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In the history of mainland weapons, there is a weapon that is relatively special.
It is small in size and not well-known, but it can stand shoulder to shoulder with top projects such as Julang-1, neutron bomb, and manned space project, and has won the special prize of national scientific and technological progress.
It is the mainland's second-generation anti-tank missile, the Red Arrow 8.
Surprisingly, many military experts said that the successful development of the Red Arrow 8 is due to our neighbor Vietnam.
Why is that?
Ten years of sharpening a sword
Although this small weapon is not as well-known as those giant projects, it is thunderous among military fans.
The Red Arrow 8 is the mainland's second-generation anti-tank missile and the first self-developed anti-tank missile.
The process from imitation to self-made can be said to be a history of blood and tears.
During the Battle of Zhenbao Island in 1969, our army discovered an embarrassing fact.
That is, our individual anti-tank weapons could not effectively penetrate the main armor of the Soviet T-62 tank.
That's why we used mine warfare back then, burying a large number of mines to trap Soviet tanks, and then using the method of concentrated fire melee to cut through armor and infantry.
This move was indeed unexpected.
But I also have to admit that if there were powerful anti-tank weapons at that time, there was a high probability that there would not be such trouble.
It was stimulated by the T-62 that our army was determined to come up with a secret weapon that could be used against the Soviet T-62 tank.
Then, looking at the global arsenal, anti-tank missiles are one of the most effective anti-tank weapons to destroy a wide range of tanks and other armored targets.
In fact, as early as the early 60s, the mainland began to engage in anti-tank missiles.
The object was named J-201.
It's a pity that the actual conditions are there, we have no relevant technology and no reference objects, and the progress is like a turtle.
Even if the service manual of the first generation of anti-tank missiles "Kobra" in the Federal Republic of Germany was later obtained and the parameters were available, the progress was still slow due to domestic turmoil.
It was not until after the Battle of Zhenbao Island that our army proposed to open up a new battlefield of anti-tank weapons, and aimed at the Soviet AT-3 Sagar anti-tank missile for imitation.
The AT-3 has been proven in the Middle East war and has performed well, so it has entered the field of vision of our army.
However, at that time, China and the Soviet Union had already fallen out, and it was not until three years later that we got the AT-3 sample ammunition from North Korea.
After a painstaking research process, the design was finalized in 1978 and named the Red Arrow 73.
This marks that the gap in the sequence of anti-tank missiles in the equipment sequence of our army has been filled, and China has embarked on the road of precision of anti-tank ammunition.
During this period, the J-201 project was not idle.
Therefore, when reporting the test, the two missiles competed in the same field, and in the end, the Red Arrow-73 was superior in range, speed, and power.
As a result, the military stopped the J-201 project.
Although it is a bit regrettable, the development of the project has accumulated valuable experience for the mainland, and it is also very meaningful.
Of course, with the Red Arrow 73, it can only be said that we are one step closer to our goal.
In fact, when developing it, we began to brew the design of the second-generation anti-tank missile.
After all, the pressure of the Soviet Union to deploy millions of troops on the border forced us to grow rapidly.
Although the Red Arrow 73 is good, it is difficult to fight against the powerful armored cluster, can you expect to take what is left of the Soviet Union and deal with the new generation of tanks?
The implication is that the shooter must be visually aimed at the target and the control handle must be operated to correct the missile's flight direction.
But this is obviously very backward.
Instead of manually correcting the direction of the missile, their second-generation anti-tank missile uses an infrared goniometer to automatically track the missile.
However, the obstacles that need to be overcome to develop smarter weapons are unimaginable.
In addition to facing a shortage of funds and environmental disruptions, the most important thing is to bridge the technological divide.
It was at this time that Vietnam did us a great favor.
Vietnam helps
It is said that the United States has fought a war in Vietnam for 10 years and has not achieved any success, but it has tested new military weapons all over again.
Among them, there is the second-generation anti-tank missile BGM-71TOW Tao.
This missile is a weapon specially tailored by the United States for the Soviet Union, with light weight, long range, and strong firepower.
The biggest highlight is that the shooting is very accurate.
Its manufacturer claims that it ideally shoots tanks at a distance of 3 kilometers and has a hit rate of more than 99%.
Although the actual combat is a little worse, the performance of Tao style is also amazing.
In the Gulf War, the U.S. military used the Tao series of anti-tank missiles, with a hit rate of more than 70%.
Moreover, it can fight both planes and tanks, and is still the most commonly used anti-tank weapon in the world.
But that's all for later.
In the Vietnam War, the pottery style was still a newly born product, and the technology was not mature enough, and a "squib" was shot from time to time.
But the Vietnamese army also didn't want to die, and picked up a lot of them.
But with the level of their defense industry at that time, this weapon could only be used as a souvenir, and it was better to use it as a favor.
So, after the end of the Vietnam War, Vietnam sent a batch of war booty to the mainland.
Among them are F-5E fighters, Chinook heavy helicopters, White-Eyed laser-guided air-to-surface missiles, and Tao anti-tank missiles, among others.
After surveying and analyzing, we mastered some design principles and technologies from the Tao anti-tank missile, and then quickly determined the technical scheme of the second-generation anti-tank missile.
At the end of 1975, China began to devote itself to the development of second-generation anti-tank missiles.
After nine years, the first infrared semi-automatic guided anti-tank missile with independent intellectual property rights was finally manufactured - Red Arrow 8.
Its guidance methods are similar to those of the Tao type, which are visual aiming, infrared tracking, automatic formation of remote control commands, and wired transmission of guidance instructions.
Its weight is 11.2 kg, the diameter is 13cm, the length is 87.5cm, the wingspan is 32cm, the speed is 210m/s, and the average flight time is 13~15s.
Compared with the Red Arrow 73, the Red Arrow 8 is more intelligent to operate, and can also be mounted on an aircraft for launch, and the hit rate is also higher.
At a range of 500~3000 meters, it has a hit rate of 90% and a range of 100-4000 meters.
Its penetration is also stronger, with a static armor-piercing depth of more than 800 mm and a dynamic armor-piercing power of 180 mm/68 degrees, making it one of the few anti-tank missiles in the world that can penetrate NATO's three-layer heavy target plates.
Just looking at the data on paper may not be a big experience, so let's talk about the performance of Red Arrow 8 going abroad.
World-renowned
In 1986, the Red Arrow 8 was equipped with troops.
A year later, it won the National Special Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress along with the second-generation hydrogen bomb nuclear weapon.
As the mainland's first exported anti-tank missile, it has attracted the attention of many countries since it was glimpsed at the Paris Air Show in 1987.
Pakistan was its first overseas user.
At that time, the Pakistani army was very distressed in order to deal with the Indian T-72 tank group and the Soviet armored group in Afghanistan.
It wasn't until the appearance of Red Arrow 8 that they were eager to try.
Originally, according to the tradition of the Pakistani army, they would give priority to the weapons and equipment of the United States and the West, but this time an anti-tank missile selection competition was specially held.
The Red Arrow 8 was tested and compared with the French "Milan" and the American Tao-2, and the results were unexpected.
The weapons of the United States and the West play normally, but the hit rate of 5 shots and the excellent strike effect of the red arrow are even more favored by Pakistan and Rail.
Overall, the Red Arrow 8 surpasses the "Milan" in combat effectiveness across the board, similar to the Tao type, but at a much lower price.
A system is only 200,000 yuan.
Pakistan immediately made a decision and purchased the production license patent of Red Arrow 8.
When India and Pakistan clashed on the border, India was dumbfounded, how easily its own Soviet tanks were penetrated by the Pakistani army.
Not only that, but the Red Arrow 8 was also purchased that year, the UAE, which defends against the threat of Iranian tanks.
Since then, the weapon has been sold to the Middle East, but not in large volumes.
It was not until the 90s, when the Red Arrow 8 was exhibited in Abu Dhabi International Defense, performed three shots and three hits, and won the title of "Gulf Star", that it began to become popular in the Middle East and Africa.
Egypt, Iran, Libya, Sudan, Morocco, Zambia and other countries are all users or imitators of Red Arrow 8.
Iran's anti-tank weapons system began with the imitation of the Red Arrow.
They used the Red Arrow 8 to destroy 3 American M1A1 tanks in the Iraq War.
Libya purchased 32 Red Arrow 8F systems and more than a thousand missiles for use in the civil war.
The Sultan has been engaged in imitation, and has also produced its own Red Arrow 8L, which was still used in the civil war last year.
Morocco and Zambia have also deployed a large number of vehicle-mounted Red Arrows8 to counter the threat of Russian-made tanks in their neighborhood.
Egypt is Red Arrow 8's largest customer in this region.
They were originally loyal users of the Tao 2, but during the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, they found that the weapon could not beat Israeli tanks, so they turned to the Red Arrow 8.
The Egyptian Air Force tested 8 rounds and 8 hits, and since then it has integrated the Red Arrow 8 into the "Little Antelope" helicopter for use, and the results are very satisfactory.
So, like Pakistan Railway, they bought the production license of Red Arrow 8.
And when it comes to customers, how can the Balkans be missing this powder keg?
In the Bosnian War and the Yugoslav Civil War, Red Arrow 8 performed well.
Especially in the Yugoslav Civil War, Red Arrow 8 blew up the Soviet M84.
You know, this is an improved version of the Soviet army's signature tank, which shows the power of the Red Arrow 8.
The more actual the battle, the more the strength of Red Arrow 8 can be tested.
From the end of the 80s to 2000, the Red Arrow 8 sold more than 200,000 rounds, accounting for a quarter of the world's total sales of second-generation anti-tank missiles.
It is still present on the battlefield today.
According to reports, at present, many countries have used the Red Arrow series as the backbone of the army's anti-tank weapons.
Although it is difficult to develop, it has a long life and brings huge economic benefits to the country.
The most important thing is that it has made a name for China's arms exports, and it deserves to win the special prize.
Following the Red Arrow 8, I developed the Red Arrow 9 heavy anti-tank missile in 1999, which greatly increased its power.
Its range soared to 10 kilometers and was called the "tank buster" by foreign media.
Around 2015, the all-round Red Arrow 10, the light Red Arrow 11, and the individual portable Red Arrow 12 were born, which attracted a lot of amazement.
They prove that China has reached the top of the world, and even surpassed the West in many ways.
Resources
Invention and Innovation (Big Tech),2017,(04):54-55.
Qin Yanjing.Self-developed "first" long life:Red Arrow-8 anti-tank missile[J].Light Weapon,2013,(19):22-25.