« Reply #3 on: May 28, 2020, 11:47:02 AM »
History
https://blog.naver.com/rgm84dInterestingly the engine is a Russian copy.
[[Development of C-Star]]
C-Star (해성; Haeseong) anti-ship missile was developed by South Korea's Agency for Defense Development (ADD) between 1996 and 2003 at the cost of approximately ₩100 billion. The early production model was designated as SSM-700K, but the current production model in service with the Republic of Korea Navy is designated as <SSM-710K>.
Back in 1996, ADD began a concurrent development of C-Star's Radar Seeker, but the first indigenous model failed to satisfy the Required Operational Capability (ROC). Instead, ADD imported <Exocet MM40 Block III> anti-ship missile's Ku Band (NATO J Band) Radar Seeker from MBDA and integrated it with early production batch of C-Star.
At the time, Exocet's Ku Band (12~18 GHz) Radar Seeker boasted higher resolution than more common X Band (8~12 GHz) Radar Seeker found on RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missile, allowing it to identify and engage hostile warship's critical area such as its Combat Information Center (CIC). Exocet MM40 Block III was also able to engage land targets and engage small patrol boats hiding in complex coastal environment using terrain data & GPS navigation.
Following Exocet's example, SSM-700K C-Star was able to do the same using the former's Ku Band Radar Seeker, new indigenous algorithm, and GPS navigation. Its ability to engage small patrol boats was also significantly improved over the Exocet as a direct counter against North Korea's numerous armored gunboats. C-Star features <Impact Fuze> mode not commonly found in other Western anti-ship missiles, allowing it to obliterate small patrol boats in one hit without the missile penetrating through the hull (issue found with the Harpoon).
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[[SSM-700K vs. SSM-710K]]
As stated above, SSM-710K is a current production model used by the Republic of Korea Navy. Simply put, C-Star's imported Ku Band Radar Seeker was replaced with an indigenous model developed by ADD and LIG Nex1.
Its first live fire testing occurred on December 20th, 2005 and began deployment in 2008. According to sources who participated in the development, the Radar Seeker went through rigorous land and sea trials against small sized targets in coastal environment.
Development of indigenous seeker also meant that C-Star could now be exported since it was no longer bound by Export License (EL) once imposed by its use of foreign-sourced seeker.
C-Star was eventually imported to Colombia and the Philippines.
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[[Accuracy of C-Star]]
ROKN has been conducting biannual live fire testing of the C-Star since it was first deployed. Retired Chamsuri-class patrol boats are used to test C-Star's operational readiness under various conditions. The C-Star has proved itself to be a highly accurate weapon system which boasted 100% accuracy at one point.
C-Star had yet to miss a target until 2016 when a string of misfires occurred domestically and abroad.
In 2016, a production model C-Star missed a target for the first time in its service history. The issue was said to be a mechanical error of the canister launcher. ROKN then modified all of its launchers to remedy the issue.
Next, in what is arguably the most embarrassing moment in the history of South Korea's arms export, two C-Stars launched simultaneously by the Colombian failed to hit their targets during a live fire event attended by the President in 2018.
The cause of the misfire was later identified as integration error.
Colombian Navy's C-Star is a slightly modified version with extended range and a localized frequency. Thales Group, in charge of Colombian Navy Almirante Padilla-class frigates' <Orion Program Upgrade>, failed to properly integrate the C-Star's data input system with the frigates' new Tacticos Combat Management System. Colombian Navy's budgetary restraint also prevented proper live fire testing of the missile to confirm proper integration until 2018.
LIG Nex1 resolved the issue by next year when the Colombian Navy publicly demonstrated the live fire of C-Star anti-ship missile to the public on July, 2019.
Lastly, in 2018, C-Star launched by ROKN fell into the ocean 35 seconds after its launch. The cause was found to be human error; the operator incorrectly activated the kill switch timer for 35 seconds. To account for possible human error such as this, C-Star's software was reportedly updated.
Despite the few freak incidents, C-Star has proven itself to be a highly reliable and accurate weapon system. Out of XX C-Stars launched by ROKN over the years, only two failed due to mechanical and human errors.
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[[SSM-750K Sea Dragon Tactical Land Attack Missile]]
During 2003's 2nd Battle of Yeonpyeong, North Korean coastal anti-ship missile batteries prevented ROKN's Pohang-class corvettes from supporting the beleaguered Chamsuri-class patrol boat PKM-357. This prompted ROKN to acquire land attack missiles capable of engaging North Korea's coastal artillery and missile batteries.
Joint Chiefs of Staff initially proposed developing a missile based on Hyunmoo-2A SRBM, but ROKN opposed this since hypothetical missile could fall under the Army Missile Command, which is in charge of all strategic land attack missiles (+300km range). ROKN chose to modify existing C-Star to serve as a land attack missile instead and the SSM-750K Sea Dragon was born.
Featuring an increased range of 250km, the Sea Dragon features VLS variant and canister launcher variant. The Sea Dragon removed the unnecessary Ku Band Radar Seeker found on C-Star and relies on GPS/INS for guidance. It is also equipped with counter-jamming system as countermeasure against North Korean jamming.
SSM-750K began deployment aboard ROKN warships in 2017 starting with Incheon-class frigates. "SSM" in SSM-710K stands for Ship-Ship-Missile and in SSM-750K stands for "Ship-Surface-Missile."
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[[SSE-750K Turbojet Engine]]
SSM-750K Sea Dragon trades the SS-760K turbojet engine of SSM-710K C-Star with a newly-developed SSE-750K Turbojet engine. Both engines, however, are identical in size and thrust. The main difference lies not with performance, but rather the localization of critical components such as turbine blades and heat resistant alloy.
C-Star's SS-760K turbojet engine is based on the Russian R95TP-300 turbojet engine found on Kh-35 Uran anti-ship missile and Kh-55 air-launched cruise missiles. ADD was able to secretly acquire various Russian technology after the collapse of the Soviet Union and examples of R9TP-300 turbojet engine and its blueprint were among them. Based on blueprint provided by Russia, R9TP-300 was "Westernized" with several new Western components and was developed into the SS-760K.
Ironically, R9TP-300 also found its way to Iran, then North Korea. Ukraine, the original manufacturer, reportedly sold the design during its own economic hardship. North Korean copy of the Kh-35, known as "GeumSeong-3" (KN-09/19) said to be poorly made due to sanction of critical components; US and ROK intelligence have confirmed multiple failed launches.
Starting in 2017, SSE-750K Turbojet engine replaced the SS-760K Turbojet engines on newly-produced SSM-710K C-Star anti-ship missiles.
The SSE-750K Turbojet engine is also under negotiation for export to an unnamed Southeast Asian nation, which can reasonably be guessed as Vietnam. The Vietnamese military is reportedly hoping to develop an indigenous anti-ship missile and is seeking a foreign engine supplier who is open for technology transfer.
When SSM-700K C-Star was first delivered to ROKN, it was twice the cost of RGM-84C Harpoon imported from the United States. After the localization of the radar seeker and turbojet engine, its cost was drastically reduced and allowed foreign export.
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[[SSM-710K C-Star Upgrade]]
ROK Ministry of National Defense announced on May 4, 2020 that <preliminary research> for C-Star upgrade program will take place between October, 2020 and April 2021.
The most obvious result will be improvement of C-Star's range. C-Star's range is officially stated to be around 150km, but is allegedly closer to 200km. According to industry sources, improving the range to anywhere between 250 to 400km is possible just as Japan did with Type 12 and 17 anti-ship missiles. To make this possible, however, missile's length will need to be increased to accommodate fuel capacity.
Various other software and hardware upgrades are also expected, but with reportedly imminent (?) deployment of the illusive supersonic anti-ship missile, C-Star's upgrade will likely not be as dramatic.
~Admin CBG
« Last Edit: May 28, 2020, 11:52:35 AM by LionFlyer »
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