RSE Kriens (missile)
RSE Kriens was a Swiss-developed air defence missile. It never entered service. Kriens stands for the village in the canton of Lucerne Kriens.
| RSE Kriens | |
|---|---|
 Kriens RSe Missile on a duplex launcher at the Flieger-Flab-Museum | |
| Type | Surface-to-air missile |
| Place of origin | Switzerland |
| Service history | |
| In service | no |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1959 |
| Manufacturer | Oerlikon Contraves |
| Produced | 1958–1966 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | missile: 800 kg (empty 360 kg) |
| Length | 5.4 m (17 ft 9 in) |
| Diameter | 42 cm (1 ft 5 in) |
| Warhead | 70 kg warhead |
| Engine | Solid fuel |
| Wingspan | 2.0 m (6 ft 7 in) |
Operational range | 35 km (22 mi) |
| Flight ceiling | 27,000 m (89,000 ft) |
| Maximum speed | Mach 2.9 |
Guidance system | Beam control |
Steering system | control surface |
Launch platform | vehicle or trailer |
Design and development
From 1959 to 1966 Contraves developed -along with many other Swiss companies - the Kriens drawing on the experience of the guided missile system RSC / D, RSD 58. The missile project was funded by Swiss industry and the federal government, and was developed up to production-ready stage. The first flight was on 23 March 1964.
The modular system used advanced technology for the ground equipment and the missiles. The whole system could be interconnected to a multi-part cluster, which included several radars and missile launchers. After introduction of the British Bristol Bloodhound as the BL-64 the project was cancelled by the EMD. For export, the system was given the name 'Micon' but the missile was never mass-produced, either for Switzerland nor for another nation
A launcher with two missiles is held at the Flieger-Flab-Museum. Contraves used the technical/technological experience/expertise gained, for the buildup of the research rocket Zenit-C.
The fire unit consists of: measuring radar, 1-3 radio collars, 4 launchers, command car, trolley and several units (generators). Trolley, command car, tracking device and aggregates were individually housed on single-axle trailers, the measuring radar and missile launchers on each two-axle trailers.
- Rowing span = 1.5 m
- Thrust / burning time t = 6.5 for 9 seconds then 1.8 t for 16 seconds
- Burnout velocity = 900 m / s
- =Generator on-board supply of hydraulic and electronic 20 kW
References
- Air Force Center/ Flieger-Flab-Museum " Fliegermuseum Dübendorf"
- Hugo Schneider: Armament and equipment of the Swiss Army since 1817: light and medium anti-aircraft air defence anti-aircraft missiles, Volume 12 of Armament and equipment of the Swiss Army since 1817, Publisher Stocker-Schmidt, 1982
External links
Media related to Oerlikon Contraves at Wikimedia Commons