ASM-18 Véda
| ASM-18 Véda AL-QBM | |
|---|---|
 3D render of the ASM-18 | |
| Type | Short-Range Ballistic Missile |
| Place of origin |  Inyursta |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2022-present |
| Used by | Inyurstan Air Force |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Morales-Sevalière Design Bureau (MSDB) |
| Designed | 2014 |
| Manufacturer | Morales-Sevalière Design Bureau (MSDB) |
| Produced | 2020-present |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 4,000kg |
| Length | 8m |
| Diameter | 0.9m |
Detonation mechanism | Impact |
| Blast yield | 640kg anti-runway, 600kg penetrator or 1000kg penetrator |
Operational range | 1,000km (640kg warhead) 600km (1,370kg warhead) |
| Flight ceiling | 600km |
| Speed | Mach 8.5 |
Guidance system | GPS/SACTOSAT |
| Accuracy | ~15m CEP |
The ASM-18 Véda, known in English as the "Thornbeast", is a long-range strategic weapon used by the Inyurstan Air Force.
It is named for the Véda, a regal yet terrifying canid demigod in Inyurstan pre-colonial lore.
Development
In response to rival defense sector Navayelle Systems Inc. developing a "revival" of the ASM-1 project, a high-speed, high-altitude anti-ship missile, MSDB submitted a design which featured a modified missile based largely on the Duvalier II SRBM. Because the guidance and flight profile, the resulting ASM-18 is considered an "air-launched quasi-ballistic missile" (AL-QBM) rather than a true ballistic missile like its predecessors.
Ultimately, the missile was found to be less capable of real-time tracking of targets moving and maneuvering at >28kts than the sensor-heavy ASM-16 Cetán it was competing with, as well as a more predictable, less maneuverable terminal phase; making it less suited for the anti-ship (especially anti-carrier) role. However, the Inyurstan Aéroforça retained interest in the missile as a ground-attack weapon.
Capabilities
The ASM-18 is capable of hitting targets greater than 1,000km away, thanks to the nature of an aerial launch preserving fuel and energy that would be expended by the initial ascent in a ground-launch. Even in configurations with a heavier 1370kg warhead, the ASM-18 boasts a published range of roughly 200km further than the newest Duvalier-II missile.
With an average flight speed of roughly Mach 8.5, it can strike a target at the edge of operational range in less than 10 minutes, offering the potential to incapacitate an enemy airfield before a fighter screen can be launched (thus "pinning" the enemy aircraft on the ground) or hitting a long-range HQ target before key enemy personnel can evacuate.
Warhead Options
ASM-18A Anti-Airfield: An anti-runway missile with the 89M4 anti-runway warhead, consisting of a 275kg multi-stage penetrator plus four additional 90kg penetrator submunitions. The 89M4 warhead is also used on the ASM-16A1 Cetán anti-runway variant, while the 90kg submunitions are the same used on the CBG-4S "Seíèsma" anti-runway/anti-highway bomb. Functioning as a "light bunker buster", the 275kg multi-stage warhead first detonates a shape-charge on contact, creating an initial crater and sending forward a high-explosive "follow through" bomb with then detonates a few beneath the surface of both ground and runway, causing an explosive "bubble" of material being thrust up and out (ideally sending slabs up into the air). This results in an initial disruption area of approx. 20m diameter, not including "thrown" chunks of concrete or asphalt. Meanwhile, the four accompanying submunitions disperse in a linear pattern prior to impact, and then to explode just below the paved layer, resulting in both crater and slab displacement reaching >7m diameter, each.
ASM-18P1 : A 600kg bunker-buster munition which relies on inertial mass x velocity to penetrate earth or concrete, then uses a delayed fused to detonate a high-explosive shape-charge. Designed for use against fortified enemy HQ targets.
ASM-18P2 : A larger, 1370kg bunker-buster munition functioning similar to the smaller ASM-18P1, but with deeper penetration due to both greater mass and more explosive force. Also designed for use against fortified enemy HQs or missile silos. Range is reduced to approx. 600km due to the larger warhead.