AIM-9 Sidewinder Air-to-air Missile

The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a short range supersonic, heat-seeking, air-to-air missile carried by fighter aircraft. It has a high-explosive warhead and an active infrared guidance system. The Sidewinder was developed by the US Navy for fleet air defense and was adapted by the U.S. Air Force for fighter aircraft use. Early versions of the missile were extensively used in the Southeast Asian conflict. In September 1958 Chinese Nationalist F-86s fired the first Sidewinder air-to-air missiles to down 11 communist Chinese MiG-17s over the Formosa Straits. Until that time, aircraft defensive means where primarily limited to pilots and tail gunners firing small caliber ammunition in dog-fight situations.

The AIM-9 has a cylindrical body with a roll-stabilizing rear wing/rolleron assembly. Also, it has detachable, double-delta control surfaces behind the nose that improve the missile's maneuverability. Both rollerons and control surfaces are in a cross-like arrangement.

The missile's main components are an infrared homing guidance section, an active optical target detector, a high-explosive warhead, and a rocket motor.

The infrared guidance head enables the missile to home on target aircraft engine exhaust. An infrared unit costs less than other types of guidance systems, and can be used in day/night and electronic countermeasures conditions. The infrared seeker also permits the pilot to launch the missile, then leave the area or take evasive action while the missile guides itself to the target.

Specifications

Primary Function: Air-to-air missile
Constructor: Naval Weapons Center
Power Plant: Hercules and Bermite Mk 36 Mod 71, 8 Solid-Propellant rocket motor
Thrust: Classified
Speed: Supersonic Mach 2.5
Range: 10 to 18 miles depending on altitude
Length: 9 feet 5 inches (2.87 meters)
Diameter: 5 inches (0.13 meters)
Finspan: 2 feet, 3/4 inches (0.63 meters)
Warhead: Annular blast fragmentation warhead, 25 lbs high explosive for AIM-9H, 20.8 lbs high explosive for AIM-9L/M
Launch Weight: 190 pounds (85.5 KGs)
Guidance System : Solid-state, infrared homing system
Introduction: 1956
Unit Cost: Approximately $84,000
Inventory: Classified

Source:
* www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/missile/aim-9.htm,
* www.designation-systems.net/dusrm/m-9.html,
* www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_display.asp?cid=2200&tid=1000&ct=2,