The RBS15 Mk3 surface-to-surface missile (SSM) was developed jointly by Diehl BGT Defence and Saab Bofors Dynamics. It is the latest variant of the RBS15 anti-ship missile family. The RBS15 Mk3 is in service or on order with Sweden, Germany, Poland and Finland.
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Developed as an upgrade of combat proven RBS15 Mk2 missile, the Mk3 was successfully test fired at an FMV (the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration) test range in October 2008. The first missile was assembled outside Sweden in Germany in December that year.
The RBS15 Mk3 is a fire-and-forget, subsonic cruise type missile launched from ships and trucks. The missile can be used for anti-ship missions and land strikes.
RBS15 Mk3 surface-to-surface orders and deliveries
In September 2005, Germany ordered RBS15 anti-ship missiles to equip its new K130 corvettes. The deliveries began in March 2011 and the missile was officially rolled-out aboard the K130 corvette in September 2011.
In October 2006, Saab Bofors Dynamics was awarded a €110m contract to supply the RBS15 Mk3 missiles for Orkan Class fast patrol boats of the Polish Navy.
In November 2007, Saab and FMV signed a contract for the RBS15 Mk3 System to equip the Visby Class corvettes.
Variations of RBS15 Mk3 missile
The RBS15 Mk3 is available in three versions – ship-launched, truck-launched and air-launched. The ship-launched variant can be installed on small and large sized warships such as fast patrol boats, frigates and corvettes. The missile is easily integrated with the combat management system and can be operated as stand-alone or fully integrated architecture.
The air-to-ship launched version is suitable for modern fighter aircraft. The rapidly deployed truck-launched missile battery provides coastal defence against hostile forces. The highly mobile launch platforms allow the launch of the missile from hidden positions located far away from the coast.
RBS15 Mk3 design and features
The forward part of the RBS15 Mk3 missile includes guidance and electronics section followed by warhead and fuel section. The rearward section consists of wings and turbojet engine and two parallel booster motors. The missile has cruciform wings that can be retracted during storage.
The missile has a length of 4.35m, fuselage diameter of 0.5m and a wing span of 1.4m. The launch and in-flight weights of the missile are 800kg and 650kg respectively. The RBS15 Mk3 can strike targets within the range of 200km, while travelling at a subsonic speed of 0.9Mach.
RBS15 Mk3 guidance system
The RBS15 guidance and control system includes an inertial navigation system and a GPS receiver, a radar altimeter and a Ku-band radar target seeker. The RBS15 missiles are resistant of enemy countermeasures. Two or more missiles can be programmed to hit the target simultaneously from various directions to better penetrate the air defences of warships.
The missile features low radar cross section and IR signature. It has sophisticated target discrimination and selection capabilities. It is extremely resistant to chaff, active jammers, decoys and other electronic countermeasures (ECM).
The RBS15 Mk3 is a low sea-skimming missile performing unpredictable evasive manoeuvres. The missile increases its thrust in the terminal phase to defeat missiles, guns and close-in weapon systems (CIWS). The missile engagement planning system (MEPS) provides advanced user interface for generating plans for different scenarios.
Warhead and propulsion of RBS15 Mk3 SSM
The missile can be equipped with an optimised heavy HE blast-fragmentation warhead. The highly efficient warhead can penetrate into the hull of any modern vessel.
The ship and truck-launched RBS15 Mk3 variants are launched by two booster motors. The missile is powered by TR 60-5 variable-thrust turbo-jet engine developed by Microturbo (a Safran Group company and subsidiary of Turbomeca). The TR60-5 engine incorporating a 3-stage-axial compressor delivers a thrust of 350 to 440daN.
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