KOVROV, Vladimir Region, June 26 (AVN) - Specialists of the Kovrov mechanical plant which is included into the New Programmes and Concepts holding company and designers of the Nudelman precise machine-building design bureau completed the modernisation of the Strela-10 air defence missile system with 9M37 missile, plant's Chief Engineer Valery Parkhomenko said on Tuesday.
The modernisation envisages the replacement of 9Sh127 optical sight with 9Sh127M with variable field of vision for detecting small targets during the day and additional equipping of ordnance with night vision device produced on the basis of the IR imager or third generation electronic-optical transformer. The tests proved that the modernised system is capable to detect air targets at night at the range of up to 10km. The specifications of the new system are similar to the previous one which is equipped with 9M333 self-homing anti-interference air defence missile with the range of flight of 5.5km. The homing warhead has three canals such as optical, heat and interference which protects the missile from optical-heat interference. The laser contact targeting device enables to blast the combat part of the missile in case of missing. The missile's combat part weight is improved from 3.5kg to 5kg and after the blast it his the target with fragments.
Over 40 countries in the world are armed with those All Strela-10, Strela-10M and Strela-10M2 systems, Parkhomenko said. The modernisation will considerably raise the combat efficiency of air defence missile systems with minimal cost which is three times lower than the price of the new system.