YDG-64
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| YDG-64 | |
|---|---|
| Type | surface-to-air missile |
| Place of origin |  Menghe |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2009-present |
| Used by | Menghe |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Chŏnggong design bureau |
| Produced | 2009-present |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 320 kg |
| Length | 3.72 m |
| Diameter | 254 mm |
| Propellant | solid fuel |
Operational range | 44km |
| Flight altitude | 2 to 20,000 meters (claimed) |
| Speed | 1,440 m/s (Mach 4.2) |
Guidance system | SARH |
Steering system | aerodynamic surfaces |
Launch platform | JYDG-64BGR GYDG-64BGR Insŏng-class destroyer Jŏngdŏk-class frigate |
The YDG-64 (Menghean: 유대공-64 Yudaegong-64, abbr. for 유도탄, 대공 Yudotan, Daegong "Missile, Anti-Air") is a type of surface-to-air missile developed in Menghe during the late 2000s. It first entered service in 2009. With a body diameter of 254 millimeters, it is very compact, and can be quadpacked into Menghean VLS cells. In spite of this size, it also possesses an impressive maximum range of 44 kilometers.
Development
During the early 2000s, representatives of the Menhgean Navy expressed interest in obtaining a production license for the RIM-162 surface-to-air missile, operated by naval forces of New Oyashima. Negotiations proceeded through 2003 and 2004, but came to a halt in 2005 after Menghe's support for Ummayah in the Ummayan Civil War. Concerned about a worsening of the two countries' relations, the Organized States blocked the sale, as it was the main developerof the RIM-162 missile.
Little was heard about the program until 2009, when the Menghean Navy tested a new surface-to-air missile system near Chŏlsŏng, later accepting it for service as the YDG-64. The Menghean government and the Chŏnggong design bureau maintain that the YDG-64 is an entirely indigenous design "drawing conceptual influences from the RIM-162," but the OS and Oyashimese governments have accused Menghe of copying the missile based on information obtained from a hacking operation in 2007.
Description
In all configurations, the YDG-64 missile uses semi-active radar homing as its terminal guidance system, though in the approach to the target it relies on mid-course updates from the launch platform. It carries a 40-kilogram pre-fragmented warhead to destroy the target, which is armed by a proximity fuse.
The missile itself can be recognized by long strakes running along the fuselage, with four moving control surfaces at the rear. It steers using a skid-to-turn system. Compared to the OSN's RIM-162, it is slightly longer, but has a somewhat reduced range, apparently due to the use of heavier seeker components or a less efficient propellant. The seeker head itself is also wider, without the narrowed "shoulders" of the RIM-162.
It reportedly has a maximum range of 44 kilometers and a maximum ceiling of 20 kilometers, slightly worse than the original RIM-162. Minimum altitude of target engagement is claimed as "2 meters or less" for the naval version, but is believed to be higher for land-launched missiles; both are unable to engage targets beyond obstacles or beyond the horizon. In both cases, minimum range is approximately 2 kilometers.
| Target type | Single-missile kill probability | Two-missile kill probability |
|---|---|---|
| Non-maneuvering (transport) aircraft | 95% | 99.75% |
| Maneuverable aircraft | 90% | 99% |
| Subsonic cruise missiles | 80% | 96% |
| Tactical ballistic missiles | 65% | 88% |
| Supersonic cruise missiles | 60% | 84% |
| Stationary helicopters | 40% | 64% |
In naval service, the YDG-64 missile benefits from its compact size, which allows it to be quadpacked in the Menghean Navy's VLS cells. These cells are 700 mm per side, leaving 350mm per quadpacked box, including wall material. The "self-defense configuration" of VLS cells for the YDG-64 is 5.49 meters deep, though the cells themselves are 4.41 meters deep, with the remaining space used for hot-launch exhaust ducting.
Owing to its moderate range, the naval YDG-64 is mainly used as a self-defense weapon for large and medium-size warships, and has only limited capabilities as an area-defense weapon for a carrier battle group.
The naval YDG-64 is usually guided by the YR-35 radar guidance module. Each module is 1.98 meters tall and 1.25 meters wide, and can rotate over a 360-degree arc, though its field of view is usually limited by the ship's superstructure. The module contains an AESA radar antenna which is capable of guiding eight missiles toward four targets. The guidance module also features an electro-optical targeting system, which is unable to perform missile guidance but can provide course-correction information and improve the tracking of small-RCS targets.
Against sea-skimming anti-ship missiles, the YDG-64 can be programmed to follow a top-attack trajectory, climbing above the surface of the water and then approaching the threat at a descending angle. This trajectory reduces the likelihood of false fuse detonation from contact with the ocean's surface, and allows the missile to engage sea-skimming missiles flying at altitudes of as little as two meters. It can also be fired against large, high-contrast surface targets, such as warships displacing some 100 tonnes or above, in an emergency situation where the launch warship does not have other anti-ship weapons at its disposal.
Land systems
In the Menghean Army, the YDG-64 is mainly used as a divisional air-defense weapon, or for the protection of high-value targets such as large unit headquarters. It complements the YDG-62 at the corps level. In addition to fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, the YDG-64 is also capable of engaging cruise missiles, guided bombs, and other large air-to-ground precision-guided munitions, which might otherwise be delivered from outside its effective range.
JYDG-64
The most common launch system for the missile is the JYDG-64 (Jayudaegong-64, abbr. for 자주식 유도탄, 대공, "Self-propelled missile, anti-air"). The launch vehicle (JYDG-64BGR) is a tracked, armored TELAR using the same chassis as the JYDG-62 and JJP-152/48. It has a crew of three, and is capable of autonomously detecting and engaging targets, though for maximum efficiency it is usually paired with an air-search radar at the battery level, with additional search radars at the battalion level.
Like the naval variant, it is capable of engaging four targets at once, but can direct as many as eight missiles (two per target), improving kill probability against small or maneuverable targets. It also shares an electro-optical targeting camera on the right cheek of the radar unit, to improve tracking capabilities in a high-jamming environment. It can be brought into action from a road march in as little as four minutes, and returned to a road march in the same amount of time. Once in a ready position, it has a reaction time of 8 seconds from target detection to missile launch.
Each TELAR carries a total of twelve YDG-64 missiles when fully loaded, fully four times the number carried by its divisional air defense predecessor, the JYDG-37BGR. This, too, reflects an interest in engaging precision-guided munitions as well as aircraft, thus increasing the number of targets that must be engaged. Missiles are transported in three containers of four missiles each, based on the quadpacked naval vertical launch system. The launcher fires missiles in such an order as to exhaust the missile boxes one by one; in between firings, empty missile boxes can be offloaded by a separate transloader vehicle and replaced with new units.
The main transloader vehicle, designated JYDG-64BJCh, shares the same tracked chassis but has a loading crane mounted in place of the radar. The crane is also fixed directly to the roof of the vehicle, while the rotating launch assembly is shortened to leave room. For further resistance to mass PGM attacks, the transloader itself can also serve as a TEL, firing missiles at targets illuminated by a nearby TELAR vehicle. Additional reloads are carried on 8x8 wheeled trucks, each with six four-missile launch cells, but with reduced off-road mobility and no on-board loading crane (the transloader's crane would be used instead).
In addition to standard VHF antennas, vehicles in a JYDG-64 battery are also equipped with microwave-band datalinks. Highly resistant to jamming, spoofing, and signal interception at the ranges at which enemy aircraft might be found, these antennas allow vehicles in a launch battery to share high-quality targeting information as long as they remain within line-of-sight of one another. These antennas can also relay information between vehicles, or via separate deployable relay stations, if the launch battery is dispersed in rough terrain. Among their supporting equipment, JYDG-64 batteries also include free-space optical laser communication devices and relays, which can be used to establish communications with the battalion command post and battalion-level radars when fighting in a prepared position.
A full launch battery consists of:
- 1x JYDG-64JS (Jungdae Salyŏngcha), Company/battery command vehicle, Crew of six
- 3x JYDG-64BG (Balsagi/Radar), TELAR, Crew of three
- 3x JYDG-64BJCh (Balsagi/Jaejangjŏn-Cha), TEL and reload vehicle, Crew of three
with additional self-proelled search radars, maintenance trucks, and training facilities at the Battalion level.
GYDG-64
The GYDG-64 is a lighter launch system for the YDG-64 missile, with greater road speed and strategic mobility. All vehicles in a missile battery use the Taekchŏn T212 8x8 wheeled chassis. Missile loads are somewhat lighter, with two four-missile cells on each TELAR vehicle and on each transloader. Guidance and networking capability are otherwise identical between the two systems, and they use the same missile-transport trucks capable of carrying six reload cells each.
GYDG-64 batteries take somewhat longer to come in and out of action, as the individual vehicles must be propped up on hydraulic jacks to provide better stability. They also have less offroad mobility, especially on rough or muddy terrain. This makes the system preferable for defending rear-area targets, including large-unit headquarters, airbases, and cities. Menghe's Coastal Defense Forces also use this variant for divisional air defense, as they must cover a considerably wider area but benefit from Menghe's developed transportation infrastructure in coastal areas.