Aspide-1A
Contents
Description
The Aspide-1A (the Italian name of the asp; aka A-missile [A-弹] in PLAAF service) is a semi-active radar-homing missile developed by Selenia based on the AIM-7 Sparrow's design with new homing radar, used by the Italian Air Force and exported to multiple foreign militaries including the PLAAF.
Vehicles equipped with this weapon
General info
The overall dimensions of the Aspide-1A is identical to later models of the AIM-7 Sparrow, the only major difference is the homing radar onboard.
| Missile characteristics | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missile | Mass (kg) | Guidance | Signal | Lock range (km) | Launch range (km) | Maximum speed (M) | Maximum overload (G) |
Missile guidance time (s) |
Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (kg) |
| Aspide-1A | 230 | SARH | CW | 30 | 80 | 5.0 | 35 | 45.0 | 10.24 |
Effective damage
The 8 kg of PBXN-4 explosives onboard has a 10.24 kg TNT equivalent, which can cause explosive and shrapnel damage to targeted aircraft.
Comparison with analogues
The Aspide-1A flies at a whopping Mach 5.0, faster than the AIM-7F Sparrow, R-23/24R, and Matra Super 530F. The maximum overload also tops out at 35G.
Usage in battles
The Aspide-1A is intended to intercept high-altitude or head-on targets, so the best way to utilize it is to aim for enemies who are flying high or in head-on range - they might not have sufficient manoeuvrability to dodge the missile. However, if coupled with an inferior radar, it is best to use the Aspide-1A against only targets which are higher than you, to avoid ground clutter interference.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- High flight speed
- High maximum G overload
- Sufficient explosive contents to one-shot targets
Cons:
History
Despite the very close resemblance to US-made AIM-7 Sparrows (which Selenia [now MDBA] did get the license for to build domestically in Italy), Aspide missiles utilized the latest electronics and rocket engines developed in Italy, serving as the selected SARH missile for Italian Air Force's Starfighters.
It was then exported to multiple foreign countries including Mainland China, where they even intended to buy the production line from Italy. However, the 1989 Beijing Crackdown and the subsequence European Economic Community embargo halted the import of Aspide into PLAAF service, forcing them to reverse-engineer from existing stocks. The Aspide's homing radar was also installed onto HQ-61 SAM, becoming what is now known as the PL-11 in the early 2000s.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the article about the variant of the weapon;
- references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
