How Did a 30 Year-Old Syrian Su-22 Defeat America’s Best Short-Range Air-to-Air Missile?
from Russia Insider:
It seems America’s AIM-9X heat-seeking missile has trouble rejecting Russian flares
When the US shot down the Syrian Su-22 over Syria ten days ago it took two missiles to do it.
The American F/A-18 jet fist fired the short-range AIM-9X heat-seeking missile, but the venerable Syrian fighter-bomber deployed flares which defeated the missile.
The Syrian jet was then brought down with a medium-range AIM-120 radar-guided missile.
At approximately 18.43hrs local time on June 18, a US Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet operating over Syria shot down a Syrian Arab Air Force (SyAAF) Su-22M4 ‘Fitter’ fighter-bomber near Tabqah, Syria.
The F/A-18E (reported as BuNo 168914/AJ304) was assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 87 ‘Golden Warriors’ (also known as ‘War Party’), which is assigned to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 8.
Its pilot engaged the ‘Fitter’ and initially fired an AIM-9X Sidewinder close-range heat-seeking missile from a range of about half a mile, which was defeated by flares launched by the Su-22 pilot. The Super Hornet then re-engaged and fired an AIM-120 AMRAAM (Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile), which hit the ‘Fitter’ despite being fired from relatively close range.
The pilot was able to eject and was later recovered safely, according to local sources.
It marked the first shootdown of a manned fighter by a US aircraft since May 4, 1999, when Lt Col Michael ‘Dog’ Geczy, US Air Force, downed a Serbian MiG-29 with an AIM-120 fired from his F-16CJ during Operation ‘Allied Force’.
However, the engagement poses some interesting questions, not least; how was a 1980s-era ‘Fitter’ able to defeat a cutting-edge US air-to-air heat-seeking missile?
ur good friend and contributor Angad Singh Tweeted this morning a fascinating feature he recalls, written by the great Bill Sweetman.
This Fitter shootdown reminded me of a great 4477 TES story (AIM-9P could reject US but not Soviet flares) https://t.co/qg331jRAZA
— Angad Singh (@zone5aviation) June 22, 2017
he linked feature Tweeted by Singh quotes John Manclark, who was the commander of the famous 4477th Test & Evaluation Squadron ‘Red Eagles’ from 1985-87, a top secret unit flying Soviet fighters to train US pilots and evaluate new equipment.
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Whistler Blowers, Insiders
Um how did it take two?
Maybe because first they fired a missile that used old technology, and the jet countered with exactly the type of old counter technology that was called for in the situation?
Then they used modern technology missile, and swatted it down like the bothersome fly it was.
Maybe that’s why?