View source for R-23 (missile)

{{more citations needed|date=December 2022}}
{{Infobox weapon
| name               = R-23 / R-24<br><small>AA-7 Apex</small>
| image              = R-23T missile on MiG-23 underwing pylon.jpg
| image_size         = 300
| caption            = R-23T on a Polish MiG-23
| origin             = [[Soviet Union]]
| type               = Medium air-to-air missile
| is_missile         = yes
| service            = 1974–present
| used_by            = [[Soviet Air Forces]], others
| wars               = [[1982 Lebanon War]]<br>[[Iran–Iraq War]]<br>[[Operation Moduler]]<br>[[Syrian Civil War]]
<!-- Production history -->
| designer           = V. A. Pustyakov
| design_date        =
| manufacturer       = [[Vympel NPO]]
| unit_cost          =
| production_date    =
| number             =
| variants           =
<!-- General specifications -->
| spec_label         = R-23R
| weight             = {{convert|222|kg|abbr=on}}
| length             = {{convert|14|ft|9|in|abbr=on|order=flip}}
| part_length        =
| width              =
| height             =
| diameter           = {{convert|223|mm|abbr=on}}
| filling            = expanding-rod [[high explosive]]
| filling_weight     = {{convert|25|kg|abbr=on}}
| detonation         =
| yield              =
| engine             = solid fuel rocket
| engine_power       =
| vehicle_range      = {{convert|35|km|mi|lk=on}}
| speed              = [[Mach number|Mach]] 3
| guidance           = [[semi-active radar homing]] (R-23R/R-24R)<br>[[infrared homing]] (R-23T/R-24T)
| steering           =
<!-- Missiles only -->
| wingspan           =
| propellant         = {{convert|3|ft|5|in|abbr=on|order=flip}}
| ceiling            =
| altitude           =
| depth              =
| boost              =
| accuracy           =
| launch_platform    = [[MiG-23]]
| transport          =
}}
[[File:MiG-23MLD 2007 G4.jpg|thumb|R-24R missile]]
[[File:MiG-23MLD 2008 G2.jpg|thumb|R-24T missile under a Ukrainian MiG-23MLD]]
[[File:MiG-23 underside.jpg|thumb|MiG-23 armed with two R-24R (long white) and two [[Molniya R-60|R-60]] (short white) missiles]]

The '''Vympel R-23''' ([[NATO reporting name]] '''AA-7 ''Apex''''') is a medium-range [[air-to-air missile]] developed by [[Vympel PTO|Vympel]] in the [[Soviet Union]] for [[fighter aircraft]]. An updated version with greater range, the '''R-24''', replaced it in service. It is comparable to the American [[AIM-7 Sparrow]], both in terms of overall performance as well as role.

==Development==
Design of a new missile to arm the [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23|MiG-23]] fighter started in the mid-1960s under the direction of V.A. Pustyakov's design team. Known as the '''K-23''' during its design, the new weapon was intended for use against bomber-sized targets, with "snap-up" capability to attack targets at higher altitude than the launch aircraft. It originally was intended to have a dual-mode seeker using both [[semi-active radar homing]] (SARH) and [[infrared]] (IR) guidance, but this proved unfeasible, and separate SARH and IR models (''Izdeliye'' (Product) 340 and 360, respectively) were developed instead. Test firings were carried out in [[1967 in aviation|1967]], although the SARH missile's seeker head proved to be extremely problematic{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}.

In 1968 the Soviets acquired an AIM-7 and a Vympel team started copying it as the '''K-25'''{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}. A comparison of the two led to the K-23 entering production, based largely on its better range and countermeasures resistance. The K-25 work ended in 1971. Nevertheless, several features of the Sparrow were later used in the [[Vympel R-27]] design.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

The missile, designated '''R-23''', entered service in January [[1974 in aviation|1974]], the SARH version as the '''R-23R''', the IR version '''R-23T'''.  The R-23R, weighing {{convert|222|kg|abbr=on}}, used a [[monopulse radar]] which gave it better [[Electronic countermeasure|ECM]] resistance compared to the AIM-7E-2.  The R-23T was lighter at {{convert|215|kg|abbr=on}} and used a [[liquid nitrogen]]-cooled [[Infrared homing|infrared seeker]] which required it be locked on to the target before launching, either by the launching aircraft's radar or [[IRST]].  Both versions used the same [[radar fuse]]d warhead, which had a lethal radius of {{convert|8|m|abbr=on}} and could bring down bomber-sized targets.<ref name=Mladenov>Mladenov (2016), ''Third Generation - 'Flogger' Air-to-Air Missiles''</ref> In the West these were known as the AA-7A and AA-7B, respectively. An inert training round, the '''R-23UT''', was also developed.

The airframe featured four [[delta wing]]s arranged cruciform just behind the midpoint of the fuselage, and cropped-delta control surfaces at the extreme rear in-line with the wings. Smaller cropped-triangular surfaces are mounted in-line near the nose: known as "destabilizers", they serve to improve the rudders' efficiency at high angles of attack (the R-60 missile uses the same feature). The only external difference between the two versions was the nose cone, which was an ogive for the SARH seeker, and shorter (by 30&nbsp;cm) and more rounded for the IR version.

The R-23 had a [[probability of kill]] of 0.8-0.9, though it could not hit a target maneuvering at greater than 5 [[g-force|G]]. The launching aircraft was also limited to 4 G when it wished to fire the missile.  The infrared R-23T had a minimum launch range of 4&nbsp;km against a target [[Head-on engagement|head-on]], but only 1.3&nbsp;km against a target in a [[tail-chase engagement]].  Its maximum range also depended on the target's facing in addition to the launcher's altitude: at low altitudes this was 11&nbsp;km against head-on targets and 8–10&nbsp;km against tail-chase targets; at high altitudes it was 11&nbsp;km and 4&nbsp;km respectively{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}.  The radar-guided R-23R had similar minimum launch ranges, but much greater maximum ranges: 14&nbsp;km and 4&nbsp;km against a head-on target at low altitudes, and 25&nbsp;km and 8–10&nbsp;km respectively at high altitudes.<ref name=Mladenov/>

Large numbers of R-23s were built, both by Molniya (ex [[OKB-4]]) as well as Vympel (ex [[OKB-134]]).

Starting in 1975 an improved version of the weapon was developed to arm the MiG-23ML/MLD, entering service as the '''R-24''' in [[1981 in aviation|1981]].  Both SARH and IR variants were heavier at {{convert|243 and 235|kg|abbr=on}} and featured a larger {{convert|35|kg|abbr=on}} warhead with a lethal radius of {{convert|10|m|abbr=on}}.  The warhead also had a more reliable radar fuse, which greatly reduced the minimum range to {{convert|500|m|abbr=on}} for a rear-quarter engagement and {{convert|2.5|km|abbr=on}} for a head-on attack.  Both could also be launched by and against fighter-sized targets maneuvering at 7 G.<ref name=Mladenov/>

The SARH '''R-24R''' featured a RGS-24 seeker head with superior ECM resistance and lock-on-after-launch capability, which avoided interference from the launching aircraft's own radar as the missile passed by its nose.  This feature, along with a larger rocket motor and a lengthening of the missile's inertial phase of flight, gave it a 30% longer range than its predecessor: 17&nbsp;km and 4&nbsp;km against a head-on and tail-chase target at low altitudes, and 35&nbsp;km and 20&nbsp;km respectively at high altitudes.<ref name=Mladenov/><ref name="R-23 range">{{cite web|url=http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/missile/row/aa-7.htm|title=AA-7 APEX R-23 / R-24|access-date=23 December 2014}}</ref> The missile could hit targets at altitudes of {{convert|40 to 25,000|m|abbr=on}} and even glide into helicopters which were hovering.  The IR '''R-24T''' had a much improved TGS-23T4 seeker with greater sensitivity, but still required lock-on before it could be launched.  At low altitudes its maximum range was similar to the R-23, but at high altitudes it could be used against a tail-chase target from 20&nbsp;km and a head-on target from 12&nbsp;km.<ref name=Mladenov/> The missiles were known officially as ''izdeliye'' (Product) 140 and 160 in the USSR, and AA-7C and AA-7D in the west. The R-23/24 was also produced under license in Romania as the '''A-911/A901'''.

The R-24 remained in at least limited Russian service until the withdrawal of the last Russian MiG-23s in [[1997 in aviation|1997]].

==Combat record==
===Syria===
The R-23 was used in the [[Beqaa Valley]] in June 1982, during the [[1982 Lebanon War]]. However, it is hard to judge its success. Soviet and Syrian sources claim that it achieved a few kills while the Israelis deny this. According to Austrian researcher Tom Cooper, Syrian claims include using the R-23/24 against six [[F-16]]As and one [[Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye|E-2]]C, however, the only confirmed kill is against a [[BQM-34]] drone.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acig.info/CMS/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=34&Itemid=47|title=Syrian Air-to-Air Victories since 1948 - www.acig.org|author=Sander Peeters|access-date=23 December 2014}}</ref>

During the [[Syrian civil war]] Syrian [[MiG-23]]s used R-24R missiles to shoot down 2 Jordanian [[Selex ES Falco]]s in the vicinity of [[Daraa]] province on 15–16 June 2017.<ref name="warisboring.com">{{Cite web|url=https://warisboring.com/drones-are-dropping-like-flies-from-the-sky-over-syria/|title=Drones Are Dropping Like Flies From the Sky Over Syria|date=June 22, 2017}}</ref>

===Iraq===
Many R-23 / R-24 kills are reported in the war between Iran and Iraq when Iraqi MiG-23s fired them at Iranian F-14As, F-4D/Es and F-5Es.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://medium.com/war-is-boring/iraq-did-all-it-could-to-kill-hashem-all-e-agha-irans-top-f-14-pilot-bbd4c6a48313|title=Iraq Did All It Could to Kill Hashem All-e-Agha, Iran's Top F-14 Pilot|first=War Is|last=Boring|date=22 March 2017|website=medium.com|access-date=11 April 2018}}</ref>

===Angola===
On 27 September [[1987 in aviation|1987]], during [[Operation Modular|Operation Moduler]], an attempt was mounted to intercept two [[Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces#Air and Air Defense Force (DAAFAR)|Cuban FAR]] [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23|MiG-23MLs]]. Captain Arthur Piercy's [[Dassault Mirage F1#Mirage F1AZ and F1CZ|F1CZ]] was damaged by either an R-24 or [[Molniya R-60|R-60]] AAM fired head-on by Major Alberto Ley Rivas. The explosion destroyed the aircraft's [[Drogue parachute|drag chute]] and damaged the hydraulics. Piercy was able to recover to AFB Rundu, but the aircraft overshot the runway. The impact with the rough terrain caused Piercy's [[ejection seat]] to fire, but he failed to separate from the seat and suffered major spinal injuries.<ref name="vlamgat">{{cite book |title=Vlamgat: The Story of the Mirage F1 in the South African Air Force |last=Lord |first=Dick |author-link=Dick Lord |year=2000 |publisher=Covos-Day |isbn=0-620-24116-0}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.geocities.com/urrib2000/ArticPiercy.html |title=Piloto SAAF derribado por MiG-23 cubano |access-date=2008-12-20|archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20140907054816/http%3A//www%2Egeocities%2Ecom/urrib2000/ArticPiercy%2Ehtml |archive-date= September 7, 2014 }}</ref>

On 5 April 1985 at 14:30 GMT, two SAAF C-130B Hercules took off to resupply UNITA troops when they were intercepted on their return by a MiG-23ML flown by Cuban pilot Major Eduardo Gonzalez. An R-24R SARH missile was launched first and exploded prematurely against a hill or mountain. This was followed by a R-24T IR missile launched from 5 kilometres away which tracked well but passed between the engines 1 and 2 without exploding. Both Hercules were able to return to base intact.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reid |first=Lionel |title=The MiG Diaries: Fighter pilot memoirs & accounts of Cuban, SAAF and Angolan air combat in Southern African skies |last2=Gonzalez |first2=Eduardo |date=May 4, 2023 |publisher=Independently published |isbn=979-8394092459 |pages=324–326 |language=English}}</ref>

===Soviet Union===
On 28 September 1988, two Soviet MiG-23MLDs piloted by Vladmir Astakhov and Boris Gavrilov shot down two Iranian [[Bell AH-1 SuperCobra|AH-1J Cobras]] that had trespassed into Afghan airspace using R-23s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sw.propwashgang.org/shootdown_list.html|title=Aircraft Downed During the Cold War and Thereafter|access-date=23 December 2014}}</ref>

==Specifications==
* '''Length''': (R-23R, R-24R) 4.5 m (14&nbsp;ft 9 in); (R-23T, R-24T) 4.2 m (13&nbsp;ft 9 in)
* '''Wingspan''': 1 m (3&nbsp;ft 5 in)
* '''Diameter''': 223&nbsp;mm (8.8&nbsp;in)
* '''Launch weight''': (R-23R, R-24R) 222&nbsp;kg (489&nbsp;lb), 243&nbsp;kg (536&nbsp;lb); (R-23T, R-24T) 215&nbsp;kg (474&nbsp;lb), 235&nbsp;kg (518&nbsp;lb)
* '''Speed''': [[Mach number|Mach 3]]
* '''Range''': (R-23R) 35&nbsp;km (22&nbsp;mi); (R-24R) 50&nbsp;km (31&nbsp;mi); (R-23T, R-24T) 15&nbsp;km (9.4&nbsp;mi)
* '''Guidance''': (R-23R, R-24R) [[SARH]]; (R-23T, R-24T), infrared-homing
* '''Warhead''': expanding-rod high explosive with [[proximity fuze]], 25&nbsp;kg (55&nbsp;lb) (R-23) or 35&nbsp;kg (77&nbsp;lb) (R-24)

==Operators==
===Current operators===
* {{ANG}}<ref name="armstrade.sipri.org"/>
* {{LBY}}<ref>{{harvnb|Cooper|2018|p=60}}</ref>
* {{PRK}}
* {{SYR}}<ref>{{harvnb|Cooper|2018|p=66}}</ref>

===Former operators===
* {{ALG}}<ref name="armstrade.sipri.org">{{Cite web|url=http://armstrade.sipri.org/armstrade/page/trade_register.php|title=Trade Registers|website=armstrade.sipri.org|access-date=2016-01-15|archive-date=2011-05-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513073842/http://armstrade.sipri.org/armstrade/page/trade_register.php|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* {{BLR}}
* {{BUL}}
* {{CUB}}
* {{TCH}}
* {{CZE}}<ref>{{harvnb|Gordon|Komissarov|2019|page=372}}</ref>
* {{DDR}}<ref>{{harvnb|Gordon|Komissarov|2019|page=446}}</ref>
* {{HUN}}
* {{IND}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bharat-rakshak.com/IAF/Galleries/Weapons/AAMs/R23/|title=A (Indian) MiG-23MF launching an R23|website=www.bharat-rakshak.com|access-date=11 April 2020}}</ref>
* {{flag|Iraq|1963}}<ref>{{harvnb|Cooper|2018|p=23}}</ref>
* {{POL}}<ref>{{harvnb|Gordon|Komissarov|2019|page=489}}</ref>
* {{ROU}}
* {{RUS}}
* {{USSR}}<ref>{{harvnb|Gordon|Komissarov|2019|page=223}}</ref>
* {{UKR}}

==References==
;Citations
{{reflist}}
;Bibliography
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last1=Cooper |first1=Tom |title=MiG-23 Flogger in the Middle East, Mikoyan i Gurevich MiG-23 in Service in Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Libya and Syria, 1973-2018 |date=2018 |publisher=Helion & Company Publishing |location=Warwick |isbn=978-1-912-390328}}
* {{cite book|last=Gordon|first=Yefim|title=Soviet/Russian Aircraft Weapons Since World War Two|year=2004|location=Hinckley, England|publisher=Midland Publishing|isbn=1-85780-188-1}}
* {{cite book |last1=Gordon |first1=Yefim |last2=Komissarov |first2=Dmitriy |title=Mikoyan MiG-23 & MiG-27 |date=2019 |publisher=Crécy Publishing |location=Manchester |isbn=978-1-91080-931-0}}
* {{cite book|last=Mladenov|first=Alexander|title=Soviet Cold War Fighters|year=2016|location=United Kingdom|publisher=Fonthill Media|isbn=9781781554968}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category-inline|Vympel R-23/R-24}}

{{Russian and Soviet Aircraft Ordnance}}
{{Russian and Soviet missiles|AAM}}
{{Russian and Soviet military designation sequences}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:R023}}
[[Category:Air-to-air missiles of the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Cold War air-to-air missiles of the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Vympel NPO products]]
[[Category:Military equipment introduced in the 1970s]]