Raduga K-10S/AS-2 Kipper
Typeanti-ship missile
Place of originSoviet Union
Service history
In service1961-1994
WarsCold War
Production history
DesignerMKB Raduga
Designed1955
Produced1961
VariantsP-40
Specifications
Mass4,533 kg (9,994 lb)
Length9.75 m (384 in)
Diameter1 m (39 in)
Wingspan4.18 m (165 in)
WarheadFK-10 HE[1] or nuclear
Warhead weight1,000 kg (2,200 lb)
Detonation
mechanism
impact fuze
Blast yield350kt

EngineLyulka AL-5 RD-9FK,[2] Mikulin M-9FK[1]
Operational
range
260–350 km (160–220 mi; 140–190 nmi)
Flight ceiling12 km (39,000 ft)
Maximum speed 1,400 km/h (870 mph), Mach 1.32 at service ceiling
Guidance
system
inertial with terminal active radar homing
AccuracyCEP 150 ft (46 m)[2]
Launch
platform
Tu-16K-10 Badger C

The Raduga K-10S (NATO reporting name: AS-2 Kipper) was a Soviet supersonic anti-ship missile that was usually nuclear-armed, designed by MKB Raduga. Its development began in 1955, and it entered service with the Soviet armed forces in 1961. The Kipper missile was a very large one, approximately the size of a small jet fighter, because of the rather primitive state of anti-ship missile technology in the 1950s and 1960s. This missile was never used in combat anywhere.

The AS-2's dedicated launch platform, the Tu-16K-10 Badger C, could carry a single AS-2, semi-recessed in the bomb bay.[2]

AS-2 Kipper slung under Tu-16 Badger-C launch aircraft

The Kipper's long range enabled it to be launched, hypothetically, from beyond the range of any shipboard surface-to-air missiles or anti-aircraft guns of that time. The only defense against the Kipper was naval jet fighter aircraft, operating from either an aircraft carrier or a shore airfield.

In flight tests, the Kipper cruised on its approach to a target at an altitude of about 10,000 meters, using inertial guidance until it reaches a range of about 100 to 110 kilometers from the target, where it enters a shallow 15 degree dive, commanded by a mid-course update via radio link. When it reaches a range of 60 to 70 kilometers it levels out at an altitude of between 800 and 1,000 meters where it cruises until it reaches a range of 10 to 16 kilometers, when the missile's active radar homing guidance is engaged. It then enters a dive, striking the target vessel close to or below the waterline.

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "K-10S (AS-2 Kipper)". GlobalSecurity. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "AS-2 Russian and Soviet Nuclear Forces". Federation of American Scientists Nuclear Resources. Retrieved 9 August 2023.

References

[edit]
This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please help improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (December 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message)