FlaRakRad
Contents
Description
The Flugabwehrraketensystem Roland auf Radkraftfahrzeug was a self propelled anti aircraft missile system armed with the Roland 3 surface-to-air missile. The Roland was a Franco - German venture for developing a capable anti-aircraft missile. The Army, Air and Navy used different versions, with the Army opting for a tracked chassis, capable of keeping the pace with tanks and IFVs, while the air and naval branches opted for a wheeled chassis dedicated to defending airfields, coasts and rear-guard areas like supply depots and command centers. The elected chassis was the MAN 15T mil gl KAT I A1. A program to replace the missiles with long range VT1 SAMs was started, but cancelled in 2003.
It was introduced in Update "New Power". FlaRakRad is the largest ground vehicle in the game, but being an SPAA in a truck, it has little to no armour. As such it is very vulnerable to IFVs and low flying aircrafts that approach the rear of the battlefield. Try to stay close to allies in order to survive possible enemy flanking manoeuvres. As for Air Defence, this vehicle is armed with the VT-1 air to air missile, which is one of the best SAM missiles in War Thunder. With a decent range but with only two missiles available at a time. Since it does not have any kind of autocannon, like the Pantsir, it is very vulnerable to low flying aircrafts, its missile, the VT-1, also lacks the range to deal with the most advanced air launched ATGMs in the game, but that goes for all SAM systems.
General info
Survivability and armour
As the FlaRakRad is the largest ground vehicle in game, and an SPAA, it is not hard for one to guess how the protection situation is. As there is no armour to speak of, the best bet for protecting this vehicle is not to be seen. Try hiding behind large hills, buildings near spawn, and other large obstacles. The non retractable search radar makes it hard to find spots tall enough to hide the FlaRakRad's immense size. However, due to the size of this vehicle, it can take ATGMs from helis occasionally, and can sometimes even eat APFSDS. However, any shot is very likely to cripple you, as the transmission is huge and easily hit.
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 5 mm | 5 mm | 5 mm | 5 mm |
| Turret | 15 mm | 15 mm | 15 mm | 10 mm |
Notes:
- The chassis is 30 mm thick.
- The windows in the cab have no armour.
- The tracking radar is 15 mm thick.
- There are 5 mm plates inside the rear compartment (see image).
Mobility
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 98 | 8 | 27.5 | 511 | 687 | 18.58 | 24.98 |
| Realistic | 90 | 7 | 318 | 360 | 11.56 | 13.09 | |
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Armaments
Main armament
| Roland SAM (x2) | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity (Belt) | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Autoloader |
| Arcade | 10 (2) | -10°/+80° | ±180° | N/A | 74.9 | 103.6 | 125.8 | 139.1 | 148.0 | 5.00 |
| Realistic | 50.6 | 59.5 | 72.3 | 79.9 | 85.0 | |||||
Ammunition
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| Roland 3 | SAM | 54 | 54 | 54 | 54 | 54 | 54 |
| VT1 | SAM | 59 | 59 | 59 | 59 | 59 | 59 |
| Missile details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Range (m) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Arming distance (m) |
Trigger radius (m) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (kg) |
Ricochet | ||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| Roland 3 | SAM | 570 | 8,000 | 77 | 1 | 0.1 | 300 | 6 | 6.81 | 79° | 80° | 81° |
| VT1 | SAM | 1,250 | 12,000 | 73 | 1 | 0.3 | 300 | 8 | 7.86 | 79° | 80° | 81° |
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ |
Usage in battles
It is recommended to change the radar range from 10 to 20 km, find a concealed spot near spawn and memorize where the helicopters' airfield is. Helicopters are easy prey for the FlaRakRad; but be careful to take them out quickly or you'll find you have a 9M127 Vikhr headed right at you. Be careful to not radar lock helicopters, as they usually have RWR and will detect you if you lock them. Try instead to hand guide the missiles. This isn't as hard as it seems, as helicopters mostly hover and without the RWR won't know where the missile is coming from. Once the VT1 missile is unlocked, this allows the FlaRakRad to be able to finally engage aircraft with any hint of reliability. Still, one must exercise discipline when choosing when to engage aircraft, as the VT1 can still be dodged. As for the VT1 against helicopters, it just allows the FlaRakRad to kill enemy helicopters quicker, giving them less time to react. All in all, the FlaRakRad is a competent SPAA once one unlocks the missile and has the flexibility to engage aircraft as well as helis. Keep in mind that after firing the second missile, the FlaRakRad will not begin reloading until the second missile hits a target or reaches its max range and self-destructs. This means if you miss the second missile, you are vulnerable to air attack while waiting to reload. Take care not to be hit, and you'll have a good time.
Countering Vikhr-equipped helicopters
Experienced Ka-50/52 players will often fire multiple Vikr missiles at you, hoping that the first two of them will neutralize your missiles or they will have loaded rockets that will explode after a fixed distance and will try to shoot your VT1 missiles. You can make their life hard if you circle the target by moving the aiming reticle around the target in small circles, causing your missile to change direction really fast and making it nearly impossible to counter if done right. Remember that you do not need to hit the target directly due to the missile's proximity fuse.
Countering advanced planes
Experienced pilots will try to side-climb outside your range and will try to attack from the top where your radar will not show the incoming plane. In order to prevent this from happening, set the range of the radar to 20 km instead of 10 km to detect any side-climbing planes to prioritize before they climb above the maximum radar elevation range.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- High speed missile with long range
- 1st generation gunner thermals allow the FlaRakRad to track targets without the use of radar easier
- Missile has enough explosive to destroy lightly-armoured vehicles, and even tanks via overpressure through the turret roof or hull belly.
Cons:
- The single biggest ground vehicle in the game, longer and taller than a Maus - finding proper concealment is nigh impossible
- Every single gun in the game, MGs included, poses a threat
- No reliable defence against any ground vehicles
- Lack of guns means it cannot defend itself from close aircraft should missiles miss or run out
- No survivability from attacks from the ground or air
- Due to the low power-to-weight ratio, gaining speed takes ages even on flat ground and most hills will slow the vehicle to a crawl
History
Devblog
The FlaRakRad self-propelled anti-aircraft missile system with the Roland 3 surface-to-air missile system became the most advanced modification of the Roland, Franco-German anti-aircraft missile. While the army version of the FlaRakPz 1 self-propelled air defense system was equipped with a tracked chassis, the air defense services and the German naval forces settled on wheeled chassis for AA systems for airfield protection. At the end of the 90s, a MAN 6x6 truck was chosen as a chassis for the Roland 2 complex, but soon a unified command vehicle on the chassis of the MAN 15t mil gl KAT I A1 (8×8) truck was adopted, which served as the basis for further development of the Roland family.
One of the latest modernization programs for the complex for the needs of the German army assumed the possibility of launching not only Roland 2 and Roland 3 missiles, but also promising long-range VT1 missiles, but the program was not completed and by 2003 Germany refused to further modernize the Roland complex in favor of more modern systems.
Media
- Skins
- Images
- FlaRakRad Devblog Images
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 series of the vehicles;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
| Germany anti-aircraft vehicles | |
|---|---|
| Wheeled | Sd.Kfz.222 |
| Half-track | Sd.Kfz.251/21 · Sd.Kfz. 6/2 |
| Flakpanzer IV | Wirbelwind · Ostwind · Ostwind II · Kugelblitz · Zerstörer 45 |
| Other Flakpanzers | Flakpanzer I · Flakpanzer 38 · Flakpanzer 341 |
| Wiesel AWC | Wiesel 1A4 · Ozelot |
| Radar SPAAG | Gepard · Gepard 1A2 |
| Missile SPAA | FlaRakPz 1 · FlaRakRad |
