Turkey’s indigenous “Sungur” man-portable air defense system (MANPADS) is all set to enter service with the military.
“Roketsan’s SUNGUR air defense system is ready to enter inventory after successful shot tests,” Ismail Demir, Turkey’s President of Defense Industries (SSB) tweeted today.
According to Turkish media, the Sungur utilizes Titanium warhead and a long-range radar. It uses Soviet cold-launch technology, in which the missile is expelled by gas and the rocket engine ignited after the missile clears the silo. The same method is used in Russian S-300 and S-400 air defense systems.
Turkey has not hinted at the Sungur’s development in the past. Details pretaining to the new air defense system is shrouded in mystery.
The SUNGUR low level air defense system and its MANPADS version, dubbed PORSAV will replace the Stinger MANPADS in the inventory of the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) starting the second half of 2020. As a further development, It is expected to be integrated with Land, Air and Sea platforms in the inventory of the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) in near future.The missile in the system features a two-stage (booster and sustainer) solid propellant rocket motors and features Aselsan’s cooled Imaging Infrared (IIR) type seeker head. The PORSAV is expected to be effective up to the altitude of 4km and a range of 6km+. The missile is believed to be armed with a 3kg high-explosive warhead loaded with tungsten ball projectiles.
The SUNGUR/PORSAV has been undergoing development since 2013. According to Turkish Minsitry of National Defence (MoND)’s 2016 Activity Report in order to meet Turkish Land Forces Command (TLFC)’s requirement Portable Air Defence Missile System (PHSFS) Project Contract was signed between the MoND and Roketsan on September 10, 2013, according to Defence Turkey.
A short video shared by SSB on July 1, 2020, also included sections from live firing test that conducted on June 17, 2020 against fixed target lifted some 20m from ground level and simulating static air target. During the test at least two live PORSAV missiles fired against fixed target.
The SUNGUR self-propelled surface-to-air missile system provides short-range air defence protection for ground units against cruise missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, low-flying fixed-wing aircraft, and helicopters. It features a 360-degree rotating gyro-stabilized (allowing the missile pod to maintain aiming direction regardless of vehicle motion) air defence turret mounted atop a BMC’s VURAN 4×4 Armoured Vehicle.
The electrically controlled turret has two PORSAV missile launcher pods, each capable of firing 2 fire-and-forget IIR guided missiles in rapid succession and fitted with a Star SAFIRE 380 HLD FLIR System for target detection and track purpose. The SUNGUR is believed to be able communicate with TLFC’s Air Defence Early Warning and Command Control System (HERIKKS/Skywatcher), which permits external radar tracks and messages to be passed to the fire unit to alert and cue the gunner.
The SUNGUR Low Level Air Defence System and PORSAV National MANPADS is expected to enter service with the TAF in late 2020. As pointed out by SSB DEMIR, the SUNGUR/PORSAV
