The PL-9 () is a short-range,

infrared-homing Infrared homing is a passive weapon guidance system which uses the infrared (IR) light emission from a target to track and follow it seamlessly. Missiles which use infrared seeking are often referred to as "heat-seekers" since infrared is rad ...

air-to-air missile (AAM) developed by the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

History

The PL-9 program was initiated in 1986. The missile entered batch production in 1989. Two improved variants, PL-9B and PL-9C, was certified in 1992 and 2002. The latest version of the PL-9 is PL-9D. The missile was originally designed by Dong Bingyin (董秉印) at the Luoyang Electro Optical Center, which is also known as Institute 612 and renamed in 2002 as the China Air-to-Air Guided Missile Research Institute (中国空空导弹研究院). After Dong Bingyin died, his position was succeeded by Mr. Jin Xianzhong (金先仲). The deputy general designer of PL-9 is the same deputy general designer of

PL-12 The PL-12 (, NATO reporting name: CH-AA-7) is an active radar-guided beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile developed by the People's Republic of China. It is considered comparable to the US AIM-120 AMRAAM and the Russian R-77. History Develo ...

, Dr. Liang Xiaogeng (梁晓庚). The PL-9C is one of the latest versions of the PL-9, which also has a

surface-to-air A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-aircraft syst ...

variant (DK-9). The PL-9C tactical low-altitude surface-to-air missile (SAM) was first revealed during the 1989

Paris Air Show The Paris Air Show (french: Salon international de l'aéronautique et de l'espace de Paris-Le Bourget, Salon du Bourget) is a trade fair and air show held in odd years at Paris–Le Bourget Airport in north Paris, France. Organized by the French ...

. The launch unit is available in both towed and self-propelled arrangement. The self-propelled version has a launch complex consisting four-rail launcher and the associated target acquisition and radar and electro-optical director mounted on a 6X6

WZ551 The WZ-551 is a Chinese wheeled infantry fighting vehicle family. The name WZ-551 actually covers two families of vehicles with the official designations in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of Type 90 and Type 92. Over 3,000 WZ-551s are in se ...

armored personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Ac ...

(APC). The towed version has a four-rail launcher mounted on a four-wheel carriage. The launch unit is supported by a range of truck-mounted ground equipment for maintenance and missile testing.

Design

The PL-9 utilizes the airframe modified from the

PL-5 The PL-5 (霹雳-5) air-to-air missile (PL stands for Pi Li, "Thunderbolt" in Chinese, the generic designation for all PRC air-to-air missiles) is a short-range, Infrared homing missile used by Chinese fighters. It is based on AA-2 Atoll technolo ...

and PL-7 missile. The seeker head is fitted with sensors from PL-8 and Python-3 missile. The missile is fitted with a cryogenic liquid nitrogen gas-cooled IR seeker capable of +/-40 degree off boresight angles. Flight control is by long span pointed delta fins at the front of the missile with Sidewinder-type slipstream driven

rolleron A rolleron is a type of aileron used for rockets and used to provide passive stabilization against rotation. While most commonly used to stablize against roll, it can also be used for counteracting yaw and pitch as well. In the early 1950s, th ...

s on the aft tail fin surfaces to prevent roll and so enhance the operation of the guidance system. The missile has a maximum effective range of 35 km and an altitude limit of 6.5 km. The single-shot hit probability for a single missile launch at an approaching target is 90%. The missile can be used at a stand-alone system, or as a part of the Type 390 (DK-9) brigade (regiment)-level combined AAA/SAM air defence system. The missile entered production in 1991 and saw limited service with the PLA ground forces.

Operators

Current operators

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Bangladesh Air Force The Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) ( bn, বাংলাদেশ বিমান বাহিনী, Bangladesh Biman Bahini) is the aerial warfare branch of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. The Air Force is primarily responsible for air defence of ...

(BAF) ; *

Namibian Air Force The Namibian Air Force is the aerial warfare branch of the Namibian Defence Force. It was commissioned on 13 March 2005 at Grootfontein Air Force Base. Accessed 2007/07/27 Following the independence of Namibia from South Africa in 1990, the Air ...

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Nigerian Air Force The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) is the air branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is the youngest branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is one of the largest in Africa, consisting of about 15,000 personnel and aircraft including eight Chinese ...

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Pakistan Air Force , "Be it deserts or seas; all lie under our wings" (traditional) , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = ...

(PAF) ; *

People's Liberation Army Air Force The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF; ), also known as the Chinese Air Force (中国空军) or the People's Air Force (人民空军), is an aerial service branch of the People's Liberation Army, the regular armed forces of the Peo ...

People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force The People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force (PLANAF; ) is the naval aviation branch of the People's Liberation Army Navy. Overview Historically, the PLANAF's main role has been to provide the navy's warships with air defense coverage. Part of ...

References

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External links