On July 27 this year, the opening ceremony of the XXX Summer Olympic Games will take place in London. This event, like the rest of the Olympics, is an extremely important event for many aspects of the UK economy and social life. Obviously, no unpleasant incidents should be allowed and the main role in this is assigned to various special services. Several months ago it became known that the military would also participate in the protection of the Olympic Games. Recently there was new information about their participation.
As it turned out, before the start of the exercises planned for the beginning of May, the British military installed air defense systems right on the territory of London. A completely understandable and understandable step: terrorists can also attack from the air, as was the case in the notorious September 11, 2001. However, the location for the deployment of air defense systems was very, very interesting. Former water towers on the territory of the Bow Quarter residential complex were chosen as a position. If we take into account the fact that this residential complex is considered one of the most elite in the city, then one can imagine the reaction of the inhabitants of its seven and a half hundred apartments. Nevertheless, the UK Department of Defense reassures residents and claims that they are absolutely not in danger. The military department explains the choice of a place for anti-aircraft gunners simply and clearly: it is from the Bow Quarter water tower that the Olympic Park is best viewed. In the end, the British military says, after the end of the Olympics, all missiles will be removed and life will go on as usual. Unless, of course, someone notices some changes in the usual way of life due to the presence of the military.
Continuing to reassure the residents of Bow Quarter, the military distributed leaflets throughout the residential complex, in which, in a simple and understandable form, it was explained who would do what, as well as what to fear and what not. Among other things, the leaflets explained why from May 2nd to May 10th the soldiers would behave uneasily and even conduct training missile targeting. Also, the military promised to do without any launches. Based on the results of these exercises, the Ministry of Defense will make a decision regarding the further fate of the post on the former water towers. If such an arrangement of anti-aircraft gunners really turns out to be convenient, then it will remain until mid-August. If not, a new location will be found soon.
The ten soldiers assigned to watch the water towers will have Starstreak portable anti-aircraft missile systems at their disposal. It was this means of air defense that was recognized as the most profitable and optimal for ensuring the protection of events and the city as a whole in terms of the ratio of combat characteristics and ease of use. The creation of the Starstreak MANPADS, sometimes referred to as the Starstreak HVM (High Velosity Missile), was launched back in the first half of the eighties. When ordering the development of a new MANPADS, the British military pursued several goals at once: protecting motorized rifle units from air attacks, covering other objects, and also universalizing anti-aircraft weapons of various bases. In turn, the developer of Starstrik, Thales Air Defense, conducted a series of analyzes and tests, during which the appearance of the future portable air defense system was developed. Analysts at TAD and the Ministry of Defense considered airplanes flying at near- or supersonic speeds, as well as attack helicopters, to be one of the main threats to soldiers and equipment on the battlefield. These air targets have a rather different appearance and characteristics, which, however, theoretically does not prevent the creation of a universal means of destruction of both. Universalism in terms of goals, as conceived by the designers, was to be ensured, first of all, by the high speed of the rocket. With its help, it was planned not only to reduce the time between launch and hit, but also to ensure the destruction / damage of the aerodynamic target before it enters the launch zone of its weapons. In addition, Thale Air Defense engineers have developed a very original way to increase the probability of hitting a target, but more on that later.
From the very beginning, Starstreak was designed as a universal complex that could be used in three maximally unified versions: "one-tube", easel for three missiles and intended for installation on equipment (for installing 3-4 missiles). Transport and launch containers, missiles and guidance equipment had to be the same for all options. The chosen concept of the new MANPADS practically unchanged reached 1997, when Starstrick was adopted.
The basis and main element of the entire portable air defense system is the HVM rocket. Its construction is of considerable interest. The fact is that the two-stage ammunition has a very original layout and warhead. So, for launching, the rocket is equipped with a solid propellant booster, which throws it out of the TPK. Next, a sustainer solid-propellant engine of the first stage is switched on, which in a matter of seconds accelerates the rocket to a speed of the order of M = 3. Upon reaching this speed, the second stage, which is a warhead, is fired. An interesting fact is that this is not a step in the classical sense. Warhead Starstreak consists of three so-called. darts. Each "dart" 45 centimeters long is equipped with its own warhead (armor-piercing core and high-explosive fragmentation charge), as well as its own guidance system.
Before using Starstreak, a removable control unit is installed on the TPK, which contains an optical sight, a laser system, a computer and a power supply. An anti-aircraft gunner, when firing from MANPADS, uses a trigger, a guidance joystick and a number of other controls, such as switches for a crosswind compensator or a device for calculating the altitude profile of a rocket flight. Immediately before launch, the anti-aircraft gunner turns on the complex and makes preliminary aiming with the help of optical sighting devices. At this time, the automatics captures the target and begins to illuminate it with a laser. By pressing the trigger, the electric igniter initiates the starting accelerator and the rocket flies out of the launch tube. During this ejection, the rocket acquires rotation, thanks to which the four stabilizer-rudders in the rear of the rocket unfold. It takes about two tenths of a second to burn out the accelerator charge, after which it is separated. Then, when the rocket flies off to a safe distance from the anti-aircraft gunner, the first stage engine is turned on. The first stage accelerates the rocket to speeds three times the speed of sound and also fires back. After that, there is an approximate guidance by means of the second stage and the release of "darts". In the tail part of the submunitions there is a receiver for laser radiation coming from the sighting unit of the ground part of the complex. According to the available information, guidance is carried out using two laser diodes, one of which creates a "floating" horizontal beam, and the other swings in a vertical plane. By processing the received information about the relative position of the laser "fans", the calculator of the striking element generates commands for the steering machines. The "darts" do not have their own engine, which does not prevent them from reliably aiming at targets maneuvering with an overload of up to nine units throughout the flight. Starting from pressing the trigger and until the target is hit, the operator of the complex must keep the aiming mark on it. This is done by moving the ground part of the MANPADS and a special joystick located on the guidance unit. According to available information, a new version of the electronics for Starstrick will soon be created, which will allow automatic target tracking.
The very defeat of the target, like combat elements, is also of certain interest. The significant speed at which the "darts" fly leads to the fact that tangible damage to the aircraft is possible even without detonating the charge - only due to kinetic energy. At the same time, there is a contact fuse. Its task is to detonate the charge after penetrating into the structure of the target. The lack of a contact fuse, expressed in the need for a mandatory hit on the target, is compensated by the number of homing submunitions. It is noteworthy that the manual for the use of Starstreak MANPADS allows the use of this complex against armored vehicles. Thus, the protection of light armored armored personnel carriers or infantry fighting vehicles with a high degree of probability will not withstand the hit of a high-speed "dart", and in the case of a more serious enemy, armor protection can be penetrated to a shallow depth with subsequent detonation of the charge. Thus, the damaging element of MANPADS in its action becomes similar to the projectile on the Hopkinson effect: exploding, the charge "knocks out" fragments from the inner side of the armor that hit the crew and internal equipment.
After the shot is fired, the fiberglass transport and launch container is disconnected from the guidance equipment unit and sent for disposal or reloading. According to reports, one TPK can be used up to five times. In turn, the block of equipment is mounted on a new TPK with a rocket. It takes only a few minutes to prepare for the use of a rocket taken from a factory container, and this time depends more on the training of the soldier.
Transport and launch containers and aiming blocks of the Starstrick complex can be used in three versions:
- a portable air defense system with one missile. Aiming block plus TPK with a rocket. Due to its relatively small mass (about 15 kilograms), the complex is intended for shoulder shooting;
- easel installation. Three TPKs are mounted on one machine (either in one row vertically or in a triangle) and an aiming unit. The machine with missiles and an aiming unit can rotate 360 ° horizontally and has a vertical guidance angle of the order of 75-80 °;
- mounted installation. In general, it is similar to the previous version, but does not have a tripod. Designed for installation on cars, armored vehicles and watercraft.
It is worth noting that the choice of Starstreak to defend Olympic London against terrorist threats is well founded. The fact is that this MANPADS is designed to destroy targets flying no higher than a kilometer. Given the theoretical flight profile of the aircraft used in the hypothetical terrorist attack, this would be sufficient. In addition, at a higher altitude, the "zone of responsibility" of other anti-aircraft missile systems, for example, Rapier, is already beginning. As for the range, the anti-aircraft gunners located on the former water towers in the Bow Quarter residential complex, with the maximum possible missile range of seven kilometers, can block a large part of London's square, and most importantly, the Olympic Stadium and many other facilities for the upcoming competitions. Moreover, it follows from the available data that such air defense positions will be created throughout the city. True, the question of the place of the fall of the wreckage of the downed aircraft remains open. However, this is such a problem, where of two evils you have to choose the lesser. Although, undoubtedly, it would be better if all 19 days of the Olympics remained for the anti-aircraft gunners just another watch without any incidents.
