To: COEXERJ145; Rokke
The SA-6 has radar terminal guidance on board. I don't know for sure, but I suspect that at a range of 13,000 feet, that's "terminal" for a missile with a range of what the FAS says is 60-90km.
Yeah, an SA-6 is big and heavy. But so was the boat and explosives that almost sank the Cole.
47 posted on
02/18/2004 7:53:00 AM PST by
eno_
(Freedom Lite - it's almost worth defending)
To: eno_
Remember that the she SA-6 is not a small weapon. You have to have a vehicle large enough to carry it, mount it for launch, aim it, and fire it without the rocket exhaust incinerating your ship. Also, in order to lock it onto the target, it has to be aimed with a separate radar system. (The SA-6 was designed to work with the "Straight Flush" radar system).
To: eno_
"The SA-6 has radar terminal guidance on board."
The guidance radar for the SA-6 is separate from the launcher. Both are mounted on armored, tracked vehicles. Both the radar and the launcher are heavy and complex. You can't just unscrew them from the top of an armored car and bolt them to the deck of a boat.
"Yeah, an SA-6 is big and heavy. But so was the boat and explosives that almost sank the Cole."
The Cole was hit by a Zodiac boat. Even if you could bolt an SA-6 launcher to a Zodiac, you'd sink the whole thing with the missile launched. Furthermore, the SA-6 system cannot fire on the move. It must be stationary. You could set up the whole system on the deck of an aircraft carrier and it wouldn't work. That is why we don't just strap patriot missile systems to cargo ships and call them guided missile cruisers.
49 posted on
02/18/2004 8:15:47 AM PST by
Rokke
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