tank missile sold to Iran in the 1990s and later copied by Tehran. The wire-guided Spandrel measures about two meters and has a range of 3.6 kilometers. Iran was said to have begun serial production of the missile in 2000 [1].

General characteristics (AT-5A Spandrel)

  • Length: 1150 mm / 875mm without gas generator
  • Wingspan: 468 mm
  • Diameter: 135 mm
  • Launch weight: 14.6 kg
  • Speed: 80 m/s at launch - 200 m/s in flight
  • Range: 70 m - 4 km
  • Time to maximum range: 20 seconds
  • Guidance: wire-guided SACLOS
  • Warhead: 2.7 kg 9N131 HEAT 600 mm vs RHA

9M113M Konkurs-M

  • Operation: SACLOS, wire guided
  • Weight: launcher, 22 kg; thermal sight, 11 kg; complete round, 26.5 kg; missile, 14.58 kg; warhead, 2.7 kg
  • Warhead diameter: 135 mm
  • Length: missile, with gas generator, 1.15 m; container, 1.263 m
  • Range: day, 75-4,000 m; night, 75-3,500 m
  • Velocity: 270 m/s
  • Operational temperature range: -50 to +50ºC

Models

  • 9M113 Konkurs (NATO: AT-5 Spandrel, AT-5A Spandrel A)
  • 9M113M Konkurs-M (NATO: AT-5B Spandrel B) Tandem warhead - with extended explosive probe.

Users

References

  • Hull, A.W. , Markov, D.R. , Zaloga, S.J. (1999). Soviet/Russian Armor and Artillery Design Practices 1945 to Present. Darlington Productions. ISBN 1-892848-01-5.
  1. ^ a b Chistopher F. Foss, Jane's Defense Week, Another ATGW for Iran
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=9M113_Konkurs&oldid=141681464"