ORIGINAL LINK : https://blog.naver.com/PostView.naver?blogId=rgm84d&logNo=223311440758
Hanwha Aerospace announced that they are pursuing the export of the Sky Sword missile, developed for LAH, to Egypt.
According to the report, the Sky Sword passed the first technical evaluation of Egypt’s anti-tank missile (ATGM) project and plans to conduct a second performance evaluation in the first half of this year.
The technical evaluation is a stage where the weapon systems participating in the project are verified on paper whether they meet the performance required by the Egyptian side, and it is known that several European companies participated in addition to the Sky Sword.
The English name of the Sky Sword (天劍) is TAipers (Tank Snipers), and it uses a fiber optic guidance system and dual-mode seeker (visible light and infrared image) to enable image guidance, and above all, it can fire while hidden in a concealed area.
Currently, Hanwha Aerospace plans to develop a ground launch model in addition to the LAH-mounted model for the export of the Sky Sword by the first half of this year. The ground launch model is a model that adds a rocket booster to the basic model of the Sky Sword to secure launch speed and altitude.
This is a concept diagram of the anti-tank missile for LAH developed by the Defense Science Research Institute, and it used an infrared image guidance method + wireless data link instead of the current fiber optic wire guidance method.
The emergence of the Sky Sword anti-tank missile
The concept of the Sky Sword, which was first researched by the Defense Science Research Institute, was a high-speed guided weapon similar to the U.S.’s JAGM, using a wireless data link.
However, after the vulnerability of light armored combat helicopters like LAH was exposed through the Afghanistan-Iraq war experience, the Defense Science Research Institute changed the direction of the research. That is, they introduced a wired data link that fires anti-tank missiles while hiding behind mountains or hills and guides them with fiber optics.
The Defense Science Research Institute and Hanwha contacted Serbia to introduce missile fiber optic technology and used it to develop the Sky Sword, a fiber-optic guided anti-tank missile. (It is said that there are no issues with exports or other matters because they completely purchased the technology rights.)
◆ What are the advantages of the fiber optic guidance method?
If the Defense Science Research Institute had used the wireless data link it was developing, the helicopter would have had to expose itself and guide for a considerable amount of time. However, if you use a wired data link using fiber optics, you can perform mid-course and terminal guidance while completely hidden behind a mountainous terrain.
On the front of the Sky Sword (天劍), there is a Full HD-level (1920×1080) resolution visible light CCD seeker and an IIR with a resolution of OOOxOOO, and it has a high-capacity fiber optic line that can transmit the image data obtained from here. As a result, LAH can detect and identify targets after firing the Sky Sword anti-tank missile from a completely hidden state at a distance of 8km, and then strike using the image information sent from the IIR/CCD seeker.
This is a concept diagram of LAH’s operation of the Sky Sword, and thanks to the fiber optic guidance method, LAH can guide the Sky Sword anti-tank missile from a completely concealed state.
The specific operation method is as follows. LAH 1) secures a concealable position behind a high ground, 2) ascends to secure a sight, 3) obtains target information using the helicopter’s TADS.
If the enemy’s anti-air threat is not strong, immediately 4) after the Sky Sword is activated, it cools the infrared FPA seeker by spraying cooling gas, transmits target image information, and then launches.
5) If the target is within 5km, it can attack in Fire & Forget mode, and if it is at a longer distance or aiming at a specific target, it uses INS (Inertial Guidance Device) and fiber optic data link.
Especially if the enemy’s anti-air firepower is strong, LAH immediately descends to a safe concealed position, and can guide purely using a fiber optic data link.
