Missile bands

I posted a quite in-depth explanation of AIM-9L colours here some time back. I'll see if I can find it again.

Found it!

Having answered Rob's comment about grey Jaguars, I have been a little concerned about the instructions in some decal sheets that I have seen. Each one of them seems to represent the Sidewinder missiles in use on RAF aircraft as coloured being white. This is not true and the decal manufacturers really should have known better.

If you will indulge me, I'll provide a little information on UK Sidewinder colours.

The original missiles used by the RAF and Royal Navy were AIM-9Bs and AIM-9Gs, which *were* white. The introduction of the AIM-9L and the procurement of components from BGT rather than Raytheon, led to all operational 9Ls being painted BS381c/627 Light Aircraft Grey. However the situation is a little more complex as there are various build standards of missile which have different colours.

_Operational Missile_

The Sidewinder is not a round - it is an assembly. It can be broken down into its components, some of which have different colours. Have a look at

which shows the missile quite well. I'm not sure why it is sat beside an A-10, IIRC the 9Ls were used by the US Navy.

The front section is called the GCS or Guidance Control System. As you can see it is a dark grey. The GCS is not painted and this is the colour of the metal, which can have a metallic sheen to it. There is a BS381c/412 Dark Brown band (signifying a low explosive hazard) at the rear of the GCS.

The next section is the AOTD or Airborne Optical Target Detector (some authorities use "Active" rather than "Airborne"). In the photograph, this is the component which is hidden under the dayglo wrap. There is a very good reason for this. The side of the component has eight round windows

which may emit laser light. The AOTD is also unpainted, although the grey of the metal is somewhat lighter than that of the GCS and there is no metallic sheen. There are no explosives in this component and so there are no hazard bands.

The next section is the Warhead. This is painted Light Aircraft Grey, with a BS381c/3576 Golden Yellow band to signify high explosive.

The remainder of the missile body is made up of the Rocket Motor. Again Light Aircraft Grey but this time with a BS381c/412 Dark Brown hazard band.

The fins are attached to the GCS and are bare metal, with a similar colour to the AOTD.

The wings are at the rear of the missile. They are Light Aircraft Grey. However, unlike the US missile in the photo, the leading edges of the wings are a very shiny dark metallic grey. Originally the wings were designed to be used for one flight only and then discarded. The RAF cannot afford this policy and so, as the surface of the wing is made from an ablative material, the leading edges are coated with a material known as "Belzona", to prevent damage from the airflow. As shown in the first picture, the rollerons on the trailing edge of the wings are bare metal and can be quite shiny.

_Acquisition Missile_

The acquisition missile or "Ackwee" is used for training. It is simply an inert body tube with an operational GCS fitted on the front. There are no wings or fins fitted, as there are no mountings for them. The body tube is painted BS381c/113 Deep Saxe Blue.

_Dummy Missile_

The Dummy missile is totally inert and is used for displays. Next time you see an RAF aircraft at an airshow which is carrying Sidewinders, they will be dummy missiles. The missile is painted overall Light Aircraft Grey. The GCS may be a real one which has been expended (in which case it will be its normal colour) or it may simply be a shape (in which case it will be LAG). All the bands on this missile will be BS381c/105 Oxford Blue, to signify inert.

The Dummy missile may or may not be certified for flight. If it is not, it will have "NOT FOR FLIGHT" liberally plastered all over it, especially on the wings. The wings of a dummy missile which *is* cleared for flight will have been taken from operational stock.

_Safety Devices_

The Sidewinder has a number of safety devices which are fitted when on the ground. The first is the "noddy cap", which fits over the GCS. This is yellow plastic, but they get very dirty indeed, so a yellow/grey mix would suffice. It *should* have a Remove Before Flight flag attached to the front but the noddy caps get pretty battered (linies tend to play football with them while the jet is away) and the flag is usually the first thing to go.

The second safety device is a wrap-around cover over the AOTD. As shown in the first photo, they are dayglo orange and are usually kept quite clean. These also have an RBF flag attached.

The final safety device is the arming key. This is a red T-shaped key on the underside of the warhead, also fitted with a RBF flag.

The LAU launcher also has an arming key with an RBF flag. Look at the second picture and you will see a device on the side of the LAU. The arming key fits here.

These safety devices are fitted at *all* times while the missile is loaded to an aircraft on the ground.

Acqui missiles have the noddy cap and LAU key while dummy missiles may only have the LAU key.

I hope this short article has been of some use. The link below is to a colour chart showing BS381c colours.

Enzo - many thanks. I am putting the finishing touches to an FGR2 Phantom for someone tomorrow and typically hit a last minute snag.

Appreciated

Ian