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| Army fires a Stinger missile using Man-Portable Air Defense Systems during Artemis Strike, a live fire exercise at the NATO Missile Firing Installation at Crete, Greece, 6 November 2017. (Sgt. 1st Class Jason Epperson) |
The FIM-92 “Stinger” is a short-range man-portable air defense system (MANPADS). The stinger was designed to provide air defense capabilities to U.S. and allied troops when forward deployed and thus eliminate the immediate need for air support should an enemy aircraft threaten the troops.
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| U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. John P. Hawkings, prepares to engage a drone with a FIM-92 Stinger missile launcher during a live fire exercise at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., June 7, 2016. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Lance Cpl. Anthony J. Brosilow/Released) |
The FIM-92 Stinger served as a replacement to the FIM-43 Redeye. The stinger entered service in 1978 after nearly 10 years of development and delays. Since then, there have been multiple upgrades and modifications made to the stinger.
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| U.S. Marines conclude firing the FIM-92 Stinger missile launcher after hitting a drone during a live fire exercise at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C., June 8, 2016. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Lance Cpl. Anthony J. Brosilow/Released) |
The stinger has also been modified to be used in ground-based air defense systems such as the M1097 “Avenger” and adapted to airborne-based platforms such as the AH-64 “Apache” helicopter.
The Stinger is launched from a number of platforms: the shoulder-launched Man-portable Air Defense System, Avenger (HMMWV), Bradley Linebacker, Light Amphibious Vehicle - Air Defense (LAV-AD), Kiowa Warrior (OH-58D), and Special Operations Black Hawks (MH-60).
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| (en.valka.cz) |
The stinger provides air defense for light infantry (not protected by armored vehicles) platoon size elements during missions and “outside the wire” activities. This capability allows air defense at the tactical level, offering U.S. and allied troops a way to defend themselves from aerial attack, while offering the mobility a light infantry unit needs to conduct its missions.
Without the stinger, the platoon would not be able to defend themselves against an aerial attack without armored vehicles or tanks.
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| A US Marine with a field radio relays the direction of aircraft approaching the Crow Valley Electronic Warfare Tactical Range to the operator of an FIM-92 Stinger missile launcher during Exercise COPE THUNDER '84-7, 9 October 1984. (SSGT DANNY PEREZ, U.S. Air Force) |
The "fire-and-forget" Stinger missile employs a passive infrared seeker to home in on its airborne target. A passive infrared seeker emits no radiation that a target aircraft can detect, and, instead, guides on the infrared energy (heat) emitted by the target. Because the Stinger employs a passive homing seeker, it is a "fire-and-forget" weapon that needs no guidance from the operator after firing, unlike other missiles that track the reflection of a designator beam, requiring the operator to maintain a lock on the target. This allows a Stinger operator to take cover, relocate, or engage other targets immediately after firing a Stinger.
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| A Marine soldier from a Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion fires a FIM-92A Stinger Weapon System missile during training at San Clemente Island, 28 July 2009. (Meghan Gonzales, U.S. Marine Corps) |
The Stinger system features a proportional navigation system, integrated Indentification Friend or Foe (IFF) interrogation, and threat adaptive guidance. Proportional navigation enables the missile to effectively hit moving targets by injecting a multiplier factor into course corrections so that the missile overcorrects for a target's evasive maneuvers, leading the target to a successful interception.
The integrated IFF subsystem allows the Stinger operator to query a target aircraft to determine if it is friendly. Before firing, the operator depresses a button on the gripstock assembly, emitting a coded radio signal. Aircraft equipped with friendly IFF systems will recognize the coded signal and respond with the appropriate coded reply. The IFF subsystem emits one tone if it authenticates a friendly aircraft, and another if the aircraft is unknown. The IFF subsystem is intended to prevent friendly-fire incidents. The Stinger's threat adaptive guidance takesover in the final stages of its approach to the target, slightly shifting the missile's aim from the target's IR hotspot to more vulnerable areas of the aircraft.
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| Pfc. Anna Ciamaichelo, I Battery, 1st Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, unloads the FIM-92 Stinger missile she is about to fire. (U.S. Army photo by Casey Slusser) |
The FIM-92 Stinger missile launch unit contains the AIM-92 missile. The Stinger weapon round is shipped from the ammunition supply point in a crush-resistant, hardened, reusable aluminum box. It is certified for immediate firing. This box is called the weapon round container but is more commonly referred to as a mono box. Stinger rounds are packaged in a thin, woodside box surrounding a foam insert in which the missile is packed. The boxes are known as “lettuce crates” because of their similarity to produce boxes. The Stinger weapon round consists of a missile round, a separable gripstock assembly, and up to three battery coolant units (BCUs). The gripstocks are shipped separately from the missile to enhance security during shipping.
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| Italian Army - FIM-92 Stinger team during an exercise in Crete, Greece July 2018. (Italian Army) |
The "fire-and-forget" Stinger FIM-92 missile employs a passive infrared seeker to home in on its airborne target. A passive infrared seeker emits no radiation that a target aircraft can detect, and, instead, guides on the infrared energy (heat) emitted by the target. Because the Stinger employs a passive homing seeker, it is a "fire-and-forget" weapon that needs no guidance from the operator after firing, unlike other missiles that track the reflection of a designator beam, requiring the operator to maintain a lock on the target. This allows a Stinger operator to take cover, relocate, or engage other targets immediately after firing a Stinger.
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| (Cpl. Adam F. Testagrossa) |
The missile is 1.52 m long and 70 mm in diameter with 10 cm fins. The missile itself weighs 10.1 kg while the missile with launcher weighs approximately 15.2 kg. The Stinger is launched by a small ejection motor that pushes it a safe distance from the operator before engaging the main two-stage solid-fuel sustainer, which accelerates it to a maximum speed of Mach 2.2 (750 m/s).
The warhead is a 3 kg penetrating hit-to-kill warhead type with an impact fuze and a self-destruct timer. The warhead section consists of a fuze assembly and the equivalent of one pound of high explosives encased in a pyrophoric titanium cylinder. The fuze is extremely safe and makes the missile exempt from any hazards of electromagnetic radiation to ordnance conditions.
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| Marines fire a Stinger training missile during a training exercise aboard the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7). (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Jon Sosner/Released) |
Variants
- FIM-92A: first version
- FIM-92C: Stinger RMP: The resistance to interference was increased again by adding more powerful digital computer components.
- FIM-92D: Various modifications were continued with this version in order to increase the resistance to interference.
- FIM-92E: Stinger - RMP Block I: By adding a new rollover sensor and revised control software, the flight behavior was significantly improved. Additionally, the performance against small targets such as drones, cruise missiles and light reconnaissance helicopters was improved.
- FIM-92F: A further improvement of the E-version and the current production version.
- FIM-92G: An unspecified upgrade for the D variant.
- FIM-92H: Indicates a D-variant that has been upgraded to the E standard.
- FIM-92I: Stinger - RMP Block II: This variant was a planned developed based on the E version. The improvements included an imaging infrared seeker head from the AIM-9X. With this modification, the detection distance and the resistance to jamming were to be greatly increased.
- FIM-92J: Block 1 missile upgrade to replace aging components to extend service life an additional 10 years. The warhead is also equipped with a proximity fuse to increase effectiveness against unmanned aerial vehicles.
- ADSM: Air Defence Missile Suppression: A variant with an additional passive radar seeker, this variant can also be used against radar wave transmitters.
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| A Marine embarked aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4), aims a Stinger missile launcher during a strait transit exercise designed to simulate a real world scenario. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Daniel Barker/Released) |
Stinger
- Type: Man-portable surface-to-air missile
- Targets: Aircraft
- Place of origin: United States
- Service history: In service (1981–present)
- Wars: Falklands War, Soviet–Afghan War, Iran–Iraq War, Angolan Civil War, Sri Lankan Civil War, Chadian–Libyan conflict, Tajikistani Civil War, Kargil War, Yugoslav Wars, Invasion of Grenada, Second Chechen War, War in Afghanistan, Iraq War, Syrian Civil War, Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017)
- Designer: General Dynamics
- Unit cost: U.S.$38,000
- Variants: FIM-92A, FIM-92B, FIM-92C, FIM-92D, FIM-92G
Variants
- FIM-92A
- FIM-92B (1983)
- FIM-92C (1987)
- FIM-92D
- FIM-92E (1992)
- FIM-92F (2001)
- FIM-92G
Specifications (FIM-92 Stinger)
- Mass: 33.5 lb (15.19 kg)
- Length: 59.8 in (1.52 m)
- Diameter: 2.76 in (70.1 mm)
- Crew: 1
- Warhead: High explosive annular blast fragmentation
- Warhead weight: 3 kg (6.6 lb)
- Engine: Solid-fuel rocket motor
- Guidance system: Infrared homing
- Launch platform: MANPADS, M6 Linebacker, Multi-Mission Launcher, Eurocopter Tiger, AN/TWQ-1 Avenger, MQ-1 Predator, AH-64 Apache, T-129 ATAK
- Interceptors and Range
- Range: 1 to 8 km
- Altitude: 12,500 ft (3.8 km)
- Sensors: Infrared guidance system
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