Fighter Combat - Tactics and Maneuvering

FIGHTER WEAPONS 45
is sometimes called an "adaptive" fuze, which might alter fuze delays
during the missile's flight based on projected intercept conditions calculated
from guidance data. Such a fuze might also "aim" the warhead to
cause maximum destructive effects on the target side of the missile at
intercept.
Missile Warheads
The warheads used in AAMs are typically blast-fragmentation types, incendiary
or explosive pellets, or expanding-rod types. Blast-fragmentation
warheads are intended to cause damage through the combined effects of
the explosive shock wave and high-velocity fragments (usually pieces of
the warhead casing). Pellet designs are similar, except some of the fragments
are actually small bomblets that explode or burn on contact with, or
penetration of, the target. Because of the decreased air density at high
altitude, the damage to airborne targets from blast effect alone is not
usually great unless the missile actually hits the target, penetrates, and
explodes inside. Fragments tend to spread out from the point of the explosion,
rapidly losing killing power as miss distance increases. Explosive or
incendiary pellets reduce this problem somewhat since a single hit can do
more damage. The expanding-rod warhead also addresses this problem. It
is comprised of many short lengths of steel rod placed side by side in an
annular arrangement around the explosive material. The rods are welded
together at alternate ends so that when detonation occurs they expand
outward in a solid, continuous ring, much like an expanding watch band,
until reaching their maximum radius. In theory this continuous rod is
more likely to cut through control cables, hydraulic and fuel lines, and
structural members than are individual fragments. In addition, the lethality
of such a warhead should be maintained to greater distances, since the
damaging fragments do not spread apart. In practice, however, such expanding
rods often separate early in the explosion, leaving large gaps ir the
warhead coverage.
The lethality of a warhead depends largely on the amount of explosive
material and the number and size of the fragments. Warheads should be
designed with specific target types in mind, and they must complement
the missile guidance and fuze design. Larger expected miss distances and
imprecise fuzes require bigger warheads.
Fuzes must make allowance for the fact that the missile's forward
velocity is imparted to the warhead fragments on detonation, so that as
they expand they are also moving forward, forming a cone-shaped lethal
volume ahead of the warhead detonation point. Warheads have been developed
which can aim most of their fragments in the direction of the
target based on fuze command. "Shaped charges" have been used to enhance
target penetration, particularly with contact fuzes. Nuclear warheads
also may be employed for special situations.
Missile Employment
Employment of AAMs involves satisfying the requirements of the particular
missile in the given situation. Missiles are complicated systems com-