The R-Darter is a
beyond visual range (BVR) air-to-air missile
The newest and the oldest member of Rafael's Python family of AAM for comparisons, Python-5 (displayed lower-front) and Shafrir-1 (upper-back)
An air-to-air missile (AAM) is a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying a ...
guided by an
active radar homing
Active radar homing (ARH) is a missile guidance method in which a missile contains a radar transceiver (in contrast to semi-active radar homing, which uses only a receiver) and the electronics necessary for it to find and track its target ...
seeker. It was designed and manufactured by the South African firm
Kentron
Denel Dynamics, formerly Kentron, is a division of Denel SOC Ltd, a South African armaments development and manufacturing company wholly owned by the South African Government. It underwent a name change from Kentron to Denel Aerospace Systems dur ...
, now known as
Denel Dynamics
Denel Dynamics, formerly Kentron, is a division of Denel SOC Ltd, a South African armaments development and manufacturing company wholly owned by the South African Government. It underwent a name change from Kentron to Denel Aerospace Systems dur ...
.
The South African air-to-air missile program benefited from cooperation with Israel during the 1980s and the R-Darter is very similar to the
Python ''Derby''.
Service
The missile armed the
South African Air Force
"Through hardships to the stars"
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's
Cheetah C fighter aircraft and was withdrawn from service when those were retired in 2008. The SAAF has not yet publicly announced which BVR missile will be procured to equip the 26 Saab
JAS 39 Gripen
The Saab JAS 39 Gripen (; English: ''griffin'') is a light single-engine multirole fighter aircraft manufactured by the Swedish aerospace and defense company Saab AB. The Gripen has a delta wing and canard configuration with relaxed stabilit ...
s which have replaced the Cheetahs.
The
Brazilian Air Force
"Wings that protect the country"
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is said to be evaluating the R-Darter for use with their
F-5 fighters since Denel will be selling the missiles used for the test at a low price, as they are nearing the end of their shelf-life.
It was reported in 2010 that the R-Darter is being operated by the
Pakistan Air Force
, "Be it deserts or seas; all lie under our wings" (traditional)
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.
See also
*
AIM-120 AMRAAM
The AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile, or AMRAAM (pronounced ), is an American beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) capable of all-weather day-and-night operations. It is 7 inches (18 cm) in diameter, and employ ...
, a similar type of missile (beyond visual range)
*
A-Darter, Denel's 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 ...
missile.
References
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017
Post–Cold War weapons of South Africa
Cold War military equipment of South Africa
Air-to-air missiles of South Africa
Denel
Israel–South Africa relations
Military equipment introduced in the 1990s