Wednesday, March 9, 2022

This photo of a Stinger anti-tank missile (of a similar kind the U.S, and other countries are supplying the Ukrainians with now in Ukraine). It should enlarge if you click on it

 

A U.S. Marine fires an FIM-92 Stinger missile during a July 2009 training exercise in California.

The missile began as a program by General Dynamics to produce an improved variant of their 1967 FIM-43 Redeye. Production of the Redeye ran from 1969 to 1982, with a total production of around 85,000 missiles. The program was accepted for further development as Redeye II by the U.S. Army in 1971 and designated FIM-92; the Stinger appellation was chosen in 1972. Because of technical difficulties that dogged testing, the first shoulder launch was not until mid-1975. Production of the FIM-92A began in 1978. An improved Stinger with a new seeker, the FIM-92B, was produced from 1983 alongside the FIM-92A. Production of both the A and B types ended in 1987 with around 16,000 missiles produced.

The replacement FIM-92C began development in 1984, and production began in 1987. The first examples were delivered to front-line units in 1989. C-type missiles were fitted with a reprogrammable microprocessor, allowing for incremental firmware updates. Later missiles designated D received improvements to improve their ability to defeat countermeasures, and later upgrades to the D were designated G.

The FIM-92E or Block I was developed from 1992 and delivered from 1995 (certain sources state that the FIM-92D is also part of the Block I development). The main changes were again in the sensor and the software, improving the missile's performance against low-signature targets.

end partial quote from:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FIM-92_Stinger

The US and other NATO members have so far provided Ukraine 17,000 anti-tank missiles and 2,000 Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, according to a senior US official.

end partial quote from:

https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/09/politics/us-poland-jets-russia/index.html

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