GB1501079A - Launching rack for a sam guided missile - Google Patents

Abstract

1501079 Launching rack VEREINGTE FLUGTECHNISCHE WERKE - FOKKER GmbH 4 Aug 1970 [11 Sept 1969] 37686/70 Heading F3C A launching rack for a SAM guided missile includes a device which imparts a rotational impulse to the missile about a transverse axis during its acceleration along the rack. In the embodiment illustrated, the launching rack 2 carries three guide rails, the front rail 3 being rigidly mounted and the two rear rails 4 adapted to turn about a transverse pin. The missile 1 has three points of suspension 7, 8 which are constructed as rollers or sliding shoes. The resultant movement of the missile can be regarded as a translation in the firing direction, which is defined by the firing angle #, and as a rotation about the transverse axis extending through the rear suspension points 8. The rotation is produced by the inclined guide rails 4, which impart to the suspension points 8 of the missile 1 a force component perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the missile. The missile 1 thus receives on the launching rack 2 a rotational impulse which, at a particular acceleration, is dependent upon the angle of inclination # of the guide rails 4, upon the distance R between the front and rear suspension points 7, 8, and upon the moment of inertia of the missile about its transverse axis. The rotational impulse about this axis produces a change of course of the missile in the low speed range and this results in low mechanical stressing of the missile structure owing to small acceleration values transverse to the longitudinal axis of the missile. The reproducibility of a particular flight path is very good, since the distance R and the inclination # can be accurately adjusted. The early change of course of the missile with the resultant considerable curvature at the beginning of the trajectory enables the missile to fly over obstacles such as prominent features of the terrain, or vegetation or buildings employed for the purpose of camouflage which would be situated in the flight path using a line-of-sight launching method, in particular when firing at low-flying aircraft.