An
air-to-air rocket or
air interception rocket is an unguided projectile fired from aircraft to engage other flying targets. They were used briefly in
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
to engage enemy observation balloons and in and after
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
to engage enemy bombers. Fighters were too maneuverable to be effectively engaged with rockets.
RocketA rocket or rocket vehicle is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust by the reaction of the rocket to the ejection of a jet of fast moving fluid exhaust from a rocket engine. Chemical rockets create their exhaust by the combustion of rocket propellant...
s were used in
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
to engage
observation balloonObservation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
s and
airshipAn airship or dirigible is a lighter-than-air aircraft that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust...
s. Success rates were low and the rockets were dangerous to handle in the early fighters built from highly flammable materials.
An
air-to-air rocket or
air interception rocket is an unguided projectile fired from aircraft to engage other flying targets. They were used briefly in
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
to engage enemy observation balloons and in and after
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
to engage enemy bombers. Fighters were too maneuverable to be effectively engaged with rockets.
World War I
RocketA rocket or rocket vehicle is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust by the reaction of the rocket to the ejection of a jet of fast moving fluid exhaust from a rocket engine. Chemical rockets create their exhaust by the combustion of rocket propellant...
s were used in
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
to engage
observation balloonObservation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
s and
airshipAn airship or dirigible is a lighter-than-air aircraft that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust...
s. Success rates were low and the rockets were dangerous to handle in the early fighters built from highly flammable materials. By the end of the war they were replaced by the incendiary Pomeroy bullets. One of the notable rockets from World War I was the
Le Prieur rocketLe Prieur rockets were a type of incendiary air-to-air rockets used in World War I against observation balloons and airships. They were invented by the French Lieutenant Yves Le Prieur and were first used in the Battle of Verdun on 1916. Due to great inaccuracy their range was limited to about 115 m...
which had a range of about 115 m (125 yd), limited by inaccuracy. It was first used in the
Battle of VerdunThe Battle of Verdun was one of the critical battles during World War I on the Western Front. It was fought between the German and French armies, from 21 February to 18 December 1916, on hilly terrain north of the city of Verdun-sur-Meuse in north-eastern France...
.
Interwar period
The first known example of a successful attack of air-to-air rockets on another plane took place on August 20, 1939 during the
Battle of Khalkhin GolThe Battle of Khalkhyn Gol was the decisive engagement of the undeclared Soviet-Japanese Border War, or Japanese-Soviet War that was fought between the Soviet Union, Mongolia and the Empire of Japan in 1939. The battle was named after the river Khalkhyn Gol passing through the battlefield...
. A group of Soviet
Polikarpov I-16The Polikarpov I-16 was a Soviet fighter aircraft of revolutionary design; it was the world's first cantilever-winged monoplane fighter with retractable landing gear. The I-16 was introduced in the mid-1930s and formed the backbone of the Soviet Air Force at the beginning of World War II...
fighters under command of Captain N. Zvonaryev succefully destroyed a few Japanese warplanes by launching of
RS-82 rocketRS-82 and RS-132 were unguided rockets used by Soviet military aircraft in World War II.-Development:...
s. Soviet RS-82 rockets were mounted on special pylons under wings of Soviet fighters.
World War II
Air-to-air rockets were utilized in
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
to engage
bomberA bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, primarily by dropping bombs on them.-Classifications of bombers:...
s because cannon fire proved ineffective at high closing speeds. On top of that, getting in the range to fire one's guns also meant getting in the range of the bomber's
tail gunA tail gunner or rear gunner is a crewman on a military aircraft who functions as a gunner defending against enemy fighter attacks from the rear, or "tail", of the plane. The tail gunner operates a flexible machine gun emplacement on either the top or tail end of the aircraft with a generally...
. The German
R4M rocketThe R4M rocket, nicknamed the Hurricane due to its distinctive smoke trail when fired, was the first practical anti-aircraft rocket. It was developed by the German Luftwaffe during World War II and used briefly before the end of the war...
was the first practical rocket. It was highly successful, but came too late to win the war for Germany. After experiencing the effectiveness of the German rockets, both the Soviet Union and the United States started developing their own.
The invention of effective
air-to-air missileAn air-to-air missile is a guided missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying another aircraft. AAMs are typically powered by one or more rocket motors, usually solid fuelled but sometimes liquid fuelled...
s spelled the end for their unguided counterparts in the 1950s. The capability of steering during the flight trajectory significantly increased the hit percentage over rockets. The United States built one last air-to-air rocket, the
AIR-2 GenieThe Douglas Genie was an unguided air-to-air rocket with a 1.5kt W25 nuclear warhead. It was deployed by the United States Air Force and the Canadian Forces Air Command during the Cold War...
. It used a nuclear warhead with a blast radius of 300m to compensate for its inaccuracy.
List of air-to-air rockets by country
France
- Le Prieur rocket
Le Prieur rockets were a type of incendiary air-to-air rockets used in World War I against observation balloons and airships. They were invented by the French Lieutenant Yves Le Prieur and were first used in the Battle of Verdun on 1916. Due to great inaccuracy their range was limited to about 115 m...
Germany
- Nebelwerfer
The Nebelwerfer was a World War II German series of weapons designed to deliver chemical weapons. They were initially developed by and assigned to the Wehrmacht's Chemical Troops . They were primarily intended to deliver poison gas and smoke shells, although a high-explosive shell was developed...
derived Werfer-Granate 21 (Wfr. Gr. 21)
- R4M rocket
The R4M rocket, nicknamed the Hurricane due to its distinctive smoke trail when fired, was the first practical anti-aircraft rocket. It was developed by the German Luftwaffe during World War II and used briefly before the end of the war...
USA
- Fin-Folding Aerial Rocket (FFAR)
- AIR-2 Genie
The Douglas Genie was an unguided air-to-air rocket with a 1.5kt W25 nuclear warhead. It was deployed by the United States Air Force and the Canadian Forces Air Command during the Cold War...
USSR
- RS-82
RS-82 and RS-132 were unguided rockets used by Soviet military aircraft in World War II.-Development:...
and RS-132