The Mitsubishi AAM-5 (Type 04 air-to-air missile, ) is a short-range

air-to-air missile An air-to-air missile (AAM) is a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying another aircraft (including unmanned aircraft such as cruise missiles). AAMs are typically powered by one or more rocket motors, usually solid-fuel roc ...

developed and produced by

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational engineering, electrical equipment and electronics corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. MHI is one of the core companies of the Mitsubishi Group and its automobile division is the prede ...

for the

Japan Air Self-Defense Force The , , also referred to as the Japanese Air Force, is the Aerial warfare, air and space warfare, space branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, responsible for the defense of Japanese airspace, other air and space operations, cyberwarfare and ...

. Development of the missile as a replacement for the

AAM-3 The Mitsubishi AAM-3 or Type 90 air-to-air missile () is a short-range all-aspect air-to-air missile developed by Japan. It has been officially operated since 1991, and is expected to ultimately replace the US AIM-9 Sidewinder. Developed as a ...

(Type 90) missile commenced in 1991, and it has been operational since 2004.

Characteristics

Unlike the Type 90 guided missile, the AAM-5 does not have canard control surfaces, using

thrust vectoring Thrust vectoring, also known as thrust vector control (TVC), is the ability of an aircraft, rocket or other vehicle to manipulate the direction of the thrust from its engine(s) or motor(s) to Aircraft flight control system, control the Spacecra ...

for high agility. The missile body has narrow strakes extending over most of its length. It features

inertial guidance An inertial navigation system (INS; also inertial guidance system, inertial instrument) is a navigation device that uses motion sensors (accelerometers), rotation sensors ( gyroscopes) and a computer to continuously calculate by dead reckoning ...

, provided by a fiber-optic gyroscope, which allows for LOAL (

Lock-on after launch Lock-on after launch (LOAL) is the ability of missile systems to lock-on to a target after being launched from a carrier vehicle. The term is normally used in reference to airborne weapons, especially air-to-air missiles, though more modern Air ...

). Additionally it allows for high off-boresight use, through cueing targets outside of the seeker's field of view via a HMD. Terminal homing is via infrared imaging (IIR). In terms of generation, it is placed in the same generation as missiles such as the AIM-9X and

IRIS-T The IRIS-T (infrared imaging system tail/thrust vector-controlled) is a family of short range infrared homing air-to-air missile, air-to-air and short to medium range surface-to-air missile, surface-to-air missiles. It is also called AIM-2000. ...

. For the AAM-5B, the

NEC is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered at the NEC Supertower in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. It provides IT and network solutions, including cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), Inte ...

manufactured seeker has also been improved, with a dual wavelength infra-red focal plane array seeker. Additionally the gimbal type was changed from a 2-axis to a 3-axis design, allowing for improved off-boresight capabilities, as well as improved IRCCM. The reason the additional gimbal improves IRCCM functionality is due to the missile's IRCCM method, an image recognition type which relies on comparing the frame to prior ones to look for the target which it was originally locked onto.

Variants

*AAM-5 :The original variant introduced in 2004, has limited operational time due to its seeker cooling type. *AAM-5B :Enhanced background discrimination capability and IRCCM by changing to a dual wavelength seeker and a 3-axis gimbal. Seeker cooling time is extended by the adoption of a

Stirling engine A Stirling engine is a heat engine that is operated by the cyclic expansion and contraction of air or other gas (the ''working fluid'') by exposing it to different temperatures, resulting in a net conversion of heat energy to mechanical Work (ph ...

, up to a maximum cooling time of 1 hours.

Operators

;

* F-15J Eagle *

Mitsubishi F-2 The Mitsubishi F-2 is a multirole fighter derived from the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, and manufactured by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Lockheed Martin for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, with a 60/40 split in manufacturing betw ...

Gallery

File:AAM-5-001.jpg, Dummy File:JASDF AAM-5 Seeker 20131124.JPG, Seeker File:JASDF AAM-5 Center Wing 20131124.JPG,

Leading-edge extension A leading-edge extension (LEX) is a small extension to an aircraft wing surface, forward of the leading edge. The primary reason for adding an extension is to improve the airflow at high angles of attack and low airspeeds, to improve handling a ...

File:AAM-5-002.jpg, Thrust vectoring Nozzle

Specifications

* Length: 3,105 mm * Diameter: 130 mm * Wing span: 440 mm * Weight: 95 kg * Guidance: AAM-5A: Terminal IIR, INS) * Guidance: AAM-5B: Terminal IIR, INS) * Warhead: blast fragmentation warhead * Detonation Mechanism:

laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word ''laser'' originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radi ...

proximity fuze A Proximity Fuse (also VT fuse or "variable time fuze") is a fuse that detonates an explosive device automatically when it approaches within a certain distance of its target. Proximity fuses are designed for elusive military targets such as air ...

and impact * Range: 35 km * Speed: Mach 3+

References