| DK-10 | |
|---|---|
| Type | Medium rangesurface-to-air missile |
| Place of origin | China |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2017 – present |
| Used by | Royal Moroccan Army Rwanda Defence Force |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) China North Industries Corporation |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 372 kg[1] |
| Diameter | 203 / 260 mm[1] |
| Wingspan | 497 mm[1] |
| Warhead | 20 kg HE warhead |
Detonation mechanism | impact / proximity |
| Engine | rocket motor |
| Propellant | solid fuel |
Operational range | 3 km to 50 km |
| Flight altitude | 30 m to 20 km |
Guidance system | inertial navigation system /datalink /ARH |
Launch platform | Surface |
TheDK-10 missile (Chinese:地空-10[2]) is asurface-to-air missile (SAM) developed byAviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), as part of theSky Dragon 50,Tianlong-50 (Chinese:天龙50), orGAS2,[3][4] air defense system, jointly developed by AVIC andChina North Industries Corporation (Norinco). As a competitor to theHQ-16 (LY-80) medium-range air defense system, it lost the bid against the HQ-16 for theChinesePeople's Liberation Army service as the HQ-16 was selected. Later, it was exported by Norinco for foreign armed forces.
The DK-10 missile is a surface-to-air variant developed from thePL-12 (SD-10) air-to-air missile. The PL-12 (SD-10) was developed byAviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) as a beyond-visual-range active-radar weapon for theChengdu J-10 andChengdu FC-1 fighters. At Zhuhai Airshow 2008, AVIC revealed the Hunter II (Chinese:猎手-2) air defense missile system, which consists of a mix of ground-launched PL-12 (SD-10) andPL-9C missiles. The Hunter II system can engage targets at a range of 15–21,000 m (49–68,898 ft).[5]
SD-10, as a ground launch missile, had its limitations; thus, AVIC developed an improved variant called DK-10, which is optimized for ground launch with an enlarged missile fuselage containing more fuel.[5] In September 2014, the DK-10 missile was displayed at the AAD Defense Exhibition inSouth Africa.[6] At Zhuhai Airshow in November 2014, The DK-10 missile was displayed as a part of the Sky Dragon 50 air defense system, jointly developed in partnership by AVIC andChina North Industries Corporation (Norinco).[7] Aside from the DK-10, a shorter-range version called the Sky Dragon 12 was also displayed.[8][9]
DK-10 is an enlarged SD-10A for better ground-launched performance. The missile features a length of 5.054 m (16.58 ft), a diameter of 203 mm (8.0 in), a range of 50 km (31 mi), and a launch altitude of 30–19,800 m (98–64,961 ft).[5][10] The guidance mode consists of aninertial navigation system,datalink, andactive radar homing (ARH) at the terminal phase.[5]
The Sky Dragon 50 air defense system can fire multiple DK-10 missiles simultaneously. A typical battery consists of one command vehicle, one IBIS-150 3D radar vehicle, one fire distribution vehicle, and up to six launch vehicles. Each launch vehicle consists of a 6x6 Beiben 2628 truck carrying 4 ready-to-launch missile canisters.[6][5][11] The IBIS-150 radar can simultaneously track 144 targets and engage 12 targets by guiding a total of 24 missiles, with two missiles against each target to ensure that the minimum probability of kill is greater than eighty percent.[10] The radar has a search range of 150 km (93 mi) and a tracking range of 100 km (62 mi) for a typical fighter-sized target. Aside from the IBIS-150 radar, the customer can choose the more advanced IBIS-200active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar.[12]
The Sky Dragon 50 system was a competitor to theHQ-16 (LY-80). However, it was not selected and adopted by thePeople's Liberation Army.
In 2014, it was reported that theRwandan Armed Forces had purchased at least 4 launchers of the Sky Dragon 50.[13][14]
In 2017, the Sky Dragon 50 was sold to theMoroccan Armed Forces. Prior to taking delivery, Moroccan officers from the Royal Artillery, radar specialist, and air defense operator units had undergone training in China.[15][16]
