Close-in weapon system

Phalanx CIWS

A close-in weapon system (CIWS), often pronounced "sea-whiz," is a point-defence multiple-barrel rotary cannon weapon system for detecting and destroying short-range incoming missiles and enemy aircraft which have penetrated the outer defenses, typically mounted shipboard in a naval capacity. Nearly all classes of modern warships are equipped with some kind of CIWS device.

There are two types of CIWS systems. A gun-based CIWS usually consists of a combination of radars, computers, and multiple-barrel, rotary rapid-fire cannons placed on a rotating gun mount. Missile systems use infra-red, passive radar/ESM or semi-active radar terminal guidance to guide missiles to the targeted enemy aircraft or other threats. In some cases, CIWS are used on land to protect military bases.

Gun systems

A gun-based CIWS usually consists of a combination of radars, computers, and multiple-barrel, rotary rapid-fire cannons placed on a rotating, automatically-aimed gun mount. Examples of gun-based CIWS products in operation are:

Limitations of gun systems

Comparison of some current CIWS

Comparison of some modern CIWS
Russia AK-630[4] United States Phalanx CIWS[5] Netherlands Goalkeeper CIWS Italy DARDO[6] Switzerland Millennium[7]
Weight 9,114 kg (20,093 lb) 6,200 kg (13,700 lb) 9,902 kg (21,830 lb) 5,500 kg (12,100 lb) 3,300 kg (7,300 lb)
Armament 30 mm (1.2 in) 6 barreled GSh-6-30 Gatling Gun 20 mm (0.79 in) 6 barreled M61 Vulcan Gatling Gun 30 mm (1.2 in) 7 barreled GAU-8 Gatling Gun 40 mm (1.6 in) 2 barreled Bofors 40 mm 35 mm (1.4 in) 1 barreled Oerlikon Millennium 35 mm Naval Revolver Gun System
Rate of Fire 5,000 rounds per minute 4,500 rounds per minute 4,200 rounds per minute 600/900 rounds per minute 200/1000 rounds per minute
(effective/ flat-trajectory) Range 4,000 m (13,000 ft) 2,000 m (6,600 ft) 3,600 m (11,800 ft) 4,000 m (13,000 ft) 3,500 m (11,500 ft)
Ammunition storage 2,000 rounds 1,550 rounds 1,190 rounds 736 rounds 252 rounds
Muzzle velocity 900 m (3,000 ft) per second 1,100 m (3,600 ft) per second 1,109 m (3,638 ft) per second 1,000 m (3,300 ft) per second 1,050 m (3,440 ft) per second / 1,175 m (3,855 ft) per second
Elevation -12 to +88 degrees -25 to +85 degrees -25 to +85 degrees -13 to +85 degrees -15 to +85 degrees
Speed in Elevation 50 degrees per second 115 degrees per second 100 degrees per second 60 degrees per second 70 degrees per second
Traverse 360 degrees 360 degrees 360 degrees 360 degrees 360 degrees
Speed in Traverse 70 degrees per second 115 degrees per second 100 degrees per second 90 degrees per second 120 degrees per second
In service 1976 1980 1980 ? 2003

Missile systems

A Tor missile launch from the Russian Navy's Kirov-class battlecruiser Frunze.

Missile systems do not have the same limitations as gun systems. Because of their greater range, a missile-CIWS can also be dual-used as a short-ranged area-defense anti-air weapon, eliminating the need for a second mount for this role.

After an inertial guidance phase, a CIWS missile relies on infra-red, passive radar/ESM or semi-active radar terminal guidance, or a combination of these. The ESM-mode is particularly useful since most long-range anti-ship missiles use radar to home in on their targets. Some systems allow the launch platform to send course-correction commands to the missile in the inertial guidance phase.

A drawback of the missile system is (in combat) the low number of immediately available projectiles and longer reload cycles and higher costs per shot in training. A further advantage of the gun systems the fact that a fired projectile cannot be jammed or lured away from its trajectory by active electronic or infrared countermeasures. For this reason, larger military vessels are often protected by combinations of both systems.

Examples include:

Land-based CIWS

CIWS are also used in a land-based anti-mortar and missile defense role to protect fixed and temporary bases and other facilities.[9][10]

On a smaller scale, active protection systems are used in some tanks, and several are in development. The Drozd system was deployed on Soviet Naval Infantry tanks in the early 1980s, but later replaced by explosive reactive armour. Other systems that are available or under development are the Russian (Arena), Israeli (Trophy), American (Quick Kill) and the South African-Swedish (LEDS-150).

Laser CIWS Systems

Laser based CIWS systems are being researched. In August 2014 an operational prototype was deployed to the Persian Gulf aboard USS Ponce.[11]

The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (Turkish: Türkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Araştırma Kurumu, TÜBİTAK) is the second organisation after the US to have developed and tested a High Power Laser CIWS prototype System which is intended to be used on the TF-2000 class frigate and on Turkish airborne systems.[12][13][14]

See also

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to CIWS.
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