Tychon (missile)
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| Tychon | |
|---|---|
| Type | air-to-surface missile |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Production history | |
| Designed | early 1960s |
| Manufacturer | Bristol Aeroplane |
| Specifications | |
| Warhead | various |
Guidance system | various |
Steering system | control surfaces |
Launch platform | various aircraft |
Tychon was a British air-to-surface missile proposed by Bristol Aeroplane Company's Guided Weapons Division in the early 1960s. It was a development of the earlier Momentum Bomb proposal developed by Barnes Wallis at Vickers Aircraft.[1] Neither entered production.
Momentum Bomb was an unpowered glide bomb intended to help strike aircraft remain outside enemy air defences while delivering tactical nuclear weapons.[1] Tychon expanded on the basic concept, adding a rocket motor to increase range, and modular guidance systems that could be swapped for different missions, including both conventional and nuclear attacks and reconnaissance.
The project saw some official interest, but never much enthusiasm on the part of the Air Staff or the Admiralty. Many of the roles it was intended to fill were instead put into an Anglo-French development project, OR.1168, which emerged as the Martel.
The Momentum Bomb was invented during the era when toss bombing (or loft bombing) was the preferred method of delivering tactical nuclear weapons. This was designed to allow the aircraft to fly at low altitudes during the approach to protect it from anti-aircraft weapons. The aircraft flies directly toward the target, and then, at a pre-selected point, enters a climb. The bomb is released at a programmed point during the climb, which puts it on a ballistic path to the target. Immediately after release, the aircraft continues pitching up until it has performed a half-loop and is now flying away from the target. The aircraft then returns to low level to return to friendly lines.[2]
The problem with toss bombing is that the aircraft begins to climb as it is approaching the target, which would normally be a valuable one and thus strongly protected. After release, the aircraft continues to climb, remaining in the Air Defence Zone (ADZ) as it executes its loop and eventually flies away. This opens the aircraft to attack during this period, which depends on the size of the ADZ.[2]
The Momentum Bomb solved this problem by having the bomb perform the toss manoeuvre instead of the aircraft. Instead of approaching the target directly, the aircraft would fly a course along a tangent to the ADZ. At a pre-determined point, it would turn so that it was flying directly away from the target, which would now be behind it. Once stable along the new path, the bomb would be dropped. After release, the bomb would apply full up-elevator, causing it to perform the half loop and start approaching the target. Once the internal sensors indicated it had reached horizontal at the top of the loop, the elevators reversed and caused it to enter a gliding path toward the target.[2]
The advantage to this system is that the aircraft never entered the ADZ, only the bomb did. Moreover, the aircraft remained at low level throughout the attack, meaning it was not exposed to any other anti-aircraft weapons in the approach or escape.[2]
