The BGM-71 TOW ('Tube-launched, Optically tracked. Showing a BGM-71E-3B with the serial number removed, can be seen in a 27 May 2014 episode. Russia attempted a rescue operation after a Su-24M was shot down at the Syria–Turkey border on 24 November 2015, a video of Free Syrian Army 1st Coastal Division using a TOW missile to destroy a. Card Recovery Crack is tiny in size that doesn't need the maximum amount of storage. The scan time may be longer in case your card reader or camera uses a.
Guidance system Optically tracked, ( in RF variants) The BGM-71 TOW ('Tube-launched, Optically tracked, ') is an American. TOW replaced much smaller missiles like the and, offering roughly twice the effective range, a more powerful warhead, and a greatly improved semi-automatic guidance system that could also be equipped with cameras for night time use. First produced in 1970, TOW is one of the most widely used anti-tank.
It can be found in a wide variety of manually carried and vehicle-mounted forms, as well as widespread use on. Originally designed by in the 1960s, the weapon is currently produced. Army soldier in 1964, with the first concept of 's proposed future HAW system (Heavy Antitank Weapon). The HAW ultimately resulted in the modern-day TOW. Initially developed by between 1963 and 1968, the XBGM-71A was designed for both ground and heliborne applications. Purchased Hughes Electronics from General Motors Corporation, so development and production of TOW systems now comes under the Raytheon brand. The weapon is used in anti-armor, anti-bunker, anti-fortification and anti-amphibious landing roles.
TOW is in service with over 45 militaries and is integrated on over 15,000 ground, vehicle and helicopter platforms worldwide. In its basic infantry form, the system breaks down into a number of modules: a folding tripod mount, a launch tube (into the rear of which encased missiles are inserted), a mandatory daysight tracker unit, which can be augmented with an optional AN/TAS-4 or AN/TAS-4/A gas-cooled night sight (or an all-in-one tracker unit on the M41 ITAS version), and a traversing unit, which mounts onto the tripod and carries the launch tube and sight, that also includes the weapon's trigger and the bridging clamp, which mates with the missile's umbilical data connector. In addition to this main assembly, there is a separate fire control system (FCS) module, which performs all guidance calculations, and a battery pack to power the system. These two modules link to each other, with the FCS then linked to the daysight with a cable.
When the target is sighted and the trigger is pulled, there is a 1.5-second firing delay while the missile spins up its internal gyroscope and the thermal battery reaches operating temperature. Once this concludes, the launch motor fires through the rear nozzle propelling the missile from the tube: this soft-launch motor fires for only 0.05 seconds and burns out before the missile has exited the tube. As the missile exits the launch tube, first four wings just forward of the flight motor spring open forwards, followed by four tail control surfaces, which flip open rearwards as the missile completely exits the launch tube. As the wings fully extend at about 7 meters from the launcher, the flight motor ignites, boosting the missile's speed to approximately 600 miles per hour (1,000 kilometers per hour) during its burn time. At 0.18 seconds after launch, around 65 meters from the launcher, the warhead is armed by G-forces from acceleration by the flight motor, a safety feature intended to protect the operator if the flight motor fails to ignite. The flight motor burns out 1.6 seconds after launch, with the missile gliding for the remainder of its flight time.
After the tracker captures the missile, IR sensors bore-sighted to the daysight tracker continuously monitor the position of an IR beacon on the missile's tail relative to the line-of-sight, with the FCS generating course corrections which are sent via the command link to the missile's integral flight control unit. The missile then corrects its flight path via the control surface actuators. The operator keeps the sight's crosshair centered over the target until impact: if the missile fails to strike a target, the command wires are automatically cut at 3,000 meters on the original TOW and 3,750 meters on most current-production TOWs. An automatic wirecut also occurs if the tracker fails to detect the missile's thermal beacon within 1.85 seconds of launching. A TOW missile cutaway at a museum in Germany The TOW missile was continually upgraded, with an improved TOW missile (ITOW) appearing in 1978 that had a new warhead triggered by a long probe, which was extended after launch, that gave a stand-off distance of 15 in (380 mm) for improved armor penetration.
The 1983 TOW 2 featured a larger 5.9 kg (13 lb) warhead with a 21.25 in (540 mm) extensible probe, improved guidance and a motor that provided around 30% more thrust. This was followed by the TOW 2A/B, which appeared in 1987. Hughes developed a TOW missile with a wireless data link in 1989, referred to as TOW-2N, but this weapon was not adopted for use by the U.S. Raytheon continued to develop improvements to the TOW line, but its FOTT (Follow-On To TOW) program was cancelled in 1998, and its TOW-FF (TOW-Fire and Forget) program was cut short on 30 November 2001 because of funding limitations.
In 2001 and 2002, Raytheon and the U.S. Army worked together on an extended range TOW 2B variant, initially referred to as TOW-2B (ER), but now called TOW-2B Aero, which has a special nose cap that increases range to 4.5 km. Although this missile has been in production since 2004, no U.S. Army designation has yet been assigned. Wireless versions of the TOW-2A, TOW-2B and TOW-2B Aero have been developed that use a 'stealthy' one-way radio link, identified with the suffix 'RF'. These missiles require no special alterations to the launcher, since the RF transmitter is encased along with the missile and uses the standard umbilical data connector. In 1999, TOW received the Improved Target Acquisition System (ITAS).
The TOW missile in its current variations is not a fire-and-forget weapon, and like most second-generation wire-guided missiles has guidance. This means that the guidance system is directly linked to the platform, and requires that the target be kept in the shooter's line of sight until the missile impacts.
A fire-and-forget TOW variant (TOW-FF) was under development, but was cancelled by the Army in 2002. In October 2012, received a contract to produce 6,676 TOW (wireless-guided) missiles for the U.S. Missiles that will be produced include the BGM-71E TOW 2A, the BGM-71F TOW 2B, the TOW 2B Aero, and the BGM-71H TOW Bunker Buster. By 2013, the U.S. Marine Corps had retired the air-launched TOW missile. Launch platforms. Army ATGM carrier at the fires a TOW missile in May 2011.
TOW is designated as a BGM by the U.S. Military: a multiple launch environment (B) surface attack (G) guided missile (M). The B launch environment prefix is used only when the system can be used essentially unmodified when launched from a variety of launch platforms. The M151 and M220 launchers are used by infantry, but can also be mounted on a number of vehicles, including the, the, the and the (which replaced the M966). These launchers are theoretically man-portable, but are quite bulky. The updated M151 launcher was upgraded to include thermal optics to allow night time usage, and had been simplified to reduce weight. The M220 was specifically developed to handle the TOW-2 series.
TOW systems have also been developed for vehicle specific applications on the, the, the ATGM carrier, and the now retired (Improved TOW Vehicle); they are generally referred to as TOW Under Armor (TUA). In helicopter applications, the used by the series is the primary system deployed, but the system was developed for the UH-1, and a system was put into development for the later canceled helicopter. TOW has also been used with AH.1 (TOW) and AH.7 variants of helicopters, with the attachment of two pylons, each carrying four missiles. The M41 TOW improved target acquisition system (ITAS) is a block upgrade to the M220 ground/high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle (HMMWV)-mounted TOW 2 missile system.
The TOW ITAS is currently being fielded to airborne, air assault, and light infantry forces throughout the active and reserve components of the U.S. Army and U.S.
Marine Corps (where it is called the SABER). The ITAS, in addition to providing better anti-armour capabilities to antitank units, also has capabilities that make it an integral part of the combined arms team. Even when organized in heavy—light task forces, where the preponderance of antiarmor capabilities traditionally has resided in the heavy elements, TOW ITAS-equipped antitank units can not only destroy threat targets but also provide superior reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition (RSTA), rear area protection, and urban operations capabilities.
The TOW ITAS consists of three new line replaceable units: the target acquisition subsystem (TAS), the fire control subsystem (FCS), and the lithium battery box (LBB); a modified TOW 2 traversing unit; the existing TOW launch tube and tripod; and a TOW Humvee modification kit. The TAS integrates into a single housing the direct view optics and missile tracker, a second-generation (FLIR) sight (NVS), and a. TAS electronics provide automatic boresighting for these components, eliminating both tactical collimation and 180-day verification requirements.
The integral cooling system for the IR optics is a modern SADA-II electrically powered cryocooler, removing the need to carry a supply of high-pressure coolant gas cartridges as was necessary for the previous AN/TAS-4 and AN/TAS-4A night sights. The most recent addition to the ITAS system is the ITAS-FTL (far target location), which incorporates a new module called PADS (position attitude determination subsystem), a device that attaches to the top of the ITAS sighting unit and uses differential GPS tracking to relay precise coordinate data to the operator. Service history In 1968, a contract for full-scale production was awarded to Hughes, and by 1970 the system was being fielded by the U.S.
When adopted, the BGM-71 series replaced the 106 mm and the missile system then in service. The missile also replaced the then in service as a heliborne anti-tank weapon. 1972: Vietnam: first combat use On 24 April 1972, the U.S. 1st Combat Aerial TOW Team arrived in South Vietnam; the team's mission was to test the new anti-armor missile under combat conditions.
The team consisted of three crews, technical representatives from and, members of the, and two UH-1B helicopters; each mounting the XM26 TOW weapons system, which had been taken from storage. After displacing to the for aerial gunnery, the unit commenced daily searches for enemy armor. On 2 May 1972, U.S. Army UH-1 Huey helicopters firing TOWs destroyed North Vietnamese tanks near. This was heralded as the first time a U.S. Unit neutralized enemy armour using American-designed and built guided missiles (in this case, against a captured American-made operated by the North Vietnamese).
On 9 May, elements of the 's 203rd Armored Regiment assaulted held by Rangers. The Rangers destroyed the first three amphibious light tanks of the 203rd, thereby breaking up the attack. During the battle for the city of, the TOW missile had proven to be a significant weapon in disrupting enemy tank attacks within the region. By the end of May, BGM-71 TOW missiles had accumulated 24 confirmed kills of both PT-76 light and main battle tanks. On 19 August, the South Vietnamese 5th Infantry Regiment abandoned in the, 30 miles southwest of Da Nang, to the North Vietnamese 711th Division. A dozen TOW missiles were left with abandoned equipment and fell into Communist hands.
1982: Lebanon War The used TOW missiles during the. On 11 June, Israeli anti-tank teams armed with TOW ambushed Syrian armoured forces and destroyed a number of Syrian -made tanks. Estimates vary regarding the number of T-72s destroyed by TOWs (vs. The number destroyed by ), with the lower end at nine and the high end attributing 'the majority' of the 30 T-72s destroyed by Israeli forces in the war to 's anti-tank TOW units. This was probably the first encounter of the American anti-tank missile with the newer Soviet tank. Iran–Iraq War.
Two Iranian soldiers with a BGM-71 TOW mounted on a jeep during the Iran-Iraq war. In the of the 1980s, the used TOW missiles purchased before the in 1979, as well as those purchased during the.
Of the 202 (export variant of the AH-1J SeaCobra) that Iran purchased from the US, 62 were TOW-capable. Iranian AH-1Js managed to slow down Iraqi tank advances into Iran. During the ' between Iranian SeaCobras and Iraqi, Iranians achieved several 'kills', usually using TOW missiles. 1991: Persian Gulf War TOW was used in multiple engagements during Operation Desert Storm in the 1991. During the war, both the (IFV) and the Cavalry Fighting Vehicle (CFV) carried TOW missiles. The M2 can also carry seven additional rounds, while the M3 can carry twelve.
The M2 and M3 medium-weight destroyed more Iraqi tanks during the war than the heavy Main Battle Tanks did. The British Army also TOW-armed, helicopters to the conflict, where they were used to attack Iraqi armoured vehicles. This was the first recorded use of the missile from a British helicopter. 1993: Somalia On 5 June, 24 Pakistani soldiers were slaughtered by members of 's militia; some were skinned.
Subsequently, the United Nations called for the arrest of those responsible. Weeks later they would formally place the blame on Aidid, leader of the Habr Gidr clan. Subsequently, U.N. Troops hunted Aidid.
Incidents between the two sides worsened, with fighting back and forth. On 12 July, three months prior to the, the United Nations and United States attempted to defeat 's organization by attacking a strategy meeting of his native clan under. The described the event as a 'slaughter' in which a 'half-dozen' attack helicopters fired 16 TOW missiles and 2,000 rounds from their 20 mm cannons into the meeting of the elders and senior combat commanders. The first TOW missile destroyed the stairs, preventing escape. In the aftermath, it was revealed that was not in the meeting. The claimed that 54 people had been killed, reported that 20 had died, while Aidid's produced a list of 73 people whom they claimed had been killed.
2001: War in Afghanistan TOW missiles were used during the. 2003: Iraq War 10 Humvee-mounted TOW missiles were used by U.S. Forces in Iraq during the 22 July 2003 assault that killed. Although TOW missiles are generally used against armored vehicles, these missiles were used on the house the two men were in. 2011: Syrian Civil War. An fighter firing a BGM-71 TOW at a Syrian Army target north of, Syria, in March 2017 The weapon was spotted as early as April 2014 in at least two videos that surfaced showing forces in the using BGM-71 TOWs, a weapon previously not seen in use by the opposition.
Such a video, showing a BGM-71E-3B with the serial number removed, can be seen in a 27 May 2014 episode of the series. In February 2015, listed 23 groups within the that have been documented using US supplied TOWs.
A sudden influx of TOWs were supplied in May 2015, mostly to affiliated factions, but also independent Islamist battalions; as a requirement of being provided TOWs, these groups are required to document the use of the missiles by filming their use, and are also required to save the spent missile casings. Groups provided with TOWs include the, the, and the. Free Syrian Army battalions widely and decisively used TOWs in the. Russia attempted a rescue operation after a M was at the Syria–Turkey border on 24 November 2015, a video of using a TOW missile to destroy a disabled Russian helicopter on the ground after its crew had retreated was posted on YouTube. In October 2015, delivered 500 TOW missiles to anti-Assad rebels. A video produced through Bulgarian Television provides evidence of non rebel use of this weapon by Islamic affiliated fighters. Reports indicate that small number of TOW missiles have ended up in the hands of.
In August 2016 footage of the Syrian military inspecting a captured BGM-71E missile system in Bani Zeit district, Aleppo, was leaked online. On 2 September 2016, rebels released a video of a BGM-71 TOW destroying a French-manufactured Syrian Air Force as it was landing on an airstrip near Khattab in Northern Hama.
Reports say that the TOW missile has successfully hit Russian in Syria, which are equipped with active defences designed to defeat such missiles. However, a Russian report claims the tank shows 'very little damage' and was still operable. Variants has taken over for Hughes in recent years, and now handles production of all current variants, as well as TOW development.: A109 AH(L)-TOW helicopter only.:.: - 147 launchers in service in 2000.: Produced under license.: Iranian version.: Total of 432 launchers. 5,000 BGM-71 missiles and 130 launchers delivered in 1974; 10,000 missiles delivered in 1976–1978; 2,311 ITOW delivered in 1982–1984; 6,629 BGM-71C ITOW delivered in 1986–1989 for 67 million dollars (of which 1,239 were practice missiles); 1,440 BGM-71D TOW2 for delivered in 1990–1996.: most carried by.: 70 launchers in service; 1,200 BGM-71-4B-RF TOW 2A RF missiles on order, approved for export on 8 December 2016.: To be replaced.
Still used in.: helicopters and vehicle only. Former.: The decision to replace the (in use with reconnaissance units) and TOW (in use with mechanized infantry) with the was made in 2001, with deliveries expected in 2002. The first Gill MRAT was actually issued in 2004 to the.
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