YDCh-72

YDCh-72
File:YDCh 72.png YDCh-72 with launch tube
Type	anti-tank guided missile
Place of origin	Menghe
Service history
In service	2012-present
Used by	Menghe
Production history
Designer	Chŏnggong Missile Design Bureau Samsan Defense Group
Designed	2007-2012
Manufacturer	Samsan
Produced	2012-present
Specifications
Weight	14 kilograms
Length	124 cm
Diameter	110 mm
Wingspan	47 cm
Propellant	solid fuel rocket
Operational range	5,000 meters
Guidance system	IIR with manual initial stage
Steering system	aerodynamic surfaces

The YDCh-72 (Formal designation: 72식 대전차 유도탄 / 七二式對戰車誘導彈, chil-i-sik daejŏncha yudotan, "Type 72 anti-tank missile;" Short designation 유대차-72 Yudaecha-chiri "YDH-72") is a type of anti-tank guided missile developed in Menghe during the late 2000s and early 2010s. Though it incorporated some components from similar Glasic missiles as part of a technology-sharing agreement, it is an independent design overall, with slightly different capabilities and characteristics.

The key feature of the YDCh-72, shared with its Glasic counterpart, is an imaging infrared seeker combined with a trailing fiber-optic cable. In the lock-on-after-launch mode, the operator fires the missile from a concealed position and identifies targets using the IR-spectrum video feed from the optical seeker. Once a target is selected, the missile autonomously homes in on it, following a top-attack trajectory. A direct-lock, fire-and-forget mode also exists. The missile can be fired from both man-portable and vehicle-mounted tubes.

Development

The YDCh-72 originated with Menghean interest in a portable ATGM which could supplement the YDCh-18 and YDCh-70. Though the YDCh-18 had impressive accuracy and speed, it still retained the shortcomings of a SACLOS missile, requiring a stationary launch with a clear and uninterrupted line of sight and impacting directly on the thick turret face or glacis armor of an oncoming tank. The YDCh-70 solved the latter problem by using an overflight trajectory and a downward-facing warhead, but it still required that the launch platform remain stationary and track the target, exposing IFVs and missile teams to retaliatory fire.

In order to offset these flaws, the Menghean Army sought out an anti-tank missile with some type of fire-and-forget or non-line-of-sight guidance, either IIR or millimeter-wave radar. These guidance modes would also allow it to follow a top-attack trajectory against the target, striking the thinner top armor and greatly increasing the likelihood of penetration. The YGJ-48, licensed from Tír Glas in 2005, offered both of these capabilities, but due to its size it could only be launched from helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, and dedicated launch trucks.

At first, Menghean designers considered pursuing a license for the Glasic Spike-LR, but the measure was overruled following disagreements over whether the missile's cost and range met Menghean requirements. Instead, the Samsan Defense Group began work on a domestic missile which would fill a similar role. Certain components, including many seeker parts, benefited from technology-sharing agreements with Tír Glas, but were not regulated by a formal license agreement. In other areas, particularly the rocket motor, Samsan applied domestic progress in solid-fuel missile propulsion. The missile was approved for production in 2011 as the YDCh-72 and entered service the following year.

Design

At under 15 kilograms, the YDCh-71 is a little over half the weight of the YDCh-70 which it replaced, and similar in weight to the man-portable YDCh-16 of the airborne forces. This allows a dismounted squad or light helicopter to carry more missiles than the YDCh-18 or -70 would have permitted, for equal or greater anti-tank effectiveness. The tripod, launch optics, display screen, and control interface, however, add to the weight and bulk of the overall system, which still requires at least three crew members to transport and operate in dismounted form. On land and airborne vehicles, these are integrated into the gunner or commander's controls.

The missile body itself has a two-stage propellant system, with an initial booster stage to propel it clear of the tube and a second sustainer stage to propel it in flight. The booster stage makes the missile safer to fire from confined rooms and reduces the dust cloud it produces on launch. The sustainer stage uses a smokeless, clean-burning propellant, which ensures that the missile does not give away the launcher's position when fired from behind a hill or obstacle. Surrounding the booster is a coil of fiber-optic cable, four kilometers long on the G version and five kilometers long on the N and D versions. Use of a cable rather than a datalink makes the missile much more resistant to jamming, but also limits its speed and range, one of the reasons a fixed-wing-launched version was never developed.

For targeting, the missile relies on an imaging infrared camera on the nose, coupled to what Menghean sources refer to as a "semi-autonomous guidance system." Initially, some defense analysts misinterpreted this as "semi-active laser homing." In reality, the missile's seeker feeds a false-color image to the operator's screen, which he uses to manually guide the missile in its mid-flight stage. In flight, the seeker identifies possible vehicular IR signatures, which the operator reviews before selecting one as the target. Once a target has been selected, the operator hands off the terminal stage to the missile's autonomous guidance, which follows a top-attack trajectory without further input. This allows the missile to be fired from behind a hill, building, or other obstacle, as long as the operator knows the approximate location of the enemy target. It also allows the operator to better distinguish between friendly and enemy vehicles in the target area, compared with a fully autonomous lock-on-after-launch missile.

Alternatively, the operator can select a target through the seeker camera while the missile is still in its launch tube, then fire and immediately hand the missile over to autonomous guidance mode. This allows for fire-and-forget capability, but requires line-of-sight contact at the outset.

During live-fire trials in 2017, a YDCh-72N missile successfully struck a slow-moving unmanned aerial vehicle from a distance of 2.59 km, the first demonstration of the YDCh-72 in an anti-air role. Due to the missile's low speed and short range, it is unlikely to be effective against fast jets, but it may pose a threat to helicopters and mid-size battlefield surveillance drones if MANPADS launchers are not available.

YDCh-72J

During the development process, the Oyashimese authorities proposed expanding the program to include sales of the Spike-ER, which had a longer range and a non-line-of-sight system closer to Menghean design requirements. The Byuntian missile design bureau made some preliminary evaluations of the longer-range missile, which was sometimes shown with the designation YDCh-72J (장거리, Janggŏri, long-range).

In the end, however, the Army leadership decided to use the ground-launched PD-82 as its main long-range AT weapon, filling the intended role of a Spike-ER derivative. The program was officially cancelled, but Changgong has continued side work on a long-range YDCh-72, displaying models of a vertical launch vehicle at the 2015 Hanguang Armaments Expo.

YDCh-73

YDCh-73
File:YDCh 73.png YDCh-73 in handling shell and deployed. Note 125mm APFSDS for size comparison.
Type	gun-launched anti-tank guided missile
Place of origin	Menghe
Service history
In service	2016-present
Used by	Menghe
Production history
Designer	Chŏnggong design bureau
Designed	2012
Manufacturer	Sinsegye Armaments Division
Produced	2016-present
Specifications
Weight	19 kilograms
Length	91 cm
Diameter	124 mm
Wingspan	45 cm
Propellant	solid fuel rocket
Operational range	5,000 meters
Guidance system	IIR with manual initial stage
Steering system	aerodynamic surfaces
Launch platform	SCh-5/6A, SCh-6D, SCh-8B

Even while the YDCh-72 was still in development, Army High Command expressed interest in a fire-and-forget gun-launched ATGM for use on main battle tanks. All Menghean MBTs since the MCh-5Ch had been equipped to fire SACLOS ATGMs through the gun barrel, allowing them to engage enemy armor with greater accuracy from a longer range. By the 21st century, however, the utility of such weapons was coming into doubt; ever since the adoption of Oyashimese-based fire-control systems, Menghean MBTs had been able to reliably score first-round hits with 125mm APFSDS at long range, reducing the need for an anti-tank guided missile that took longer to reach the target and was less effective against composite armor.

YDCh-72, especially after its spectacular success in trials, offered a solution to these problems. As on IFVs, its fire-and-forget capability would allow a tank to launch the weapon and then retreat into cover rather than remaining stationary in the face of enemy fire. The top-attack trajectory also offered a weapon to use against MBTs found to be resistant to the SuChong-6’s long 125mm APFSDS. Some doctrinal experts suggested that the weapon’s range, especially if extended, would allow MBTs to inflict attrition and demoralization on an enemy armored force prior to commencing line-of-sight battle.

In 2012, shortly after the YDCh-72 passed its final firing trials and entered service, High Command commissioned the Changgong design bureau to develop a similar missile which could be launched from a 125mm tank gun. At 110 millimeters in diameter, the YDCh-72 was already narrow enough to fit down the barrel, but it was too long for SCh-6 and SCh-8 autoloaders to handle even before the addition of a cold-launch element. This challenge led the designers to adapt the YDCh-72 design to the required dimensions, shortening the missile while also increasing its diameter to 125 millimeters. To retain training and manufacturing commonality and speed up the design process, the designers chose to retain the YDCh-72’s seeker and most of its guidance and control electronics. The larger rocket booster allowed a slight improvement in range, and the installation of a heavier tandem HEAT warhead, but these changes also increased the missile's mass. After the Menghean invasion of the Republica Innominada, High Command ordered Changgong to accelerate development of the YDCh-73, and the first prototype was ready for testing in 2015.

Owing to these changes, the resulting missile bears the separate designation YDCh-73. Externally, it is shorter and fatter than the YDCh-72, though upon closer examination it still retains the latter’s seeker head and control fins. In order to prevent gun rifling from damaging its skin, the missile is carried within a metal sleeve that falls off after firing. The glass seeker head is also covered by a protective rubber cap during transport, but this is removed just before inserting the missile into the autoloader. Like the YDCh-72, the YDCh-73 does not require an external infrared camera, and in pre-launch preparation it locks on to the target using its own IIR seeker – which in this case must “look” down the barrel while the gun is pointed directly at the target. The gunner can either perform this action on his own optics, or switch to a video feed from the IIR seeker. The missile is launched from the gun barrel under its own power, burning up a combustible case which attaches it to the rear stub. In lock-on-after-launch mode, the gunner remains on this video feed and guides the missile in its early flight, selecting a target and releasing the missile to autonomous mode in a manner identical to the YDCh-72. If lock is already established prior to launch the missile can be placed directly in autonomous mode. Both modes allow the tank to accelerate or retreat into cover after firing, even if this breaks line-of-sight. Field tests in 2015 found that the main gun stabilizer on the SCh-6Ch is sufficiently precise to allow the missile to lock on to a target while the tank is moving, and lock-on-after-launch firing can be performed at high speed on rough terrain if the gunner is skilled.

After performing well on firing trials, the first prototype was accepted for service in early 2016. Operational deliveries were originally set to begin in November of that year, but have been revised back to January 2017 due to production delays. The “D” variant of the SuChong-6 and the “B” variant of the SuChong-8 were both designed to accept the missile, as is the “A” variant of the Marine Infantry’s SuChong-5/6.

Service

Both the YDCh-72 and YDCh-73 are manufactured by the armaments division of Sinsegye, a public-private conglomerate firm which is best known for producing consumer electronics. Although no officially published figures are available, Changgong’s website states that production of the YDCh-72 already numbers “above ten thousand” with many more set to be produced. The weapon is currently standard-issue in the Army’s “Class 4” formations, the fourth and highest ranking for equipment quality in a combat unit. In Mechanized Infantry battalions it is standard-issue at the Squad level, with one group of four launchers on each IFV. These currently account for most YDCh-72 missiles in service. In Class 4 Motorized Infantry battalions it is issued to each Company’s Anti-Tank Squad, with additional vehicle-mounted launchers at the Battalion and Regimental levels. As of 2015, all active Marine Infantry Brigades and Airborne Assault Brigades are fully equipped with the YDCh-72, having used it to replace other ATGM types.

In March 2015, military officials from Qusayn contacted the Menghean government to request a special sale of the YDCh-72, which is not exported by Singun-Battang Korrigae. The Menghean government has denied the request, as the weapon is originally licensed in New Oyashima and sale to third-party countries is not possible without the designer’s formal consent.

See also

• YDCh-70
• YDCh-71
• HRB-14