Кең ауқымды әуе-әуе ракетасы Р-40

Air to air missile developed by the Soviet Union

The Bisnovat (later Molniya then Vympel) R 40 (NATO reporting name AA 6 'Acrid') is a long range air to air missile developed in the 1960s by the Soviet Union specifically for the MiG 25P interceptor, but can also be carried by the later MiG 31. It is the largest air to air missile in the world ever to go into production.

The development of the Mach 3+ North American XB 70 Valkyrie threatened to make the entire interceptor and missile force of the Voyska PVO obsolete at one stroke, thanks to its incredible speed and altitude performance. In order to counter this new threat, the MiG 25 was designed, but new air to air missiles were also required to enable the MiG 25 to engage its intended targets at the high speeds and altitudes dictated by the requirements. The Bisnovat design bureau began development of the long range air to air missile in 1962. The resulting R 40 was initially matched with the Smerch A ("Tornado A") radar of the MiG 25. It has built in semi active radar homing (R 40R), with an inverse monopulse seeker which give the missile ability to engage targets in all aspects and infrared homing (R 40T) versions. To guarantee a kill at such high speeds in thin air, a large warhead was needed to have a sufficient blast effect. Large control fins were required to give the missile enough maneuverability at high altitude. All this necessitated a very large missile; as a result, the R 40 is the largest air to air missile ever to enter production. It is slightly larger than the MIM 23 Hawk surface to air missile. Following the defection of Soviet Air Defense Forces pilot Viktor Belenko in 1976 and the compromising of the MiG 25P's systems and the associated R 40s, Vympel developed an improved version of the missile with a better infrared countermeasures (IRCM) resistance and more sensitive seekers. The upgraded missiles were designated with the suffix D (for 'dorabotannye', "finalized"). Later D1 versions were also developed. Production of the R 40 ended in 1991, but it remains in limited service arming surviving MiG 25 and some MiG 31 interceptors.

In Soviet service, the R 40 was never fired outside of training or testing. Standard PVO procedure was to fire a two missile salvo at a target: one heat seeking R 40T missile followed by a SARH R 40R, to avoid the possibility of the heat seeking missile locking on to the radar guided missile. As the MiG 25 has been exported to various states in the Middle East, the R 40 has been used in combat by Iraq and probably by Syria and Libya. During the Persian gulf war of 1991 on the first night, a McDonnell Douglas F/A 18 Hornet of US Navy piloted by Scott Speicher of VFA 81 was shot down by an R 40 missile fired by an IQAF MiG 25 piloted by Zuhair Dawood. Passed on to successor states.