F-16 test team conducts first guided launch of AIM-9X

A test team from the Global Power Fighters Combined Test Force at Edwards AFB (California) moved a step closer to demonstrating the full combat capability of the newest variant of the AIM-9 Sidewinder missile on the F-16 Fighting Falcon.

Maj. Bill Peris, a 416th Flight Test Squadron test pilot, fired the AIM-9X from an F-16 recently, successfully acquiring and scoring a kill against a Navy subscale drone. This was the third time the AIM-9X was fired from an F-16, marking the variant's first guided launch from the aircraft.

This a real cool site with lots of info on US aircraft and missile programs.
john

Rest of the story here
www.f-16.net...

Nice. I doubt that the sidewinder will ever truly go out of service. It is one of the most succesful missles in the world. There are even some Mig-21s that can carry them. I take it this version will most likely be designed to hit stealths.

Nice with this upgrade the sidewinder will go well into the 21st century and will be able to shoot down targets that are much harder to detect put this on the F-15 and it will be even more deadlier that it already is

It's just a ripoff of the R-73.

A ripoff of the R-73....lol Yeah Right. Read this and see who stole what from who!

www.fas.org...

Seems to me as if the Russians stole how to build a competent A2A missile from the Americans. I seriously doubt the Americans have fallen that far behind Russia to copy their Short Range A2A missile.

Hey Looser, this isin't the #ing 50ies. The R-73 is the best Short-range A2A missile in the world. The US aquired some from moldovia and copied it to make the AIM-9X.

The R-73 has a 30 G limit, a speed of Mach 2.5 and a range of 20km. It has a +/-50 Degrees off boresight capability that allows it to shoot targets that are on the sides of the aircraft. It's excellent manoverability is possible thanks to the thrust-vectoring engine.
www.sinodefence.com...

here we go with another america versus russia mudsling. Guys lets try to make this post interesting and not get into an argument about who built and owns the best whatever, okay.

Agreed. I'll bet that these will mostly be used on F-22s and the F-35. Also we do need a missle that will be able to take on Russian 5th generation fighters.

Yeah CD your right The AIM-9x was designed to shoot down 5th generation fighters and to Be incorporated in to American 5th generation fighters.

The AIM-9X system design approach incorporates a fifth-generation staring Focal Plane Array seeker for robust guidance performance, and Infrared Countermeasure resistance and jet vane control for extremely agile turning performance.
-GlobalSecurity.org-

Basically the AIM-9X along with the ASRAAM and the IRIS-T(if it survives) were developed to counter the Russian short-range Advanced Air-to-Air missile the R-73 that outperformed the the AIM-9M.

Originally posted by necro99
It's just a ripoff of the R-73.

Actually it's an upgrade of previous Sidewinders...but alright.

Originally posted by necro99
It's just a ripoff of the R-73.

Actually it's an upgrade of previous Sidewinders...but alright.

Anyone who thinks the US does not aquire tech from other countries, has a look at it and uses the best of the concepts to improve their own is being a technological chauvanist. The US has a lead in a great many technical areas but when engineers feel inspired in Russia, the US finds a way to have a look for themselves. The Moldovian MiGs is a true story, they bought airframes and missiles. They also bought SA-10 systems to have a look at what made it better than Patriot. And you gotta admit, Patriot sucks. There's no reliable sources who've said its combat effectiveness against archaic SCUDS during Gulf War 1 was anything but terrible. They didn't destroy the SCUDS they just broke them apart to explode on the ground. And who can forget the SCUD missile that hit the barracks in Riyad in 1991. The highest concentration of losses in that entire war. So to those who mock claims that the US isn't tops in everything please do a little research first.

Originally posted by necro99
The R-73 has a 30 G limit, a speed of Mach 2.5 and a range of 20km. It has a +/-50 Degrees off boresight capability that allows it to shoot targets that are on the sides of the aircraft. It's excellent manoverability is possible thanks to the thrust-vectoring engine.
www.sinodefence.com...

Really? I don't know about Sidewinder 9x,but the ISraeli Python IV can do 70 Gs,15km range and has +/- 90 degrees off boresight, and cannot be cheated by flares. And this all WITHOUT TVC.

Originally posted by MPJay
They also bought SA-10 systems to have a look at what made it better than Patriot. And you gotta admit, Patriot sucks. There's no reliable sources who've said its combat effectiveness against archaic SCUDS during Gulf War 1 was anything but terrible. They didn't destroy the SCUDS they just broke them apart to explode on the ground. And who can forget the SCUD missile that hit the barracks in Riyad in 1991. The highest concentration of losses in that entire war. So to those who mock claims that the US isn't tops in everything please do a little research first.

Patriot sucks? At least it is combat proven. Can you say this about some other anti missille system? Did you hear about some other system shooting down ballistic misilles during comabat situation? The only shotdown I remember is taking down civil plane by s-300 during Ukraine military excersise.
And PAtriot 2 incorporates also russian s-300 technology (they bought it from the Ukraine) so if Patriot 2 sucks russain s-300 sucks also...

Originally posted by longbow

Originally posted by necro99
The R-73 has a 30 G limit, a speed of Mach 2.5 and a range of 20km. It has a +/-50 Degrees off boresight capability that allows it to shoot targets that are on the sides of the aircraft. It's excellent manoverability is possible thanks to the thrust-vectoring engine.
www.sinodefence.com...

Really? I don't know about Sidewinder 9x,but the ISraeli Python IV can do 70 Gs,15km range and has +/- 90 degrees off boresight, and cannot be cheated by flares. And this all WITHOUT TVC.

And what about the new Python V? it has a range of more than 20km and can travel at mach 4 speeds. And its probably better than Python IV in every aspect.

Originally posted by Transc3ndent
And what about the new Python V? it has a range of more than 20km and can travel at mach 4 speeds. And its probably better than Python IV in every aspect.

It doesn't seem to have thrust vectoring.

So I wouldn't say it superior to AIM-9X
This is high off-boresight missile:
www.raytheon.com...

Originally posted by E_T

Originally posted by Transc3ndent

It doesn't seem to have thrust vectoring.

So I wouldn't say it superior to AIM-9X
This is high off-boresight missile:
www.raytheon.com...

Python 4 also didn't had thrustvectoring and was the most manuvrable short range misille. It used multiple control surfaces to achieve such great maneuvrability.

Originally posted by longbow
Python 4 also didn't had thrustvectoring and was the most manuvrable short range misille. It used multiple control surfaces to achieve such great maneuvrability.

For non-thrust vectoring missiles they were best.
But thrust vectoring missiles are in own class, they can literally fly to behind launch platform and make very sharp turns immediately after launch. (to fly towards that target in six)


koti.mbnet.fi...
Compare turning rate to AIM-9X in that former link.

They also bought SA-10 systems to have a look at what made it better than Patriot. And you gotta admit, Patriot sucks. There's no reliable sources who've said its combat effectiveness against archaic SCUDS during Gulf War 1 was anything but terrible. They didn't destroy the SCUDS they just broke them apart to explode on the ground. And who can forget the SCUD missile that hit the barracks in Riyad in 1991. The highest concentration of losses in that entire war. So to those who mock claims that the US isn't tops in everything please do a little research first.

That is because patriot missiles were made to defend troops in the field not to defend cities the missile works be deflecting the incoming missile of its course so it would hit somewhere in the field away from the troops but in a city if its deflected it would just hit somewhere else so don't say the patriot sucks also the upgraded patriots and PAC-3 missile are much better they use hit to kill not deflecting.

[edit on 24-7-2004 by WestPoint23]