Igla

Development of the Igla man-portable surface-to-air missile began in 1971. The development program was protracted, and conducted in two phases. The Igla-1 was accepted by the military in 1981, while the Igla with more capable homing logic entered production in 1983.

Manufacturer: Nepobidimy. Location: Kolomna.

First version of the Igla missile deployed. Quickly replaced by the more-capable standard Igla.. Also produced in Bulgaria, North Korea.

Development of the Igla man-portable surface-to-air missile began in 1971. The development program was protracted, and conducted in two phases. The Igla-1 9K310 with the 9M313 missile was accepted by the military in 1981. As opposed to the Strela, the missile used not just the force of its warhead against its target, but also the explosive potential of any remaining solid propellant. In comparison to the Strela-2 the Igla-1 could intercept targets by overtaking them, as well as on an intercept course. The operation of the system was simplified, with the launcher signalling to the operator the best moment for launch. An IFF interrogator was included in the launcher to prevent inadvertent destruction of friendly aircraft.

Total Mass: 11 kg (24 lb). Core Diameter: 0.0670 m (0.2190 ft). Total Length: 1.69 m (5.54 ft). Span: 0.16 m (0.52 ft). Standard warhead mass: 1.80 kg (3.90 lb). Maximum range: 4.30 km (2.60 mi). Boost Propulsion: Solid rocket, dual thrust. Guidance: Cooled Infrared/Ultraviolet Homing. Maximum speed: 2,030 kph (1,260 mph). Minimum range: 1.30 km (0.80 mi). Ceiling: 5,000 m (16,400 ft).

Fully developed and more-capable version of the Igla man-portable air defence missile.

In 1983 the Igla 9K38 with the 9M39 missile was accepted for production. This had maximum commonality with the Igla-1, using the same rocket motor, warhead, launch mechanism, and sensors. It featured a new optical homing head with a logic unit to optimise the effectiveness of the warhead against the target, while ignoring infrared decoys. The Igla-2 was claimed to be twice as effective as the American Stinger missile, while being substantially cheaper.

Total Mass: 13 kg (28 lb). Core Diameter: 0.0700 m (0.2290 ft). Total Length: 1.55 m (5.08 ft). Span: 0.16 m (0.52 ft). Standard warhead mass: 1.18 kg (2.60 lb). Maximum range: 5.20 km (3.20 mi). Boost Propulsion: Solid rocket, dual thrust. Guidance: Cooled Infrared Homing. Maximum speed: 2,050 kph (1,270 mph). Minimum range: 0.50 km (0.31 mi). Ceiling: 3,500 m (11,400 ft). Floor: 10 m (32 ft).

Vehicle-mounted version of Igla.

US designation for the naval version of the Igla / SA-16. The man-fired missile was actually identical to the ground forces version.

Unlike the special shipborne launchers developed for the VMF for the Strela, the Igla was operated from ships by simply having operators manually launch the weapon from designated positions on each vessel. Nevertheless the missile was given a separate designation by the US Department of Defence.

Manufacturer: Altair/Nepobidimy. Location: Moscow. Total Mass: 11 kg (23 lb). Core Diameter: 0.0670 m (0.2190 ft). Total Length: 1.69 m (5.54 ft). Span: 0.16 m (0.52 ft). Maximum range: 4.50 km (2.70 mi). Boost Propulsion: Solid rocket, dual thrust. Guidance: Cooled Infrared Homing.

• Yeftifyev, M D, Iz istorii sozdaniya zenito-raketnovo shchita rossii, Vuzovskaya kniga, Moscow, 2000. Comprehensive history of development of the development of surface-to-air and anti-ballistic missiles in the Soviet Union, with summaries of work in other countries as well. Accessed at: http://www.eastview.com/xq/ASP/sku=A2010232/f_locale=/Evtif'ev/MD/Moskva/Russia/Russian/qx/russian/books/product.asp.