J-Missile
Encyclopedia
Project J is a Turkish Armed Forces
program intended to develop a series of tactical
and theatre
ballistic missile
s with a range of 150 to 300 km.
The J-600T Yıldırım (eng: Thunderbolt) is a conventional battlefield ballistic missile system providing high mobility, designed to attack high value targets such as enemy air defence installations, C3I centers, logistics and infrastructure facilities as well as providing fire support to friendly artillery by expanding the area of effect.
's cooperation with China
and Pakistan
for the joint development of ballistic missiles began in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The story of Project J, as well as Project Kasırga which preceded it, goes back to the first half of the 1990s, when negotiations for the technology transfer and production under license in Turkey of the American M-270 MLRS
artillery rocket system failed. Turkey decided to seek for other alternatives, mainly focusing on full sovereignty over critical technologies in order to establish a self-sufficient national infrastructure for the design and development of guided missiles. After signing a contract for the licensed production of the Chinese WS-1A and WS-1B rockets under the name of Kasırga in 1997, a similar contract was signed with CPMIEC (Chinese Precision Machinery Import and Export Corporation) for the Chinese B-611 SRBM system in 1998, covering the licensed production of a battery of B-611 with more than 200 missiles, at a reported cost of USD 300,000,000.
The J-600T design is based on the B-611 SRBM developed by CASIC (China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation) as a low cost tactical missile system, with a range of up to 250 km in improved versions such as the B-611M, and as a replacement for the M-11 (CSS-7 and DF-11) missiles in Chinese inventory. CPMIEC officials have confirmed at the IDEF 2007 military fair in Ankara
that B-611M, the improved version of B-611, was not a part of the Sino-Turkish cooperation program.
Turkey's Roketsan
has been assigned with the task of improving the range, performance and design of the J-600T, and is conducting studies on alternatives such as a sealed pod launcher box design, improved propellant, improved GCU and different types of warhead configurations.
Roketsan is reportedly working on an improved version of J-600T, details of which are highly speculative for the moment. Given that the system was first revealed to the public more than 7 years of its introduction to service, it can be expected that information about the improved version, if there is any, is going to remain secret for some time.
The missile's flight is controlled by an INS (Inertial Navigation System) which feeds trajectory correction command inputs to the four moving wings at the nozzle section. The trajectory data is loaded onto the missile's Guidance & Control Unit (GCU) (FCS) on board the F-600T vehicle before the launch. The FCS in F-600T is also supported by BAIKS (Batarya Atış İdare Kompüter Sistemi, eng: Battery Fire Control Computer System) and TOMES (Topçu Meteoroloji Sistemi, eng: Artillery Meteorology System). It is reported that the missile can also be upgraded with a GPS/INS GCU.
Each J-600T Yıldırım battery consists of:
since 2001, but it was first revealed to the public six years later, during the Victory Day (Zafer Bayramı) parade in Ankara, on August 30, 2007. The TRT
(Turkish Radio and Television Corporation
) commentator announced the system as the "Yıldırım missile system." During this parade and the following two parades in the same year, both the launchers and the reloading vehicles were displayed to the public. The Yıldırım system was also reported to the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms by Turkey in March 2007.
, has two versions that are currently in the inventory of the Turkish Armed Forces
:
Manufacturer: Roketsan
(Turkey)
Launcher vehicle: F-600T (Based on MAN 26.372 6x6)
Warhead type: TNT+RDX
Fuze: Proximity
Guidance: INS
Range: 150 km (J-600T Yıldırım I); 300 km (J-600T Yıldırım II)
Diameter: 600 mm
Length: 6.10 m
Weight, total: 2,100 kg
Weight, warhead: 480 kg
Propellant type: HTPB (Composite)
CEP: < 150 m (for J-600T Yıldırım I)
Turkish Armed Forces
The Turkish Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of Turkey. They consist of the Army, the Navy , and the Air Force...
program intended to develop a series of tactical
Tactical ballistic missile
A tactical ballistic missile is a ballistic missile designed for short-range battlefield use. Typically, range is less than . Tactical ballistic missiles are usually mobile to ensure survivability and quick deployment, as well as carrying a variety of warheads to target enemy facilities, assembly...
and theatre
Theatre ballistic missile
A theatre ballistic missile is any ballistic missile with a range between and , used against targets "in-theatre". Its range is thus between that of tactical and intercontinental ballistic missiles. The term is a relatively new one, encompassing the former categories of short-range ballistic...
ballistic missile
Ballistic missile
A ballistic missile is a missile that follows a sub-orbital ballistic flightpath with the objective of delivering one or more warheads to a predetermined target. The missile is only guided during the relatively brief initial powered phase of flight and its course is subsequently governed by the...
s with a range of 150 to 300 km.
The J-600T Yıldırım (eng: Thunderbolt) is a conventional battlefield ballistic missile system providing high mobility, designed to attack high value targets such as enemy air defence installations, C3I centers, logistics and infrastructure facilities as well as providing fire support to friendly artillery by expanding the area of effect.
History
TurkeyTurkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
's cooperation with China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
for the joint development of ballistic missiles began in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The story of Project J, as well as Project Kasırga which preceded it, goes back to the first half of the 1990s, when negotiations for the technology transfer and production under license in Turkey of the American M-270 MLRS
M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System
The M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System is an armored, self-propelled, multiple rocket launcher; a type of rocket artillery.Since the first M270s were delivered to the U.S. Army in 1983, the MLRS has been adopted by several NATO countries. Some 1,300 M270 systems have been manufactured in the...
artillery rocket system failed. Turkey decided to seek for other alternatives, mainly focusing on full sovereignty over critical technologies in order to establish a self-sufficient national infrastructure for the design and development of guided missiles. After signing a contract for the licensed production of the Chinese WS-1A and WS-1B rockets under the name of Kasırga in 1997, a similar contract was signed with CPMIEC (Chinese Precision Machinery Import and Export Corporation) for the Chinese B-611 SRBM system in 1998, covering the licensed production of a battery of B-611 with more than 200 missiles, at a reported cost of USD 300,000,000.
The J-600T design is based on the B-611 SRBM developed by CASIC (China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation) as a low cost tactical missile system, with a range of up to 250 km in improved versions such as the B-611M, and as a replacement for the M-11 (CSS-7 and DF-11) missiles in Chinese inventory. CPMIEC officials have confirmed at the IDEF 2007 military fair in Ankara
Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
that B-611M, the improved version of B-611, was not a part of the Sino-Turkish cooperation program.
Turkey's Roketsan
Roketsan
Roketsan is a major Turkish weapons manufacturer and defense contractor based in the central Anatolian province of Ankara. Incorporated in 1988 by Turkey's Defense Industry Executive Committee in order to establish the nation's industrial base on rocket technology, the company has quickly risen to...
has been assigned with the task of improving the range, performance and design of the J-600T, and is conducting studies on alternatives such as a sealed pod launcher box design, improved propellant, improved GCU and different types of warhead configurations.
Roketsan is reportedly working on an improved version of J-600T, details of which are highly speculative for the moment. Given that the system was first revealed to the public more than 7 years of its introduction to service, it can be expected that information about the improved version, if there is any, is going to remain secret for some time.
Characteristics
The Yıldırım system is composed of two units: The J-600T SRBM and the F-600T launcher vehicle, which is based on the MAN 26.372 6x6 truck, manufactured in Turkey. The same vehicle is also used for the Turkish-built T-122 Sakarya and T-300 Kasırga MBRL (Multi Barrel Rocket Launcher, or MLRS) systems, providing advantage in logistics. Each F-600T carries one J-600T on an open rail-type launcher and can be prepared for launch in less than 25 minutes, with the vehicle ready to move again in less than 5 minutes. The missile is loaded on to the F-600T vehicle by a crane from a reloading vehicle, again a MAN 26.372 6x6 truck.The missile's flight is controlled by an INS (Inertial Navigation System) which feeds trajectory correction command inputs to the four moving wings at the nozzle section. The trajectory data is loaded onto the missile's Guidance & Control Unit (GCU) (FCS) on board the F-600T vehicle before the launch. The FCS in F-600T is also supported by BAIKS (Batarya Atış İdare Kompüter Sistemi, eng: Battery Fire Control Computer System) and TOMES (Topçu Meteoroloji Sistemi, eng: Artillery Meteorology System). It is reported that the missile can also be upgraded with a GPS/INS GCU.
Each J-600T Yıldırım battery consists of:
- 1 x Battery Command & Control Vehicle
- 2 x Firing Team Command and Control Vehicles
- 6 x F-600T Launcher Vehicles
- 7 x F-600T Reload - Resupply Vehicles
- 1 x Maintenance Vehicle
Operation
The J-600T has been operational with the Turkish ArmyTurkish Army
The Turkish Army or Turkish Land Forces is the main branch of the Turkish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The modern history of the army began with its formation after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire...
since 2001, but it was first revealed to the public six years later, during the Victory Day (Zafer Bayramı) parade in Ankara, on August 30, 2007. The TRT
TRT
-Broadcasting:* Tamil Radio and Television, a former Tamil language satellite channel* Televisora Regional del Táchira, a Venezuelan regional television network based in the city of San Cristóbal in Táchira...
(Turkish Radio and Television Corporation
Turkish Radio and Television Corporation
The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation, also known as TRT , is the national public broadcaster of Turkey and was founded in 1964. Around 70% of TRT's funding comes from a tax levied on electricity bills and a sales tax on television and radio receivers...
) commentator announced the system as the "Yıldırım missile system." During this parade and the following two parades in the same year, both the launchers and the reloading vehicles were displayed to the public. The Yıldırım system was also reported to the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms by Turkey in March 2007.
Specifications
The J-600T Yıldırım, developed and manufactured by RoketsanRoketsan
Roketsan is a major Turkish weapons manufacturer and defense contractor based in the central Anatolian province of Ankara. Incorporated in 1988 by Turkey's Defense Industry Executive Committee in order to establish the nation's industrial base on rocket technology, the company has quickly risen to...
, has two versions that are currently in the inventory of the Turkish Armed Forces
Turkish Armed Forces
The Turkish Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of Turkey. They consist of the Army, the Navy , and the Air Force...
:
- J-600T Yıldırım I SRBM (150 km range)
- J-600T Yıldırım II SRBM (300 km range)
Manufacturer: Roketsan
Roketsan
Roketsan is a major Turkish weapons manufacturer and defense contractor based in the central Anatolian province of Ankara. Incorporated in 1988 by Turkey's Defense Industry Executive Committee in order to establish the nation's industrial base on rocket technology, the company has quickly risen to...
(Turkey)
Launcher vehicle: F-600T (Based on MAN 26.372 6x6)
Warhead type: TNT+RDX
Fuze: Proximity
Guidance: INS
Range: 150 km (J-600T Yıldırım I); 300 km (J-600T Yıldırım II)
Diameter: 600 mm
Length: 6.10 m
Weight, total: 2,100 kg
Weight, warhead: 480 kg
Propellant type: HTPB (Composite)
CEP: < 150 m (for J-600T Yıldırım I)