Zeus67 3rd Party Developer



Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Ecuador Posts: 3,111

The M-2000C and the Super 530D



Please allow me to talk a little about the M-2000C and its main weapon: The Super 530D missile.



Let's see what wikipedia says about the missile:



Quote: The Matra Super 530 is a French short to medium-range air-to-air missile. The Super 530 series is an improved type of the R.530 missile.

Super 530F is carried on the Dassault Mirage F1. It was introduced in 1979.

Super 530D is carried on the Dassault-Breguet Mirage 2000. It was introduced in 1988.

The Super 530 is being replaced by the MICA (missile).

The Super 530D retains the same general aerodynamic features and internal layout as its Super 530F predecessor, with cruciform low aspect ratio wings and cruciform aft controls.



Guidance is by the mono-pulse AD26 CW Doppler semi-active seeker, which has improved ECCM capability, and improved capability against low-flying targets. The missile's guidance unit is also fitted with digital micro-processing, which enables the seeker to be reprogrammed against new threats. The missile has a claimed maximum interception altitude of 24,400 m (80,100 ft), with a snap-up capability of 12,200 m (40,000 ft), and a snap-down capability to targets at 60 m (200 ft). The missile has a range of 40 km and a maximum speed of Mach 5.



In DCS, we have the AI Mirage 2000-5, which strangely enough was armed with the Super 530F and not the D version. During almost all the time we have been developing the aircraft, the only missile available to us was the Super 530F, and we used it for a while.



But since the M-2000C never used the F, we requested from ED to give us the D version, which they did. They converted the in-game F into the D by using all the information we could get about the missile.



Among that information we found that the range changes based on launch altitude. So that wikipedia's 40Km max range is actually only possible when flying at or above 40,000 feet. Same for max speed by the way, the higher the launch altitude, the faster it goes.



Why am I telling you this? Because when we received our brand new missiles we went and tested them and... the rage began.



The beta tester was saying that the missile did not attain the posted range, it was too slow, it couldn't hit the targets, etc. He was, actually still is, very unhappy.



So today, I decided to test it and did several missions against different targets and my findings were the following:



1. The missile is to be considered a beta version that needs some work in the seeker. It can be easily decoyed by saturating the air with chaff. It is a 100% miss if you combine a jammer with the chaff.

2. The missile, to my surprise flies quite well and tracks its target and calculates its intercept vector. Unfortunately if you launch it at low flying targets it tend to fly into the ground, because the intercept vector it calculates happens to be below ground level. Keep that in mind.

3. The missile max range conforms to the launch altitude as indicated above. So keep that in mind as well when engaging with the Super 530D.



Yep, thanks to TacView I was able to review the flight path of all the missiles I fired and to my surprise the missile performed quite well even if it takes two to shoot down a single target.



So what were the lessons learned for engaging targets with the Super 530D?

1. Be aware that your target can and will launch a lot of chaff, spoofing the seeker. If your target has a jammer it works against you.

2. The missile is not dumb except for one thing. It does not recognize terrain, so it works better to shoot up as opposed to shoot down. Specially if your target flies close to the ground. You never knows if the missile will find an intercept solution that is 10 meters below ground, because your target happened to be in a shallow dive.

3. Do not fire at max range. The max range is an ideal situation that seldom occurs. Also, it changes with target aspect and altitude. Hold your fire until you are at least at 80% of max range for your altitude, (the HUD will provide range cues) improving the interception probabilities. Head-on intercepts are the best, the closing speed between you and the target helps a lot, but remember that your target will maneuver and that works on his favor. Every time the missile must maneuver, subtracts energy from its flight until it is unable to intercept. If you are on a chase, don't waste the missile. Range is super short and the probabilities are high against an intercept.



About missile energy, let me tell you what happened in one of my test flights. It was me vs 2 heavily laden Su-25s. I had to protect a vehicle formation. My altitude was 7000 feet. I found them on radar at 30 nmiles. First time on the mission, I fired at 19 nmiles only to see the missile drop to the ground before it could reach my target. Next time I took care to see our closure speed, nearly Mach 1, and shot at 15 nmiles. The missile flew true and went in for a beautiful intercept but to my surprise it flew below the target before dropping to the ground. I shot the second at 10 nmiles and it blew the target.



Upon reviewing the TacView record, I saw something interesting that I had missed while flying. The Su-25 AI pilot at the middle point of the missile flight, made a U turn! It flew away from the missile! It kept flying in that direction for about 10 seconds before making another U turn and resuming its previous flight path. But those 10 seconds of tail chase were enough to open the range in such way that my first missile had lost all energy and when its flight path and the Su-25's flight path merged it could not hit it since it was already dropping to the ground. I don't know why the AI did that U turn. They usually just fill the air with chaff and start jinxing but not this one and it worked for him, until it ate the second one fired a lot closer.



So next time in this scenario I held my fire until 12 nmiles and this time the missile went for the intercept, only to lose radar lock at the last moment for a miss! So next lesson learned: sh*t happens. The rage was real, but there was nothing I could do.



Folks, the Super 530D is a semi-active homing missiles. It is not a fire and forget missile. It needs you to keep your radar aimed at your target. And that puts you in a vulnerable position for the entire missile flight time. I got hit many times by my target companion because of that. Also, it is not a 100% guaranteed kill. Not even the real one has that guarantee. The AIM-7M Sparrow, which is the American equivalent, had in Desert Storm, according to wikipedia, a 68% probability of a hit. And of those hit, it only had a 54% kill probability, meaning that the missile was only effective 37% of the time. I seriously doubt that the real Super 530D will get better numbers than that. It can probably go to 40% or 45% but still that means that you need to fire at least 2 to shoot down a target. Something that our tests in DCS prove.



My reason for writing this wall of text is for you to be aware that there are many variables in play for a successful intercept in both real life and in simulation. Keep that in mind when flying the M-2000C and using the Super 530Ds. Hello folks!Please allow me to talk a little about the M-2000C and its main weapon: The Super 530D missile.Let's see what wikipedia says about the missile:So, here we have; a Mach 5 missile with a 40 Km (21.6 nautical miles) range and a good semi-active seeker with improved ECCM capability and able to hit low-flying targets (in other words it is not blinded by the ground).In DCS, we have the AI Mirage 2000-5, which strangely enough was armed with the Super 530F and not the D version. During almost all the time we have been developing the aircraft, the only missile available to us was the Super 530F, and we used it for a while.But since the M-2000C never used the F, we requested from ED to give us the D version, which they did. They converted the in-game F into the D by using all the information we could get about the missile.Among that information we found that the range changes based on launch altitude. So that wikipedia's 40Km max range is actually only possible when flying at or above 40,000 feet. Same for max speed by the way, the higher the launch altitude, the faster it goes.Why am I telling you this? Because when we received our brand new missiles we went and tested them and... the rage began.The beta tester was saying that the missile did not attain the posted range, it was too slow, it couldn't hit the targets, etc. He was, actually still is, very unhappy.So today, I decided to test it and did several missions against different targets and my findings were the following:1. The missile is to be considered a beta version that needs some work in the seeker. It can be easily decoyed by saturating the air with chaff. It is a 100% miss if you combine a jammer with the chaff.2. The missile, to my surprise flies quite well and tracks its target and calculates its intercept vector. Unfortunately if you launch it at low flying targets it tend to fly into the ground, because the intercept vector it calculates happens to be below ground level. Keep that in mind.3. The missile max range conforms to the launch altitude as indicated above. So keep that in mind as well when engaging with the Super 530D.Yep, thanks to TacView I was able to review the flight path of all the missiles I fired and to my surprise the missile performed quite well even if it takes two to shoot down a single target.So what were the lessons learned for engaging targets with the Super 530D?1. Be aware that your target can and will launch a lot of chaff, spoofing the seeker. If your target has a jammer it works against you.2. The missile is not dumb except for one thing. It does not recognize terrain, so it works better to shoot up as opposed to shoot down. Specially if your target flies close to the ground. You never knows if the missile will find an intercept solution that is 10 meters below ground, because your target happened to be in a shallow dive.3. Do not fire at max range. The max range is an ideal situation that seldom occurs. Also, it changes with target aspect and altitude. Hold your fire until you are at least at 80% of max range, (the HUD will provide range cues) improving the interception probabilities. Head-on intercepts are the best, the closing speed between you and the target helps a lot, but remember that your target will maneuver and that works on his favor. Every time the missile must maneuver, subtracts energy from its flight until it is unable to intercept. If you are on a chase, don't waste the missile. Range is super short and the probabilities are high against an intercept.About missile energy, let me tell you what happened in one of my test flights. It was me vs 2 heavily laden Su-25s. I had to protect a vehicle formation. My altitude was 7000 feet. I found them on radar at 30 nmiles. First time on the mission, I fired at 19 nmiles only to see the missile drop to the ground before it could reach my target. Next time I took care to see our closure speed, nearly Mach 1, and shot at 15 nmiles. The missile flew true and went in for a beautiful intercept but to my surprise it flew below the target before dropping to the ground. I shot the second at 10 nmiles and it blew the target.Upon reviewing the TacView record, I saw something interesting that I had missed while flying. The Su-25 AI pilot at the middle point of the missile flight, made a U turn! It flew away from the missile! It kept flying in that direction for about 10 seconds before making another U turn and resuming its previous flight path. But those 10 seconds of tail chase were enough to open the range in such way that my first missile had lost all energy and when its flight path and the Su-25's flight path merged it could not hit it since it was already dropping to the ground. I don't know why the AI did that U turn. They usually just fill the air with chaff and start jinxing but not this one and it worked for him, until it ate the second one fired a lot closer.So next time in this scenario I held my fire until 12 nmiles and this time the missile went for the intercept, only to lose radar lock at the last moment for a miss! So next lesson learned: sh*t happens. The rage was real, but there was nothing I could do.Folks, the Super 530D is a semi-active homing missiles. It is not a fire and forget missile. It needs you to keep your radar aimed at your target. And that puts you in a vulnerable position for the entire missile flight time. I got hit many times by my target companion because of that. Also, it is not a 100% guaranteed kill. Not even the real one has that guarantee. The AIM-7M Sparrow, which is the American equivalent, had in Desert Storm, according to wikipedia, a 68% probability of a hit. And of those hit, it only had a 54% kill probability, meaning that the missile was only effective 37% of the time. I seriously doubt that the real Super 530D will get better numbers than that. It can probably go to 40% or 45% but still that means that you need to fire at least 2 to shoot down a target. Something that our tests in DCS prove.My reason for writing this wall of text is for you to be aware that there are many variables in play for a successful intercept in both real life and in simulation. Keep that in mind when flying the M-2000C and using the Super 530Ds. Last edited by Zeus67; 12-10-2015 at 01:56 PM .