![C-17 missile countermeasures laser turret](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/C-17_missile_countermeasures_laser_turret.jpg)
Directional Infrared Counter Measures (DIRCM) are a class of
anti-missile
Missile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception, and also the destruction of attacking missiles. Conceived as a defense against nuclear-armed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), ...
systems produced to protect
aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...
from
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 radi ...
missiles, primarily
MANPADS and similar simple systems.
Earlier
infrared countermeasures
An infrared countermeasure (IRCM) is a device designed to protect aircraft from infrared homing ("heat seeking") missiles by confusing the missiles' infrared guidance system so that they miss their target (electronic countermeasure). Heat-see ...
like
flare
A flare, also sometimes called a fusée, fusee, or bengala in some Latin-speaking countries, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a bright light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for distress signaling, illumination, ...
s or hot block systems that produce random flashes of IR light are semi- or omnidirectional. This results in the missile seeker receiving relatively little IR energy due to the
inverse square law
In science, an inverse-square law is any scientific law stating that a specified physical quantity is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source of that physical quantity. The fundamental cause for this can be understoo ...
. DIRCM systems instead aim their IR output directly at the missile using some source of tracking information and a trainable emitter. This allows a relatively small device to overwhelm the missile seeker by focusing all of its output on it.
Examples are produced by many aerospace companies, such as
Leonardo S.p.A.,
Elbit Systems
Elbit Systems Ltd. is an Israel-based international defense electronics company engaged in a wide range of programs throughout the world. The company, which includes Elbit Systems and its subsidiaries, operates in the areas of aerospace, land ...
,
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense technology company. With 90,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $30 billion, it is one of the world's largest weapons manufacturers and military techn ...
,
ITT Corporation
ITT Inc., formerly ITT Corporation, is an American worldwide manufacturing company based in Stamford, Connecticut. The company produces specialty components for the aerospace, transportation, energy and industrial markets. ITT's three businesses ...
, and
BAE Systems
BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenues. ...
. A Russian example is the 101KS-O.
Method of operation
The systems use an effective method of jamming
infrared missile seekers through the sensor aperture and can be placed in either active or standby mode. In the standby mode, the
aircrew
Aircrew, also called flight crew, are personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of a flight's crew depends on the type of aircraft, plus the flight's duration and purpose.
Commercial aviation
Flight deck positions ...
must select the active mode to begin jamming
infrared
Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...
(IR) threats. The pulsing flashes of IR energy confuse the missile guidance system, preventing the tracking of the target aircraft.
Systems
AN/AAQ-24 Nemesis
The AN/AAQ-24 system, or "Netted Emulation of Multi-Element Signatures against Integrated Sensors" (NEMESIS), is a directional infrared countermeasure (DIRCM) system. It consists of a missile warning system (
AN/AAR-54), an integration unit, a processor, and laser turrets (Small Laser Transmitter Assembly, SLTA). Early versions of this system used an arc lamp to generate the jammer
signal
In signal processing, a signal is a function that conveys information about a phenomenon. Any quantity that can vary over space or time can be used as a signal to share messages between observers. The ''IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing'' ...
. The newer versions of this system produced by
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense technology company. With 90,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $30 billion, it is one of the world's largest weapons manufacturers and military techn ...
use diode-based pump systems and are known by the name GUARDIAN. These systems are intended for potential fitting to commercial carriers pending the completion of multiple tests on the viability of such options.
The AN/AAQ-24 system is installed in the
Northrop Grumman Guardian
The Northrop Grumman Guardian is a passive anti-missile countermeasure system designed specifically to protect commercial airliners from shoulder-launched missiles (commonly known as MANPADS), using directed infrared countermeasures (DIRCM) t ...
system marketed for commercial aircraft. The system will be installed by 2025 on
C-17 Globemaster III
The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft that was developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) from the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two ...
,
MC-130
The Lockheed MC-130 is the basic designation for a family of special mission aircraft operated by the United States Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), a wing of the Air Education and Training Command, and an AFSOC-gained wing of the ...
, CV-22, and the
CH-53E Super Stallion
The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion is a heavy-lift helicopter operated by the United States military. As the Sikorsky S-80, it was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor, ...
.
Large Aircraft Infrared Counter-Measure
Large means of great size.
Large may also refer to:
Mathematics
* Arbitrarily large, a phrase in mathematics
* Large cardinal, a property of certain transfinite numbers
* Large category, a category with a proper class of objects and morphisms (o ...
system (LAIRCM) was a
US Military
The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six Military branch, service branches: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States N ...
requirement for protecting its large aircraft from infrared-guided missiles. The AN/AAQ-24 Nemesis system was produced to serve this requirement.
LAIRCM-Lite is a C-17 program that uses a combination of laser jamming DIRCM and flares due to the limited availability of LAIRCM components.
101KS-O
The 101KS-O is a DIRCM system mounted on the
Sukhoi Su-57
The Sukhoi Su-57 (russian: Сухой Су-57; NATO reporting name: Felon) is a Twinjet, twin-engine stealth Multirole combat aircraft, multirole fighter aircraft developed by Sukhoi. It is the product of the PAK FA (russian: ПАК ФА, russ ...
fighter jet. It has sensors that are placed in turrets, which are mounted on two points: the dorsal spine and the forward fuselage under the cockpit. It uses
modulated
In electronics and telecommunications, modulation is the process of varying one or more properties of a periodic waveform, called the ''carrier signal'', with a separate signal called the ''modulation signal'' that typically contains informatio ...
laser-based countermeasures to confuse or destroy incoming missiles' tracking mechanisms. The 101KS-O is the first DIRCM that is deployed on any fighter aircraft.
See also
*
AN/ALQ-144
The AN/ALQ-144, AN/ALQ-147, and AN/ALQ-157 are US infra-red guided missile countermeasure devices (IRCM). They were developed by Sanders Associates in the 1970s to counter the threat of infra-red guided surface to air missiles like the 9K32 Strel ...
– Infrared guided-missile countermeasure system
*
Civil Aircraft Missile Protection System
*
Common Infrared Countermeasures program CIRCM, the Common Infrared Countermeasures program, is a United States Army initiative intended to develop a lightweight, low-cost and modular laser-based infrared protection system for U.S. helicopters and light fixed-wing aircraft. The technology ...
*
Flight Guard
Flight Guard is an Elta Systems Ltd's brand name for a family of airborne systems for protecting civilian aircraft against man-portable air-defense systems.
Description
Elta's Flight Guard is a missile detection and avoidance system that is instal ...
*
Infrared countermeasure
An infrared countermeasure (IRCM) is a device designed to protect aircraft from infrared homing ("heat seeking") missiles by confusing the missiles' infrared guidance system so that they miss their target ( electronic countermeasure). Heat-s ...
, first type of countermeasures
*
Missile approach warning system
A missile approach warning system (MAW) is part of the avionics package on some military aircraft. A sensor detects attacking missiles. Its automatic warning cues the pilot to make a defensive maneuver and deploy the available countermeasures to ...
*
Northrop Grumman Guardian
The Northrop Grumman Guardian is a passive anti-missile countermeasure system designed specifically to protect commercial airliners from shoulder-launched missiles (commonly known as MANPADS), using directed infrared countermeasures (DIRCM) t ...
References
{{Reflist
Global Security
External links
Infrared imaging
Missile countermeasures
Military electronics of the United States
Northrop Grumman