Vympel K-13

Information about Vympel K-13

Enlarge picture
K-13 missiles on a MiG-23.''
The K-13 (NATO reporting name AA-2 'Atoll'), was one of the world's most proliferated air-to-air missiles. Developed by the Soviet Union as a reverse-engineered copy of the AIM-9 Sidewinder, it saw widespread service in many nations.

Development

The K-13 (known as R-3S in Soviet service) was developed from 1958, entering service in 1960. It was directly based on the U.S. AIM-9 Sidewinder. According to some accounts, it was acquired after a AIM-9B, fired by a Taiwanese F-86 Sabre, struck a Chinese MiG-17 without exploding during an air battle on 28 September 1958. The missile remained stuck in the MiG's fuselage and was carried back to its base. This one example provided considerable insight to Soviet engineers in the design of workable IR-guided missiles.

Enlarge picture
K-13 missile seeker.''
The R-3S was seen by the West in 1961 and given the NATO reporting name AA-2A 'Atoll'. It was followed by the R-3, a semi-active radar homing (SARH) version, similar to the little-used US Navy AIM-9C Sidewinder (carried by the F-8 Crusader). This was designated AA-2B by NATO. Upgraded versions, designated K-13M (R-13M) for the IRH and K-13R (R-3R) for the SARH variant, were developed in the late 1960s. These were dubbed Advanced Atoll (AA-2C and AA-2D, respectively). The R-13M was roughly equivalent to the improved USAF AIM-9G Sidewinder, with a new proximity fuse, more propellant for longer range, better maneuverability, and a more sensitive nitrogen-cooled seeker head. None, however, was an all-aspect missile.

An inert training round, the R-3P, was also developed (P = prakticheskaya, for practice).

All K-13 variants are physically similar to Sidewinder, sharing the 127 mm (5 in) diameter of the original Sidewinder. Minimum engagement range is about one kilometer (perhaps 1,000 yards).

The 'Atoll' was widely exported to the Warsaw Pact and other air forces, and remains in service with a few smaller nations. A license-built version called A-91 was built in Romania, and the People's Republic of China copied the K-13 as the PL-2. Updated Chinese versions were the PL-3 and PL-5.

Specifications (R-13M / R-3R)

  • Length: (R-13M) 2830 mm (9 ft 3.4 in); (R-3R) 3420 mm (11 ft 5 in)
  • Wingspan: 530 mm (21 in)
  • Diameter: 127 mm (5 in)
  • Launch weight: (R-13M) 75 kg (166 lb); (R-3R) 93 kg (205 lb)
  • Speed: Mach 2.5
  • Range: 8 km (5 mi)
  • Guidance: (R-13M) infrared homing; (R-3R) SARH
  • Warhead: 11.3 kg (24.9 lb) blast-fragmentation with proximity fuze.
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Russian Air-to-air missiles, NATO reporting names



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Russian and former Soviet R designation sequence
R-1/R-2 | R-3 | R-4 | R-5 | R-7 | R-8 | R-9 | R-11, R-300 Elbrus | R-12 | R-13 | R-14 Dvina, R-14 Chusovaya | R-15, Tumansky R-15 | R-16 | R-21 | R-23 | R-26 | R-27, Vympel R-27 | R-29 | R-33 | R-36 | R-37 | R-39 | R-40 | R-46, GR-1 | R-60 | R-73 | R-77 | 81R | R-101 | R-103 | R-172 | R-400
Other: | TR-1 | RS-24 | RS-82 | RT-2 | RT-2PM | RT-2UTTH | RT-15 | RT-20 | RT-21 | RT-23 | RT-25 | RSM-56 | RKV-500A, RK-55 | KSR-5 | RSS-40 | UR-100 | UR-100 | UR-100N
NATO reporting names are unclassified code names for Soviet/Russian and Chinese military equipment. They provide unambiguous and easily understood names in place of Russian terms which may be confusing or even unknown.
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air-to-air missile (AAM) is a guided missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying another aircraft. It is typically powered by one or more rocket motors, usually solid fuelled but sometimes liquid fuelled.
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Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (abbreviated USSR, Russian: (help info ) ; tr.
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Reverse engineering (RE) is the process of discovering the technological principles of a device or object or system through analysis of its structure, function and operation. It often involves taking something (e.g.
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Function Short-range air-to-air missile
Manufacturer Raytheon Company
Ford Aerospace
Loral Corp.
Unit cost US$85,000
First flight September 1953
Entered service 1956 (AIM-9B)
General characteristics
Engine
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1958 1959 1960 1961

19th Century · 20th century · 21st century
1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s
1955 1956 1957 1958
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1960 1961 1962 1963

19th Century · 20th century · 21st century
1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s
1957 1958 1959 1960
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Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
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Function Short-range air-to-air missile
Manufacturer Raytheon Company
Ford Aerospace
Loral Corp.
Unit cost US$85,000
First flight September 1953
Entered service 1956 (AIM-9B)
General characteristics
Engine
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Republic of China. For other uses, see Taiwan (disambiguation).
Taiwan (Traditional Chinese: or ; Simplified Chinese:
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Type Fighter aircraft
Manufacturer North American Aviation
Designed by Edgar Schmued
Maiden flight 1 October 1947
Introduced 1949, USAF
Retired 1980, Portugal
Primary users United States Air Force
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Anthem
March of the Volunteers (义勇军进行曲)
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Type Fighter
Manufacturer Mikoyan-Gurevich
Maiden flight 14 January 1950
Introduced October 1952
Primary users Soviet Air Force
PLA Air Force
Vietnam People's Air Force
Polish Air Force
Number built 10,000-/+

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September 28 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

Events


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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1920s  1930s  1940s  - 1950s -  1960s  1970s  1980s
1955 1956 1957 - 1958 - 1959 1960 1961

Year 1958 (MCMLVIII
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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1930s  1940s  1950s  - 1960s -  1970s  1980s  1990s
1958 1959 1960 - 1961 - 1962 1963 1964

Year 1961 (MCMLXI
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Semi-active radar homing, or SARH, is a common type of missile guidance system, perhaps the most common type for longer range air-to-air and surface-to-air missile systems.
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United States Navy (USN) is the branch of the United States armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations. The U.S. Navy currently has over 340,000 personnel on active duty and nearly 128,000 in the Navy Reserve.
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Type Fighter aircraft
Manufacturer Chance-Vought
Maiden flight 1955-03-25
Introduced March 1957
Retired 1999-12-19
Primary users United States Navy
United States Marine Corps
French Navy
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Centuries: 19th century - 20th century - 21st century

1930s 1940s 1950s - 1960s - 1970s 1980s 1990s
1960 1961 1962 1963 1964
1965 1966 1967 1968 1969

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Their 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive.
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United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerial warfare branch of the United States armed forces and one of the seven uniformed services. Previously part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947.
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3, 5, 4, 2
(strongly acidic oxide)
Electronegativity 3.04 (Pauling scale)
Ionization energies
(more) 1st: 1402.3 kJmol−1
2nd: 2856 kJmol−1
3rd: 4578.1 kJmol−1

Atomic radius 65 pm
Atomic radius (calc.
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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
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Warsaw Treaty Organization,
Warsaw Pact
Договор о дружбе, сотрудничестве и
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Motto

(each main institution has its own motto)
Anthem
Deşteaptă-te, române!


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Anthem
March of the Volunteers (义勇军进行曲)
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Mach number (Ma) (pronounced: [mɑːk], [mɑx], [mæk], see IPA) is a dimensionless measure of relative speed.
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Infrared homing refers to a passive missile guidance system which uses the emission from a target of electromagnetic radiation in the infrared part of the spectrum to track it.
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Sarh (formerly Fort Archambault) is the third largest city in Chad, the capital of Moyen-Chari region and the department of Barh Köh. It has a population of 75,496 (as of 1993) and lies 350 miles south-east of the capital Ndjamena on the Chari River.
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Fragmentation is the process by which the casing of an artillery shell, bomb, grenade, etc is shattered by the detonating high explosive filling. The correct technical terminology for these casing pieces is fragments, shortened to frags, although shards or splinters can be used for
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