In 1960, the new MIM-23 HAWK anti-aircraft missile system was adopted by the US Army. The operation of these systems in the US armed forces continued until the early 2000s, when they were completely replaced by more modern means of hitting air targets. However, anti-aircraft systems HAWKs of various modifications are still in use in several countries. Despite their age, the MIM-23 family of air defense systems is still one of the most common systems in its class.
First project
Work on the creation of a new anti-aircraft missile system started in 1952. During the first two years, research organizations in the United States studied the possibility of creating an air defense system with a semi-active radar guidance system and figured out what technologies were needed to create such a system. military equipment. Already at this stage, the program for creating an air defense system received its name. As a designation for a promising anti-aircraft complex, the backronym of the word Hawk (“Hawk”) - Homing All the Way Killer (“Interceptor controlled throughout the flight”) was chosen.
Preliminary work showed the existing capabilities of American industry and allowed the development of a new air defense system to begin. In mid-1954, the Pentagon and several companies signed contracts to develop various components of the HAWK complex. In accordance with them, Raytheon was supposed to create a guided missile, and Northrop was required to develop all the ground components of the complex: a launcher, radar stations, a control system and auxiliary vehicles.
The first test launches of the new model missiles took place in June 1956. Tests of the HAWK air defense system continued for a year, after which the project developers began to correct the identified shortcomings. In the summer of 1960, the US military adopted a new anti-aircraft system into service under the designation MIM-23 HAWK. Soon, deliveries of serial complexes to combat units began. Later, in connection with the start of production of new modifications, the base anti-aircraft complex received an updated designation - MIM-23A.
The HAWK anti-aircraft complex included a MIM-23 guided missile, a self-propelled launcher, radar stations for detecting and illuminating targets, a radar rangefinder, a control post and a battery command post. In addition, the calculation of the air defense system had a number of auxiliary equipment: transport and loading machines of various models.
The aerodynamic appearance of the MIM-23 rocket was formed in the early stages of work on the project and has not undergone any major changes since then. The guided missile had a length of 5.08 meters and a body diameter of 0.37 m. In the tail section of the missile there were X-shaped wings with a span of 1.2 m with rudders across the entire width of the trailing edge. The launch weight of the rocket is 584 kg, 54 kg fell on a high-explosive fragmentation warhead. The characteristics of the MIM-23A missile, equipped with a solid-fuel engine, made it possible to attack targets at ranges of 2-25 km and altitudes of 50-11000 m. The probability of hitting a target with one missile was declared at the level of 50-55%.
To monitor airspace and detect targets, the AN / MPQ-50 radar station was included in the HAWK air defense system. During one of the first upgrades, the AN / MPQ-55 low-altitude target detection radar was introduced into the equipment of the anti-aircraft complex. Both radar stations were equipped with antenna rotation synchronization systems. With their help, it was possible to eliminate all the "dead zones" around the position of the radar. The MIM-23A missile was equipped with a semi-active radar guidance system. For this reason, a target illumination radar was introduced into the HAWK complex. The AN / MPQ-46 illumination station could not only provide missile guidance, but also determine the range to the target. The characteristics of the radar stations made it possible to detect enemy bombers at a distance of up to 100 kilometers.
For new missiles, a launcher with three guides was created. This system could be carried out both in self-propelled and towed versions. After detecting the target and determining its coordinates, the calculation of the anti-aircraft complex was to deploy the launcher in the direction of the target and turn on the illumination locator. The homing head of the MIM-23A missile could capture the target both before launch and in flight. Guided munitions were guided by the method of proportional convergence. When the rocket approached the target at a given distance, the radio fuse gave the command to detonate the high-explosive fragmentation warhead.
To deliver missiles to the position and equipment launcher The transport-loading machine M-501E3 was developed. The machine, on a light tracked chassis, was equipped with a hydraulically driven loader, which made it possible to place three missiles on the launcher at the same time.
The MIM-23A HAWK anti-aircraft missile system clearly demonstrated the possibility of creating a system of this class using semi-active radar guidance. However, the imperfection of the component base and technologies affected the real capabilities of the complex. So, the basic version of the HAWK could attack only one target at a time, which had a corresponding effect on its combat capabilities. Another serious problem was the short life of the electronics: some modules that used vacuum tubes had a MTBF of no more than 40-45 hours.
Launcher M192
Transport-loading vehicle M-501E3
AN/MPQ-48 targeting radar
Modernization projects
The MIM-23A HAWK anti-aircraft complex significantly increased the air defense potential of the American troops, but the existing shortcomings called into question its future fate. It was necessary to carry out an upgrade that could bring the characteristics of the systems to an acceptable level. Already in 1964, work began on the Improved HAWK or I-HAWK (“Improved HAWK”) project. During this modernization, it was supposed to significantly improve the characteristics of the rocket, as well as upgrade the ground components of the complex, including using digital equipment.
The basis of the upgraded air defense system was the MIM-23B modification missile. She received updated electronic equipment and a new solid-fuel engine. The design of the rocket and, as a result, the dimensions remained the same, but the launch weight increased. Having weighed up to 625 kilograms, the upgraded rocket has expanded its capabilities. Now the interception range was in the range from 1 to 40 kilometers, the height - from 30 meters to 18 km. The new solid propellant engine provided the MIM-23B rocket with a maximum speed of up to 900 m/s.
The biggest innovation in the electronic components of the Improved HAWK air defense system was the use of a digital data processing system received from radar stations. In addition, the radars themselves underwent noticeable changes. According to some reports, after improvements under the I-HAWK program, the time between failures of electronic systems increased to 150-170 hours.
The first anti-aircraft missile systems of the new modification entered the troops in 1972. The modernization program continued until 1978. The complexes built and updated during the repair helped to significantly increase the defense potential of the military air defense.
Shortly after the creation of the Improved HAWK project, new program called HAWK PIP (HAWK Product Improvement Plan - “HAWK Complex Improvement Plan”), divided into several phases. The first of these was carried out until 1978. During the first phase of the program, anti-aircraft systems received upgraded AN / MPQ-55 ICWAR and IPAR target detection radars, which made it possible to increase the size of the controlled space.
From 1978 until the mid-eighties, the developers of the HAWK system were working on the second phase. AN/MPQ-46 target illumination radar has been replaced new system AN/MPQ-57. In addition, in the ground equipment of the complex, some blocks based on lamps were replaced by transistor ones. By the mid-eighties, the OD-179 / TVY optoelectronic target detection and tracking station was included in the I-HAWK air defense system. This system made it possible to increase the combat capabilities of the entire complex in a difficult jamming environment.
In 1983-89, the third phase of modernization took place. Global changes have affected electronic equipment, most of which has been replaced by modern digital components. In addition, the radar stations for detecting and illuminating the target have undergone modernization. An important innovation of the third phase was the LASHE (Low-Altitude Simultaneous Hawk Engagement) system, with which one anti-aircraft system was able to simultaneously attack several targets.
After the second phase of the modernization of the Improved HAWK complexes, it was recommended to change the structure of anti-aircraft batteries. The main firing unit of the air defense system was the battery, which, depending on the situation, could have two (standard battery) or three (reinforced) platoons. The standard composition implied the use of the main and advanced fire platoons, reinforced - one main and two advanced. The battery included the TSW-12 command post, the MSQ-110 information and coordination center, the AN / MPQ-50 and AN / MPQ-55 detection radars and the AN / MPQ-51 radar range finder. Each of the two or three main fire platoons included one AN / MPQ-57 illumination radar, three launchers and several pieces of support equipment. In addition to the illumination radar and launchers, the advanced platoon included the MSW-18 platoon command post and the AN / MPQ-55 detection radar.
Since the beginning of the eighties, several new modifications of the MIM-23 guided missile have been created. So, the MIM-23C missile, which appeared in 1982, received an updated semi-active homing head, which allowed it to operate in the conditions of the use of electronic warfare systems by the enemy. According to some reports, this modification appeared "thanks to" Soviet systems electronic warfare used by the Iraqi Air Force during the war with Iran. In 1990, the MIM-23E missile appeared, which also had greater resistance to enemy interference.
In the mid-nineties, the MIM-23K rocket was created. It differed from previous family ammunition in a more powerful engine and other characteristics. Modernization made it possible to bring the firing range up to 45 kilometers, the maximum height of target destruction - up to 20 km. In addition, the MIM-23K missile received a new warhead with ready-made fragments weighing 35 g each. For comparison, fragments from the warheads of previous missiles weighed 2 grams. It was argued that the upgraded warhead would allow the new guided missile to destroy tactical ballistic missiles.
Deliveries to third countries
The first HAWK anti-aircraft systems for the US armed forces were manufactured in 1960. A year earlier, the United States, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and France signed an agreement on organizing the joint production of new air defense systems at European enterprises. A little later, the parties to this agreement received orders from Greece, Denmark and Spain, which were supposed to receive European-made HAWK air defense systems. Israel, Sweden and Japan, in turn, ordered equipment directly from the United States. In the late sixties, the United States delivered the first anti-aircraft systems South Korea and Taiwan, and also helped Japan with the organization of licensed production.
In the late seventies, European operators began to modernize their MIM-23 HAWK systems according to an American project. Belgium, Germany, Greece, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands and France have finalized the existing systems for the first and second stages of the American project. In addition, Germany and the Netherlands independently improved the existing systems by equipping them with additional infrared target detection tools. The infrared camera was installed on the illumination radar, between its antennas. According to some reports, this system made it possible to detect targets at ranges up to 80-100 kilometers.
The military of Denmark wished to receive complexes improved in a different way. Optoelectronic means of detecting and tracking targets were installed on the Danish HAWK air defense systems. Two television cameras were introduced into the complex, designed to detect targets at ranges up to 40 and up to 20 kilometers. According to some sources, after such an upgrade, Danish anti-aircraft gunners were able to observe the situation using only optoelectronic systems and turn on the radar only after the target approached the distance necessary for an effective attack.
Anti-aircraft missile systems MIM-23 HAWK were delivered to 25 countries in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa. In total, several hundred sets of air defense systems and about 40 thousand missiles of several modifications were manufactured. A large part of the operating countries have now abandoned HAWK systems due to their obsolescence. For example, the US Marine Corps was the last in the US armed forces to finally stop using all MIM-23 family systems at the beginning of the 2000s.
However, some countries continue to operate HAWK air defense systems of various modifications and do not plan to abandon them yet. For example, a few days ago it became known that Egypt and Jordan, which are still using late-modified HAWK systems, want to extend the life of their existing missiles. To this end, Egypt intends to order 186 solid propellant engines for MIM-23 missiles from the United States, and Jordan - 114. The total value of the two contracts will be approximately 12.6 million US dollars. The supply of new rocket engines will allow customer countries to continue operating HAWK anti-aircraft systems over the next few years.
Of great interest is the fate of the HAWK complexes delivered to Iran. For several decades, the Iranian military has been operating a number of systems of this family. According to some reports, after the break with the United States, Iranian specialists independently carried out several upgrades of the existing air defense systems using the available element base. In addition, at the end of the last decade, the Mersad complex with several types of missiles was created, which is a deep modernization of the American system. There is no exact information about this Iranian development. According to some sources, Iranian designers managed to increase the firing range to 60 kilometers.
Combat use
Despite the fact that the MIM-23 HAWK air defense system was developed in the United States to equip its own army, American troops never had to use it to destroy enemy aircraft or helicopters. For this reason, the first plane shot down by a MIM-23 missile was credited to Israeli anti-aircraft gunners. On June 5, 1967, Israeli air defenses attacked their own Dassault MD.450 Ouragan fighter. The damaged car could have fallen on the territory of the Nuclear Research Center in Dimona, which is why the air defense units had to use missiles against it.
During the following armed conflicts, Israeli HAWK air defense systems destroyed several dozen enemy aircraft. For example, during the Yom Kippur War, 75 missiles used were able to destroy at least 12 aircraft.
During the Iran-Iraq war, Iranian anti-aircraft gunners were able to destroy about 40 Iraqi aircraft. In addition, several Iranian vehicles were damaged by friendly fire.
During the same armed conflict, the air defense of Kuwait opened its combat account. Kuwaiti HAWK systems destroyed one Iranian F-5 fighter that invaded the country's airspace. In August 1990, during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, the latter's anti-aircraft gunners shot down 14 enemy aircraft, but lost several HAWK batteries.
In 1987, the French armed forces supported Chad during the conflict with Libya. On September 7, the crew of the French MIM-23 air defense system successfully launched a missile at a Libyan Tu-22 bomber.
RK "Improved Hawk" can hit supersonic air targets at ranges from 1 to 40 km and altitudes of 0.03 - 18 km (the maximum values of the range and height of destruction of the "Hawk" air defense systems are 30 and 12 km, respectively) and is capable of firing in adverse weather conditions and when using interference
This summer will mark 54 years since the adoption of the HAWK air defense system by the American army. For anti-aircraft systems, this age is unique. However, despite several upgrades, the United States still stopped operating the MIM-23 systems at the beginning of the last decade. Following the United States, several European countries decommissioned these systems. Time takes its toll, and even the latest modifications of the anti-aircraft complex do not fully meet modern requirements.
At the same time, however, most of the countries that once bought the MIM-23 air defense system continue to operate it. Moreover, some states even intend to modernize and extend the resource, like Egypt or Jordan. Do not forget about Iran, which used the American development as the basis for its own project.
All these facts can serve as proof that the MIM-23 HAWK anti-aircraft missile system turned out to be one of the most successful systems in its class. Many countries have chosen this particular air defense system and continue to operate it to this day. However, despite all its merits, the HAWK air defense system is outdated and needs to be replaced. Many the developed countries obsolete equipment has long been decommissioned and new anti-aircraft systems with higher performance have been put on duty. Apparently, a similar fate will soon await the HAWK anti-aircraft systems that protect the skies of other states.
According to materials:
http://rbase.new-factoria.ru/
http://pvo.guns.ru/
http://designation-systems.net/
http://lenta.ru/
Vasilin N.Ya., Gurinovich A.L. Anti-aircraft missile systems. - Mn .: Potpourri LLC, 2002
We continue to get acquainted with the exposition of military equipment presented at the time in Singapore.
As already mentioned, the national air force of Singapore is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year, which was dedicated to a separate exposition. In addition to the previously shown Israeli air defense system and the fruit of the Russian-Singapore cooperation of the air defense system "", one could see the rather old American Improved Hawk air defense system, the analogue of which in the USSR was considered the S-125 air defense system.
1. Launcher M192 SAM Improved Hawk
2. The "Improved Hawk" air defense system can hit supersonic air targets at ranges from 1 to 40 km and altitudes of 0.03 - 18 km (the maximum range and altitude of the "Hawk" air defense system are 30 and 12 km, respectively) and is capable of firing at difficult weather conditions and when using interference. 
3. Both types of fire platoons have one AN / MPQ-46 target illumination radar, three M192 launchers with three MIM-23B anti-aircraft guided missiles on each. SAM MIM-23B - single-stage, cross-winged, made according to the "tailless" aerodynamic configuration, has a launch weight of 625 kg, a length of 5.08 m, a maximum body diameter of 0.37 m, a span of aerodynamic control surfaces of 1.2 m. 
4. The M192 launcher is a structure of three rigidly connected open rails mounted on a movable base, which is mounted on a single-axle trailer. Elevation angle change is made by means of a hydraulic drive. Rotation of the movable base with PU is carried out by means of a drive placed on the trailer. Electronic drive control equipment was also installed there, which ensures guidance of missiles located on the launcher to a preemptive point, and equipment for preparing missiles for launch. When deployed at the starting position, the launcher is leveled using jacks. 
5. Details - http://pvo.guns.ru/other/usa/hawk/index.htm 
6.
The "Improved Hawk" air defense system was adopted by the US ground forces in 1972 to replace the "Hawk" complex developed in the late 50s, is currently available in the armed forces of almost all European NATO countries, as well as in Egypt, Israel, Iran, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Japan and other countries. According to Western press reports, the "Hawk" and "Improved Hawk" air defense systems were supplied by the United States to 21 countries, and most of them received the second option.
The "Improved Hawk" air defense system can hit supersonic air targets at ranges from 1 to 40 km and altitudes of 0.03 - 18 km (the maximum range and altitude of the "Hawk" air defense system are 30 and 12 km, respectively) and is capable of firing in adverse weather conditions and when using interference.
The main firing unit of the "Improved Hawk" complex is a two-platoon (so-called standard) or three-platoon (reinforced) anti-aircraft battery. In this case, the first battery consists of the main and advanced fire platoons, and the second - from the main and two advanced ones.
Compound
Both types of fire platoons have one AN / MPQ-46 target illumination radar, three M192 launchers with three MIM-23B anti-aircraft guided missiles on each.
In addition, the main firing platoon includes an AN / MPQ-50 pulse targeting radar, an AN / MPQ-51 radar rangefinder, an information processing center and an AN / TSW-8 battery command post, and an advanced one - an AN / MPQ-48 targeting radar and control post AN / MSW-11.
In the main fire platoon of the reinforced battery, in addition to the pulse targeting radar, there is also an AN / MPQ-48 station.
Each of the batteries of both types includes a subdivision technical support with three M-501E3 transport charging machines and other auxiliary equipment. When deploying batteries at the starting position, an extended cable network is used. The time for transferring the battery from the traveling to the combat position is 45 minutes, and the clotting time is 30 minutes.
A separate anti-aircraft division "Improved Hawk" of the US Army includes either four standard or three reinforced batteries. As a rule, it is used in its entirety, however, the anti-aircraft battery can independently decide combat mission and separated from its main forces. An independent task of combating low-flying targets is also capable of being solved by an advanced fire platoon.
Single-stage, made according to the "tailless" aerodynamic configuration, with an "X"-shaped arrangement of aerodynamic surfaces.
In its bow are a semi-active radar homing head (under a radio-transparent fiberglass fairing), on-board guidance equipment and power sources. SAM is aimed at the target by the method of proportional approach.
The combat equipment of the rocket includes a high-explosive fragmentation warhead (weight 54 kg), a remote fuse and a safety actuator that cocks the fuse in flight and issues commands to self-destruct the rocket in case of a miss. The SAM uses a solid-fuel single-chamber engine with two thrust modes. The maximum flight speed is 900 m/s. In the tail section of the rocket there are hydraulic drives of aerodynamic control surfaces and electronic equipment of the onboard control system.
The missile is stored and transported in sealed containers from aluminum alloy, where wings, rudders, warhead igniters and engines are also located separately from it.
It is a structure of three rigidly connected open guides mounted on a movable base, which is mounted on a single-axle trailer. Elevation angle change is made by means of a hydraulic drive. Rotation of the movable base with PU is carried out by means of a drive placed on the trailer. Electronic drive control equipment was also installed there, which ensures guidance of missiles located on the launcher to a preemptive point, and equipment for preparing missiles for launch. When deployed at the starting position, the launcher is leveled using jacks.
Made on the basis of a light self-propelled tracked chassis, it is designed to deliver missiles from a technical position and subsequently load the launcher. A hydraulically driven charger provides the ability to load the vehicle and load the launcher simultaneously with three missiles. For storage of missiles after assembly and their transportation, racks are used, which are transported in the back of trucks and on single-axle car trailers.
Designed to detect air targets flying at high and medium altitudes, and determine their azimuth and range. Maximum range station operation about 100 km. Its operation (in the frequency range of 1 - 2 GHz) provides a low level of attenuation of electromagnetic energy under adverse weather conditions, and the presence of a moving target selection device ensures effective detection of air attack means in conditions of reflections from local objects and when using passive interference. Thanks to a number of circuit solutions, the station is protected from active interference.
Operating in continuous emission mode, it is designed to detect air targets at low altitudes and determine their azimuth, range and radial velocity. The maximum range of the station is more than 60 km. Its antenna rotates synchronously with the antenna of the pulse targeting radar and provides a correlation of data on the air situation displayed on the indicators of the battery command post. The selection of signals proportional to the range and radial velocity of the target is carried out by means of digital processing of radar information performed at the information processing point. The station is equipped with built-in equipment for monitoring the operation and indicating failures.
Serves for automatic tracking and irradiation of a selected aerial target with a narrow beam, as well as for transmitting a reference signal to a missile aimed at a target with a wide antenna beam. The station operates in the frequency range of 6-12.5 GHz. To capture a target for auto-tracking, the radar antenna, according to the target designation data received from the battery command post or information processing point, is set in the direction necessary for sectoral target search.
Radar rangefinder AN/MPQ-51 is a pulse radar operating in the frequency range of 17.5-25 GHz, which makes it possible to measure the distance to the target and provide this information to the backlight radar in conditions of suppression of the latter by active interference.
is designed for automatic data processing and communication of the batteries of the complex. The equipment is housed inside a cabin mounted on a single-axle trailer. It includes a digital device for automatic processing of data coming from both types of target designation radars, equipment for the "friend or foe" identification system (the antenna is mounted on the roof), interface devices and communications equipment.
Control post for forward fire platoon AN/MSW-11 used as a fire control center and platoon command post. The post is also capable of solving the tasks of an information processing point, to which it is similar in terms of equipment, but is additionally equipped with a control panel with a circular view indicator, other display means and controls. The combat crew of the post includes a commander (fire control officer), a radar operator and a communications operator. Based on the information about the targets received from the AN / MPQ-48 targeting radar and displayed on the all-round visibility indicator, the air situation is assessed and the target being fired is assigned. Targeting data on it and the necessary commands are transmitted to the AN / MPQ-46 illumination radar of the advanced firing platoon.
AN/TSW-8 battery command post located in the cab, which is installed in the body truck. It includes the following equipment:
- combat control panel with means of displaying data on the air situation and controls (in front of it are the workplaces of the crew commander and his assistant),
- remote control "azimuth - speed",
- two consoles for fire control operators, through which the issuance of target designation of each of the illumination radars, the turn of their antennas in the direction of targets designated for firing and tracking targets in manual mode.
There is also a complex of auxiliary equipment, including a filter-ventilation unit.
Tactical and technical characteristics
Testing and operation
The combat work of the complex and the functioning of its means in the process of firing are carried out as follows.
The AN/MPQ-50 pulse target designation radar and the AN/MPQ-48 target designation station, operating in continuous mode, search for and detect air targets. At the command post of the AN / TSW-8 battery, when it works together with the information processing point (and in the forward firing platoon - at the control post of AN / MSW-11), based on the data received from these radars, the tasks of identifying targets, assessing the air situation, determining the most dangerous targets, issuing target designation of the firing section. After the target is captured by the AN / MPQ-46 illumination station, it is tracked automatically or (as a rule, in a difficult jamming environment) in manual mode. In the latter case, the battery command post operator uses the range information received from the AN / MPQ-51 radar range finder. In the process of tracking the target, the illumination station irradiates it. A launcher with a missile selected for firing at a target is guided to a pre-empted point. The missile homing head captures the target.
After the launch command arrives (from the battery command post or the forward firing platoon control center), the missile leaves the guide and, having reached a certain speed, begins to aim at the target. At the same time, its homing head uses the (reference) signals reflected from the target and received from the illumination station. The evaluation of the results of shooting is performed on the basis of data obtained as a result of processing the Doppler signal of the target illumination station at the information processing point.
Modernization
The "Improved Hawk" air defense system modernization program, which began in 1979, has now entered its third phase. At this stage, it is planned to carry out work in a number of areas, the main of which are:
- - giving the complex the possibility of simultaneously hitting several targets through the use of an additional antenna with a wide beam in the radar illumination. It is believed that when firing at several targets, the range of their destruction will be 50-70 percent. range achieved when firing at a single target.
- - Replacement of the battery command post and the information processing point with a control post, basically similar to the post of the advanced firing platoon, but differing in the presence of a second control panel and a digital computing device. Both control panels of the post are planned to be equipped with digital means of displaying the air situation, similar to the means of displaying the Patriot air defense system.
- - Increasing the mobility of air defense systems while reducing the number of transport units of the complex (from 14 to 7) by providing the possibility of transporting missiles to launchers and replacing the M-501E3 transport-loading vehicle with a vehicle equipped with a hydraulically driven lift, which was created on the basis of a truck. On the new TZM and its trailer, one rack with three missiles on each will be transported. It is reported that the deployment and collapse time of the battery will be halved.
- - Equipping the radar and launcher of the complex with navigation equipment and a digital computing device to give the complex the ability to fire at targets according to data from the AN / MPQ-53 radar of the Patriot air defense system.
After the completion of the modernization program for the "Improved Hawk" air defense system in the United States and other NATO countries, it is planned to create modifications of this complex that would better meet the requirements for combating modern air attack weapons.
So, the American company Raytheon is developing the ACWAR radar)
