- Yes
- No
AN/TWQ-1 Avenger firing a Starstreak missile (source: https://history.redstone.army.mil/miss/AVENGER/avenger_04.jpg)
TL;DR: Humvee carrying a mix of Stinger and Starstreak missiles.
The Starstreak Avenger was a surface-to-air missile system jointly developed by Shorts Missile Systems (now Thales Air Defence) and Boeing in the 1990s. It was based on Boeing’s AN/TWQ-1 Avenger Air Defense System, replacing one of the Stinger pods with a pod of four Starstreak HVMs and installing appropriate guidance systems. Intended to supplement the regular Avenger system in the Line-of-Sight Rear (LOS-R) element of the Forward Area Air Defense System (FAADS) program, it was ultimately rejected by the US Army. In War Thunder, the combination of the two missiles would compensate for each other’s weaknesses, just as they were intended to do in real life.
History
For the history of the base vehicle, one can refer to the forum suggestion for the AN/TWQ-1 Avenger. While the Avenger had already won the FAADS LOS-R competition, Boeing wished to produce an off-the-shelf product improvement for the system. As a result, they decided to team up with Shorts Missile Systems in February 1988 to adapt the Starstreak HVM for the Avenger. Initial trials began in 1990, and in 1991, a successful proof-of-concept test was conducted in Scotland. Following that, full-scale integration of the Starstreak into the Avenger system was conducted, which involved modifications to the FCS so that the Avenger could automatically guide the Starstreak missile on target.
At the same time, Congress instructed the US Army to consider adding a “complementary” missile to the Avenger system, despite the Army favouring the Stingers, as some critics suggested a longer-range missile was necessary. Consequently, the US Army agreed in 1994 to conduct tests of the Starstreak Avenger if Shorts Missile Systems would provide 15 test missiles. Shorts was reluctant to provide the missiles after learning that the Army wouldn’t buy the Starstreak, but eventually agreed to provide missiles for a test in April 1995. However, a month before the scheduled test, Shorts abandoned the deal without explanation, and the Starstreak Avenger program was terminated, although the US Army would later consider integrating the Starstreak with its Apache helicopters.
Specifications
Crew: 2
Dimensions: 4.95 m long, 2.18 m wide, 2.59 m high
Combat weight: 3.9 t
Engine: Detroit Diesel V8, 135 hp
Max speed: 105 km/h
Armament: 4x Stinger, 4x Starstreak; gyro-stabilised turret; -10˚/+70˚ elevation
More pictures
Starstreak Avenger with mixed missile loadout (source: The United States Army | Redstone Arsenal Historical Information)
AN/TWQ-1 Avenger Demonstrator | Originally developed as a pr… | Flickr
Starstreak Avenger at the 1990 Farnborough Air Show (externally hosted image; source: AN/TWQ-1 Avenger Demonstrator | Originally developed as a pr… | Flickr)
Sources
- “Jane’s land-based air defence” by Tony Cullen and Christopher F. Foss
- “Prototype of Starstreak-equipped Avenger Set for First Test Firing This Summer” in the April 8, 1991 edition of Aviation Week & Space Technology
- The United States Army | Redstone Arsenal Historical Information
- Starstreak-Avenger test is cancelled - FlightGlobal
- UK and USA study Starstreak project integration - FlightGlobal