PL-17
Chinese long range air-to-air missile
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The PL-17 (NATO reporting name: CH-AA-12 Auger[1]) or PL-20 is an active radar-guided beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile developed by the People's Republic of China for the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). The missile has a claimed range of more than 400 km (250 mi) and is intended to target high value airborne assets (HVAA) such as tanker and early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft.[2][3][4]
History and development
The missile was tested on a Shenyang J-16 fighter in 2016,[5] and can also be deployed on Chinese imported Su-30MKK and Su-35 fighters.[6] It is understood that PL-17 is a separate development from the ramjet-powered PL-21 (PL-XX).[3][7] In October 2022, Chinese state media reported that the PL-17 entered PLAAF service.[8]
Design
PL-17 is much larger than other long-range air-to-air missiles, at 6 m (20 ft) long (whereas PL-15, AIM-120 are measured around 4 m (13 ft) long), which contains more solid fuel. The extended length makes the missile unfit for the internal weapons bay of the Chengdu J-20. During the flight, PL-17 would rely on inertial guidance, satellite navigation, and data-link to track targets. During the terminal phase, the missile would turn on its multimodal seeker with both active radar and passive sensors.[2] The sensors include, reportedly, a miniature active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar for tracking, passive anti-radiation seeker for locating radar-equipped targets, and a possible optical window feautring an additional infrared seeker as supplement.[9] The missile body features a low-drag profile, and maneuverability is provided by four small control fins and thrust-vectoring engines.[10] Estimates for its maximum operational range may vary (300–500 km (190–310 mi)), but the widely reported figure is ~400 km, that is under ideal conditions.[11][12] The missile is powered by a dual pulse rocket motor and flies in lofted launch trajectory[2] to achieve the reported range of 400 km (250 mi) class, according to the Royal United Services Institute.[10] It has a top speed in excess of Mach 4.[7][8]
See also
- PL-15 – (China)
- PL-21 – (China)
- AIM-174B – (United States)
- R-37M – (Russia)
- Novator KS-172 – (Russia)
- Astra Mark 3 – (India)
