Ukraine should soon receive a powerful Iris-T SLM anti-aircraft missile system from Germany.
This weapon will help protect my indomitable Kharkiv and other Ukrainian cities from enemy
missile attacks. Today we’ll talk about this air defense system.
Ukraine’s air defense is not effective enough
So far, the confrontation on the frontlines of the Russian-Ukrainian war has been taking
place mostly at the level of artillery duels. In this case, heavy cannon and rocket artillery
are involved. Despite that assessment regarding the successes of both sides differ, the fact
of a slight superiority of the invaders should still be recognized. Yes, this advantage is
fading every day, and our defenders no longer allow the rashists to act with impunity, but
the advantage is still there. Therefore, it is extremely important to maintain the viability
of the Ukrainian Air Force and provide our military with effective short and medium-range
air defense (AD) systems.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine are armed with various air defense systems. This is primarily
a family of Soviet, and later Russian, long-range S-300 anti-missile systems, designed specifically
to protect against air and missile threats, protect large material and technical facilities
and military bases. In addition, the Armed Forces of Ukraine include the medium-level
air defense system SP SA-6, the medium-level air defense system SP Buk, the SA-15 air defense
system, and the SA-3 short-range air defense system. The profile of anti-aircraft systems
can be varied, but they are limited in number, and some of them are obsolete systems with
questionable effectiveness, especially against modern Russian combat aircraft and missiles.
Foreign assistance to strengthen Ukraine’s defense capabilities includes the Stinger
AD SAM man-portable air defense systems from the US and Starstreak from the UK. Both of
these systems are short-range air defense systems that are useful for pinpoint or short-range
air defense and are not suitable for combating fast aircraft capable of releasing ammunition
beyond the visible range, or for hitting ballistic missiles at high altitudes, which are by far
the largest aerial threat for Ukraine.
For this reason, the German IRIS-T SLM system was chosen. Let’s take a closer look at
this anti-aircraft missile system.
What is IRIS-T SLM?
The IRIS-T SLM is a vertical-launched air defense system based on MAN 8×8 vehicles
and is container-launched, reportedly requiring two operators and just 10 minutes to deploy.
It can carry and launch up to eight missiles like other MEADS launchers. Existing versions
include IRIS-T SLS (short-range) and IRIS-T SLM (medium-range), and the latest IRIS-T
SLX (extended range) is still under development.
The system includes missiles, a launcher, and an AESA all-weather 3D radar for 360º
surveillance and target data generation. For fire control, a TOC (tactical operations center)
is provided, equipped with appropriate communications. The system can hit multiple targets simultaneously
with 360º coverage thanks to the high-performance surveillance radar. The IRIS-T SLM embodies
the principle of vehicle independence in terms of integration, i.e. all components are compatible
in size and mounting with standard containers and can be transported by air, road/rail,
and ship.
Warhead and engine
The German air defense system is equipped with a high-explosive fragmentation warhead
weighing 11.4 kg. It is propelled by a single-stage solid rocket engine that is equipped with
an integrated thrust vector control (TVC) system that provides maximum lateral deflection/acceleration
immediately after launch, allowing it to hit targets at relatively short ranges and contributing
to anticipatory maneuverability and minimal missile dead space. The power plant and the
missile’s aerodynamic nose cone make it possible to achieve a maximum flight range
of 40 km with an intercept altitude of 20 km.
Control and Navigation
The missile is equipped with GPS and an inertial navigation system (INS) for autonomous navigation.
The radio frequency data link allows the transmission of guidance data from the fire control radar
in flight, which makes it possible for long-range radar guidance in the middle of the flight
course. Since the missile does not have its own tracking and millimeter-wave radar, this
provides protection from radar homing systems of enemy aircraft.
The missile has an imaging infrared homing (IIR) system that takes over the final guidance
of the missile in close proximity to the target, allowing the missile to make a highly accurate
approach to the final target with a very high hit probability. The IIR homing system also
has a very high image processing capability and is therefore unlikely to be distracted
by flares and reflectors.
IRIS-T SL surface-to-air guided missile
Separately, I would like to talk about the IRIS-T SL surface-to-air guided missile, because
the IRIS-T SLM air defense system itself was sometimes confused with it.
The IRIS-T SL (Surface Launched) is a new medium-range mobile guided missile designed
and manufactured by Diehl BGT Defense to meet the medium-range air defense needs of the
German Air Force.
The new missile is effective against all types of aircraft, helicopters, cruise missiles,
guided weapons, air-to-surface missiles, anti-ship missiles, and anti-radar, and large-caliber
missiles. It also has a high hit rate against UAVs and other small mobile threats at very
short to medium ranges.
The IRIS-T SL is an upgraded version of the IRIS-T guided missile, which entered service
in December 2005.
Diehl BGT Defense was awarded a contract with the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment,
Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw) to develop the new IRIS-T SL missile-launcher
guided missile for the tactical air defense of the German armed forces in 2007.
The IRIS-T SL light compatible vertical launch rocket can be fired precisely by the IRIS-T
SLM/SLS rocket launchers.
It can also be integrated with existing and future allied air defense systems via a plug-and-play
data interface. The missile has improved maneuverability. The missile launcher can hit multiple targets
at once.
The guided missile is stored in a fiberglass-reinforced container used for transport and launch. The
IRIS-T SLM missile launcher can deploy up to eight of these missiles.
The missile has a pre-fragmented warhead and provides 360° protection against air attacks
during the defense. The missile is propelled by an advanced rocket engine equipped with
an integrated thrust vector control system. It is equipped with an aerodynamic canopy
to achieve an extended range of about 40 km and can hit targets flying at an altitude
of about 20 km.
Competitors of IRIS-T SLM
The SLM IRIS-T is often compared to the Buk-M1-2 medium-range anti-aircraft missile system
developed back in the USSR, which can withstand cruise missiles, guided bombs, aircraft, helicopters,
and UAVs with a similar maximum range of 40 km. The Buk missile battery consists of one
transport erector launcher (TEL) and two radar (TELAR) vehicles. The radar itself is used
to detect targets.
It’s also worth mentioning the Indian Medium-Range Air Defense System (MRSAM), jointly developed
by Israeli Aerospace Industries (IAI) and DRDO, with a range of 70 km, which essentially
fills the gap for the medium-range interceptors of the Indian armed forces. The missile can
almost be called Indian because about 70% of its components are made in this country.
It is a supersonic interceptor with a 60 kg HEPF warhead capable of operating around the
clock and can hit multiple targets simultaneously in all weather conditions. The anti-aircraft
missile system appeared in service with the Indian Armed Forces only in September 2021.
Why did Ukraine show interest in IRIS-T SLM?
The S-300 SAM air defense system is capable of hitting manned/unmanned aircraft and cruise
missiles (later versions of the S-300 are also capable of intercepting ballistic missiles).
The number of S-300 batteries at the beginning of the war in Ukraine, according to various
estimates, ranged from 100 to 200, but Russia claims to have destroyed at least half of
these systems. This means that such a number of air defense systems is not enough to satisfy
the country’s needs for the comprehensive protection of critical objects/targets. The
SA-3 SAM system, with a range of up to 25 km and a striking height of up to 14 km, depending
on the variant, cannot be fully considered as a medium-range air defense system, and
therefore is only partially effective against air attacks. SA-15 also belongs to the category
of short-range air defense systems with a maximum range of 12-16 km. Although the SA-6
is a medium to long-range air defense system, the number available in Ukraine is clearly
insufficient. The Buk self-propelled air defense system, the successor to the SA-6, is a powerful
and modern all-weather medium-range missile system that can counter cruise missiles and
manned/unmanned aerial targets. Ukraine uses Buk 9K37M missiles with a maximum range of
35 km and an interception height of 22 km. It is believed that at the beginning of the
war the Ukrainian armed forces had about 100 Buk systems (figures may vary), of which a
significant number were probably lost during the fighting.
The declining air defense resources of Ukraine and the fact that Russia is increasingly resorting
to aerial bombardment and surface-to-surface cruise/ballistic missile attacks have led
Ukraine to request our Western partners to acquire IRIS-T SL SLM systems to fill obvious
gaps in the country’s air defense. Ukraine has expressed interest in acquiring up to
10 such systems.
The German Federal Assembly approved the supply of heavy weapons to Ukraine on April 28, 2022.
On May 9, 2022, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that the continuation of Russian aggression
forced Germany to consider supplying air defense systems to Ukraine. If approved, Ukraine is
likely to receive the first IRIS-T SLM AD system by November of this year, with the
rest to be delivered over the next three to four years. It is known that the German government
has already sold 7-10 such systems to Egypt over the past three years.