Spike MR Rafael

Medium-range precision anti-tank guided missile system for infantry - Israel

The Spike is a family of 4th generation Multi-Purpose Precision Guided Missile System that was developed by the Israeli Company Rafael, under a contract for the Israeli Ministry of Defence. Rafael has signed a cooperation agreement with STN Atlas Elektronik, Diehl and Rheinmetall DeTec AG from Germany, to create a consortium, known as EuroSpike, to manufacture market and maintain the Spike-MR for the European market. The first variant in the Spike family is the MR (Medium Range) variant. The Spike MR is a new generation, man-portable and platform adaptable, missile system. The system is specially designed for urban warfare, ground support, and special missions with maximum survivability. The members of Rafael's 4th generation multi-purpose missile family share many of the same features that combine to meet the challenge presented by enemy forces. The first firing test of the Spike MR was conducted in 1992. The first customer of the Spike MR was Finland in 2000. Now, Spike MR is in service with 28 countries from all over the world. In December 2020, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. has announced that the Royal Thailand Army (RTA) had recently received a supply of Rafael's SPIKE MR missiles and launchers following the procurement of the missile system earlier this year.

Spike variants:

- Spike SR: The short-range version of the weapon was unveiled in 2012 to give infantrymen a guided missile between the larger Spike-MR and unguided rockets
- Spike LR: Long-range version (Israeli designation: NT-SPike). The weight of the missile is 14 kg (30 lb 14 oz), and the weight of the complete system is less than 45 kg (99 lb 3 oz).[15] The maximum range is 4,000 m (2.5 mi) and it is used by infantry and light combat vehicles.
- Spike LR II: A new generation of the original Spike-LR is in full-scale development and scheduled to be operational by the end of 2018. Spike-LR II (Israeli designation: Gil-2, גיל 2) has reduced its weight to 12.7 kg (28 lb), increased its range of 5.5 km (3.4 mi) at ground level and 10 km (6.2 mi) from helicopters using an RF data-link, warhead options of tandem HEAT with 30% increased armor penetration or a multipurpose blast warhead.
- Spike ER: Extended range or extra-long range version of the weapon (Israeli designation: NT-Dandy or NT-D). It has a minimum range of 400 m and a maximum range of 8,000 m.
- Spike ER II: In August 2018, Rafael disclosed the development of an enhancement of the missile called the Spike-ER II. It retains the same weight, airframe, surface geometries, and propulsion unit but introduces a two-way RF data-link to increase real-time control to an extended range of 16 km (9.9 mi) from helicopters; it also has an extended fiber optic link to increase the range to 10 km (6.2 mi) from land and naval platforms.
- Spike NLOS: "Non-Line Of Sight" is an ultra-long-range version of the weapon (Israeli designation: Tamuz, תמוז), with a claimed maximum range of 25 kilometers (16 miles).
- Mini Spike: On 2 September 2009, at an IDF exhibition held at the 3rd Latrun annual land warfare conference, the Israeli Defense Force unveiled a new member of the Spike family of missiles – the Mini Spike Anti-personnel guided weapon (APGW).

Launcher and sight system

A spike firing post consists of three main parts including a tripod with its fire control unit Command Launch Unit (CLU), Thermal Sight (TS), and the missile container. The whole system weighs around 26 kg (57 lb). The CLU day sight has ×10 magnification and a field of view of 5º. The thermal sight has wide and narrow field-of-view options. The CLU has a built-in test program. In its day-sight form, the weight is 5 kg; this increases to 9 kg when the thermal sight is added. The imaging infrared provides higher sensitivity and improved thermal background rejection characteristics for all-weather day and night operation.

Close viiew of Spike MR sight system

Missile

The Spike MR can be operated in either a fire-and-forget mode or a fire-and-observe mode using a fiber-optic two-way link. The fiber-optic fire-and-observe mode also allows the missile to be fired from non-line-of-sight positions, with the operator hidden behind the cover. The missile container weighs 13 kg and has a length of 1.2 m. High hit probability against stationary and moving targets is achieved by means of an advanced electro-optic CCD/IIR seeker, a sophisticated tracker, and a highly precise guidance system. The missile uses a tandem warhead - two shaped charges, a precursor warhead to detonate any explosive reactive armor, and a primary warhead to penetrate the underlying armor. The missile has four rectangular fins for aerodynamic control at the rear, and four wings at just over halfway from nose to tail on the length of the body. They unfold as the missile leaves the launch canister. The head of the missile contains the optical system seeker, sensors, gimbals, rate gyro, and the associated electronics. The main rocket motor is located behind the forward warhead, with the following compartment occupied by a thermal battery, a roll gyro, and further electronics. Then comes the rear warhead, with the tail occupied by the servo section and the launch motor. The four tailfins provide in-flight guidance, while four wings at the center of the body provide stabilization and lift.

Operations

The Spike MR is the man-portable version in the Spike family specially designed to be used by infantry and Special Forces units. It's the medium-range version also dubbed as "Gil". The weight of the missile is 14 kg. The minimum firing range is 200 m, while its maximum range is 2,500 m. The Spike-MR system can be carried by a team of three, using backpacks. Two members can each carry two rounds, while the third carries the launcher.

Combat use

The operator uses the command launch unit (CLU) mounted on the firing to acquire the target after the missile is switched on so that its nose-mounted tracker can lock onto the target. Once fired, the rocket can assume a high-lofted trajectory so that the missile still locked onto its target, will top-attack the upper surfaces of a tank target, thereby avoiding thick frontal armor. If required, the missile can be launched in a low, direct trajectory. Once the fire-and-forget missile has been launched, the operator can then place another missile on the tripod ready for the next engagement.