The Cobra was a Swiss/West Germananti-tank missile designed by the Oerlikon-Contraves and Bölkow GmbH companies. It entered service with the German Army in the late 1950s. It was followed by the Cobra 2000 and Mamba missile systems, which were upgrades that improved the guidance system and performance of the missile. The missile had limited distribution in the United States by Daystrom Inc., a licensed U.S. distributor, chiefly for evaluation purposes (U.S. Marines were interested and evaluated the missile for purchase.)
The Cobra has a cruciform arrangement of four large forward swept wings. The main body is a long cylinder, with an underslung launch booster. Each of the wings has a spoiler on the rear edge which is used to steer the missile. The warhead is at the front of the missile, behind which is the gyro and guidance circuitry which allows the missile to interpret steering instructions from the operator. Behind the guidance mechanism is the sustainer motor, around which is wrapped the guidance wire which plays out behind the missile.
The missile is normally deployed with a single operator controlling and control box linked to up to eight missiles, which can be deployed up to twenty meters away from the operator. On launch the booster fires, projecting the missile up into the air at an angle of 20 degrees. The operator then steers the missile towards the target along his line of sight using a joystick on the control box.
Development
Development of the system began in 1954 as a collaboration between Contraves, Oerlikon and Bölkow. The initials of these companies and the German word for rocket (Rakete) gave the project its name: COBRA. The first successful tests were conducted in 1956, with the West German government placing an initial order for 2,000 missiles in January 1957.
Production of the original missile ended in 1968, with a new version, the Cobra 2000 entering service. The Cobra 2000 extended the range of the missile to 2,000 meters and could be fitted with either an anti-tank warhead or a dual purpose anti-tank/fragmentation warhead.
The Mamba was introduced in 1972 and improved the guidance system, and added a dual thrust motor with an initial low power launch mode, followed by a higher powered sustainer which allows the missile to be gathered more easily during the initial seconds of flight. Initial launch speed is just 35 meters per second, after the sustainer is engaged this increases to 140 meters per second. The missile travels faster, reducing the time of flight to its maximum range in just 17.5 seconds. Also the operator is provided with a x7 power telescope.
Operational history
The weapon was widely used by NATO and allied forces most notably West Germany and Pakistan.It was exported to Argentina, Brazil, Chile (Mamba), Denmark, Greece, Israel, India, Pakistan, Spain and Turkey. Approximately 170,000 of the missiles were produced.
The Pakistani Army was the first to use the Cobra missiles in combat during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 at the Battle of Chawinda, Cobra missiles assisted C squadron of Pakistan's 25th Cavalry brigade in repulsing an attack by the Centurion tanks of the Poona Horse.[1] A Cobra missile also reportedly caused the tank of a squadron commander Major Bhupinder Singh to burst into flames.[2]
Owen, J.I.H. Brassey's Infantry Weapons of the World
Pretty, Ronald T. Jane's Weapon Systems 1977. London: Jane's Yearbooks, 1977. ISBN0-354-00541-3.
February 28, 2023
cobra, missile, confused, with, cobra, rocket, engine, cobra, swiss, west, german, anti, tank, missile, designed, oerlikon, contraves, bölkow, gmbh, companies, entered, service, with, german, army, late, 1950s, followed, cobra, 2000, mamba, missile, systems, w. Not to be confused with COBRA rocket engine The Cobra was a Swiss West German anti tank missile designed by the Oerlikon Contraves and Bolkow GmbH companies It entered service with the German Army in the late 1950s It was followed by the Cobra 2000 and Mamba missile systems which were upgrades that improved the guidance system and performance of the missile The missile had limited distribution in the United States by Daystrom Inc a licensed U S distributor chiefly for evaluation purposes U S Marines were interested and evaluated the missile for purchase CobraCobra missileTypeAnti tank missilePlace of originSwitzerlandWest GermanyService historyIn service1957 1968 Cobra Used bySee Service HistoryWarsSix Day WarIndo Pakistani War of 1971Syrian Civil WarProduction historyDesignerContraves Oerlikon and BolkowDesigned1954No built 170 000VariantsCobra 2000 MambaSpecificationsMass10 kg Cobra 10 3 kg Cobra 2000 11 2 kg Mamba Length950 mm Cobra 952 mm Cobra 2000 995 mm Mamba Diameter100 mm Cobra Cobra 2000 120 mm Mamba Effective firing range200 m to 1 600 m Cobra 400 m to 2 000 m Cobra 2000 300 m to 2 000 m Mamba Detonationmechanism2 7 kg warhead Cobra HEAT 475 mm versus RHA or HEAT fragmentation 350 mm versus RHA Cobra 2000 2 5 kg HEAT or HEAT fragmentation Mamba Maximum speed300 km h Cobra 2000 500 km hGuidancesystemMCLOS system Contents 1 Description 2 Development 3 Operational history 4 Operators 4 1 Former operators 5 See also 6 ReferencesDescription EditThe Cobra has a cruciform arrangement of four large forward swept wings The main body is a long cylinder with an underslung launch booster Each of the wings has a spoiler on the rear edge which is used to steer the missile The warhead is at the front of the missile behind which is the gyro and guidance circuitry which allows the missile to interpret steering instructions from the operator Behind the guidance mechanism is the sustainer motor around which is wrapped the guidance wire which plays out behind the missile The missile is normally deployed with a single operator controlling and control box linked to up to eight missiles which can be deployed up to twenty meters away from the operator On launch the booster fires projecting the missile up into the air at an angle of 20 degrees The operator then steers the missile towards the target along his line of sight using a joystick on the control box Development EditDevelopment of the system began in 1954 as a collaboration between Contraves Oerlikon and Bolkow The initials of these companies and the German word for rocket Rakete gave the project its name COBRA The first successful tests were conducted in 1956 with the West German government placing an initial order for 2 000 missiles in January 1957 Production of the original missile ended in 1968 with a new version the Cobra 2000 entering service The Cobra 2000 extended the range of the missile to 2 000 meters and could be fitted with either an anti tank warhead or a dual purpose anti tank fragmentation warhead The Mamba was introduced in 1972 and improved the guidance system and added a dual thrust motor with an initial low power launch mode followed by a higher powered sustainer which allows the missile to be gathered more easily during the initial seconds of flight Initial launch speed is just 35 meters per second after the sustainer is engaged this increases to 140 meters per second The missile travels faster reducing the time of flight to its maximum range in just 17 5 seconds Also the operator is provided with a x7 power telescope Operational history EditThe weapon was widely used by NATO and allied forces most notably West Germany and Pakistan It was exported to Argentina Brazil Chile Mamba Denmark Greece Israel India Pakistan Spain and Turkey Approximately 170 000 of the missiles were produced The Pakistani Army was the first to use the Cobra missiles in combat during the Indo Pakistani War of 1965 at the Battle of Chawinda Cobra missiles assisted C squadron of Pakistan s 25th Cavalry brigade in repulsing an attack by the Centurion tanks of the Poona Horse 1 A Cobra missile also reportedly caused the tank of a squadron commander Major Bhupinder Singh to burst into flames 2 Operators Edit Map with former Cobra operators in red Former operators Edit Argentina 3 Brazil 3 Chile Denmark 3 Germany 3 Greece 3 Israel 3 Italy 3 India Morocco Pakistan 3 Spain 3 Turkey 3 See also EditWire guided missile 9K11 Malyutka Type 64 MAT 3M6 Shmel 9M14 Malyutka ENTAC MathogoReferences Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cobra missiles Zaloga Steven 1980 The M47 amp M48 Patton Tank London UK Osprey Publishing p 24 ISBN 0850454662 When foot soldiers took on the mighty Pattons of Pak Economic Times Retrieved 30 May 2021 a b c d e f g h i j Pretty 1977 p 35 Owen J I H Brassey s Infantry Weapons of the World Pretty Ronald T Jane s Weapon Systems 1977 London Jane s Yearbooks 1977 ISBN 0 354 00541 3 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Cobra missile amp oldid 1082770430, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
