hi guys
im looking for all that i can find about this very interesting little air to ground weapon to add to the alpha jet.
however the info ive found and collected below is pretty much all ive come across.
any help would be appreciated
Information
The submunition antitank, or SMAT, missile is an experimental BGT project to develop a submunition guided by an infrared seeker head. The weapon would be deployed by a standoff missile, after which the infrared sensor would search the ground for a tank; lock onto it; and steer the explosive warhead to an impact on the target. The company has tested SMAT by using an Alpha jet as a launch platform.
Tanks become the hunted again with another BGT demonstration program, the submunition antitank (SMAT). This weapon is designed to be dispensed from a standoff missile. The SMAT projectile contains no propellant, as it depends on gravity and the force of its ejection from the standoff missile for its velocity.
After deployment, the unit’s infrared seeker head autonomously searches the ground below for a tank. After identifying a tank, the sensor locks on the vehicle, and the submissile’s aerodynamic steering guides the glide weapon to its target. The search and lock-on occur after release.
The imaging seeker head is coupled with advanced circuitry and algorithms for identification and targeting. The system can discriminate between tanks and non-armored vehicles such as cars and trucks, for example.
A full version of SMAT has been tested by suspending the submunition beneath the wing of an Alpha jet, Pütz says. The aircraft released the unit to simulate deployment from a standoff missile dispenser, and the SMAT’s guidance system steered it to a direct hit on a tank.
A related program authorized by Germany’s Ministry of Defense aims to develop a submunition dedicated to destroying aircraft in their shelters. Known as SMASH, the submissile would dive onto a shelter from above and pierce its wall using a special penetrant. Once inside, the unit would destroy its target aircraft by means of a small warhead.
BGT is working with the German firm Diehl in the SMASH effort. A technology demonstrator effort known as MSS aims at developing a new dual-mode seeker head for standoff missiles, possibly of the kind carrying SMAT or SMASH submunitions.
The seeker head for this missile would employ the same antenna and aperture for infrared as well as for radar. A mirror would reflect both infrared light and millimeter waves. Waveguides take care of the millimeter waves, while infrared light is reflected down the axis of the system to a detector.