MIM-23 Hawk - Description

Description

The Hawk system consists of a large number of component elements. These elements were typically fitted on wheeled trailers making the system semi-mobile. During the system's 40-year life span, these components were continually upgraded.

The Hawk missile is transported and launched from the M192 towed triple-missile launcher. A self propelled Hawk launcher, the SP-Hawk, was fielded in 1969, which simply mounted the launcher on a tracked M727 (modified M548), however the project was dropped and all activity terminated in August 1971.

The missile is propelled by a dual thrust motor, with a boost phase and a sustain phase. The MIM-23A missiles were fitted with an M22E8 motor which burns for 25 to 32 seconds. The MIM-23B and later missiles are fitted with an M112 motor with a 5 second boost phase and a sustain phase of around 21 seconds. The M112 motor has greater thrust, thus increasing the engagement envelope.

The original MIM-23A missiles used a parabolic reflector, but the antenna directional focus was insufficient, when engaging low flying targets the missile would dive on them, only to lose them in the ground clutter. The MIM-23B I-Hawk missiles and later uses a low side lobe, high-gain plane antenna to reduce sensitivity to ground clutter in addition to an inverted receiver developed in the late 1960s to give the missile enhanced ECCM ability and to increase the Doppler frequency resolution.

A typical Basic Hawk battery consists of:

  • 1 × PAR: Pulse Acquisition Radar—a search radar with a 20 rpm rotation, for high/medium altitude target detection.
  • 1 × CWAR: Continuous Wave Acquisition Radar—a search doppler radar with a 20 rpm rotation, for low altitude target detection.
  • 2 × HPIR: High Power Illuminator doppler Radar—target tracking, illumination and missile guidance.
  • 1 × ROR: Range Only Radar—K-band pulse radar which provides range information when the other systems are jammed or unavailable.
  • 1 × ICC: Information Coordination Central
  • 1 × BCC: Battery Control Central
  • 1 × AFCC: Assault Fire Command Console—miniature battery control central for remote control of one firing section of the battery. The AFCC controls one CWAR, one HPI, and three launchers with a total of nine missiles.
  • 1 × PCP: Platoon Command Post
  • 2 × LCS: Launcher Section Controls
  • 6 × M-192: Launchers with 18 missiles.
  • 6 × SEA: Generators 56 kVA (400 Hz) each.
  • 12 × M-390: Missile transport pallets with 36 missiles
  • 3 × M-501: Missile loading tractors.
  • 1 × bucket loader
  • 1 × Missile test shop.

A typical Phase-III Hawk battery consists of:

  • 1 × PAR: Pulse Acquisition Radar—a search radar with a 20 (+/-2) rpm rotation, for high/medium altitude target detection.
  • 1 × CWAR: Continuous Wave Acquisition Radar—a search doppler radar with a 20 (+/-2) rpm rotation, for low altitude target detection.
  • 2 × HIPIR: HIgh Power Illuminator doppler Radar—target tracking, illumination and missile guidance.
  • 1 × FDC: Fire Distributuon Center
  • 1 × IFF: Identification Friend or Foe Transceiver
  • 6 × DLN: Digital Launchers with 18 missiles.
  • 6 × MEP-816: Generators 60KW (400 Hz) each.
  • 12 × M-390: Missile transport pallets with 36 missiles
  • 3 × M-501: Missile loading tractors.
  • 1 × bucket loader
  • 1 × Missile test shop.

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