Originally posted by SpecOps87:
Am very curious about this, say a jet, like the F16 is flying at 1000 feet, which way of engagement does the aircraft have the highest chance of evading a portable missile? Say a RBS70 , Mistral or Igla. Also, does it matter if the missile is launched when its heading towards the site, or has its tail facing the site?
Thanks
im not too sure about it, but i think hugging the ground clutter might disrupt the Missile's guidance system... and if its only at 1k ft, i bet the SAM will climb faster.
on the note of heading of the airplane... a head on shot would mean the missile closes a lot faster as the missile and the plane both , which equals less time for the pilot to react.
Conversely, should the pilot do eratic evasive manouvres/countermeasures and this doesnt give the missile much chance to react either and should it fail to hit the first time round, it has to execute a full 180 degree turn, in the process reducing range and speed.
Furthermore, only All-Aspect missiles are able to track a head-on target (eg. mistral)
If its a tail-chase, the aircraft has the advantage of distance between itself and the missile, which means the missile has to be able to close in fast enough and cover the distance seperating it and the already afterburning airplane (thus reduced effective range) while not being fooled by chaff, flares, ecm...
On the side note, it can better react to the pilots, evasive manouvers... and all missile types are effective not just All-Aspect