GIDS Taimoor Air-Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) - Quwa

Quwa Staff

World Industrial & Defence Options (GIDS) first revealed the Taimoor air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) on the 2022 Worldwide Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS 2022).

Like its sibling weapon, the GIDS Harbah NG anti-ship cruising missile (ASCM), the Taimoor is being promoted for export. The Taimoor is able to each land-attack and anti-ship roles.

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GIDS Taimoor Design Background

The GIDS Taimoor is probably going an export variant of the Air Weapons Advanced (AWC) Ra’ad-II, one of many Pakistan Air Pressure’s (PAF) ALCMs.

The 2 missiles share a number of design options, notably, the “X”-type tail management surfaces, mid-body foldable wings, and underslung air-inlet for a miniature turbojet engine. Likewise, the Taimoor additionally makes use of some low-observability (LO) design attributes in its airframe, that are geared toward lowering its radar cross-section (RCS).

Nonetheless, the Ra’ad-II has a variety of 550-600 km. To adjust to the Missile Know-how Management Regime’s (MTCR) pointers, the Taimoor’s vary was capped to 290 km. Regardless of that, nonetheless, the Taimoor nonetheless leverages most of the key applied sciences of the Ra’ad-series, like terrain-hugging flight and steerage programs, which embrace TERCOM and DSMAC.

Subsequently, the GIDS Taimoor is a reputable long-range strike resolution, one that may nonetheless drive strategic impacts for its end-users, regardless of the vary limitation.

Lastly, it’s doubtless that AWC is reusing most of the similar core inputs for its stand-off vary weapons (SOW). For instance, the GIDS Taimoor could possibly be utilizing the identical turbojet engine and steerage stack of the Harbah NG. Likewise, the Taimoor’s imaging infrared (IIR) seeker could also be discovering its technique to different purposes, just like the AZB-81LR.

GIDS Taimoor Specs

Bodily Dimensions

Size: 4.38 metersWingspan: 3.20 metersWeight: 1,100-1,200 kg

Efficiency Parameters

Vary: 290 kmCruise Pace: Mach 0.7-0.8 (450-500 knots)Terminal Pace: Mach 0.8 (500 knots)Launch Altitude: 610-7,620 meters (2,000-25,000 ft)Cruise Altitude: 152-6,096 meters (500-20,000 ft)

Key Technical Inputs

Mid-course: INS aided with GNSS/GPS & DSMAC/TERCOMWarhead Sorts: Blast fragmentation, penetration & pre-fragmentationTerminal: Imaging Infrared (IIR) seekerPropulsion: Unknown miniature turbojet (probably NESCOM NTJ-V1)

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Key Capabilities of the GIDS Taimoor ALCM

Twin Land-Assault and Anti-Ship Focusing on

The GIDS Taimoor ALCM was designed to interact each fastened and transferring targets, together with floor warships. For the latter, the Taimoor makes use of an IIR seeker in terminal-stage flight.

The satellite-aided inertial navigation system (INS) guides the missile’s flight till it reaches the terminal-stage. The TERCOM and DSMAC stack doubtless helps with offering the Taimoor extra resilience in environments the place GNSS/GPS hyperlinks will not be dependable, equivalent to digital warfare (EW)-dense situations the place there may be GNSS/GPS jamming.

Lengthy-Vary and Heavy Payload

GIDS didn’t disclose the Taimoor’s warhead weight. Nonetheless, the general weight of the Taimoor (and, by extension, the Ra’ad-II) is lower than 1,200 kg, which is similar to the mass of the MBDA SCALP and MBDA/Taurus KEPD-350, which weigh 1,300 kg and 1,400 kg, respectively. These ALCMs can ship warheads weighing round 450-500 kg, so it’s cheap to imagine that the Taimoor/Ra’ad-II may carry a comparable quantity.

As an export-oriented system, the Taimoor’s vary was capped to beneath 300 km, whereas the PAF’s Ra’ad-II can attain as much as 600 km. In both case, the purpose of this ALCM household was to supply the end-user a versatile means to hold out long-range strikes, be it via their fighter plane or at stand-off vary (i.e., away from contested air area or enemy anti-air threats).

Low-Observability (LO) Design

The LO components of the GIDS Taimoor manifest in two key methods. First, its airframe’s angular design helps with lowering its radar cross-section (RCS), making it tougher to detect at long-range on radar. Second, the Taimoor has terrain-hugging flight functionality (through TERCOM and DSMAC), permitting it to fly at low-altitudes and, in flip, exploit radar protection gaps.

Versatile Launch Platform Integration

Whereas Pakistan would like to see the GIDS Taimoor drive curiosity within the JF-17, GIDS will likely be pleased with securing gross sales from a wider subset of consumers. One benefit of specializing in turning into a munitions exporter is that Pakistan can strategy international locations that don’t use any of its big-ticket platforms. As a substitute, the Pakistani business can lean on its customized integration companies to pair the Taimoor to a greater variety of fighter platforms.

Information Updates, Feedback, and Evaluation

For GIDS, the marketability benefit of the GIDS Taimoor is two-fold:

First, the Taimoor is an unusual – but high-demand – sort of weapon. Most states can’t readily procure ALCMs of this kind attributable to price and/or supply-side restrictions (particularly as a lot of the distributors are Western).

Second, GIDS also can probably market the Taimoor as a versatile system, one Pakistan can combine to many plane upon the customer’s request. The GIDS Taimoor additionally reinforces the worth proposition of the JF-17 Thunder by giving it the flexibility to undertake high-impact missions, equivalent to deep-strike.

Remark – November 2024

At IDEAS 2024, GIDS expanded its lineup of cruise missiles and different SOW merchandise. One addition was the Rasoob 250, a smaller ALCM design that retained – if not improved upon – the LO design components of the GIDS Taimoor.

With these new additions, GIDS is constructing a reputable portfolio of air-launched SOW merchandise that cowl a large spectrum of ranges, payload capacities, and mission-specific capabilities.

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