RUSIAN MISSILE R-23 R APEX

The AA-7 Apex (other names: R-23 and R-24) is an air-to-air guided missile of Soviet production from the Cold War period. The first prototypes of the missile were created in the 1960s, and the missile entered the Soviet aviation line in 1974. Its length in the R-23R version was 450 cm with a diameter of 22.3 centimeters. The mass of the missile ready to fire was about 220 kg, while the weight of the warhead was up to 25 kg. However, the effective range of the shot did not exceed 35 kilometers. Work on the missile marked in the NATO code as AA-7 Apex started in the 1960s and was aimed at creating a medium-range air-to-air missile intended primarily to fight enemy bombers. The aim was also to obtain the possibility of combating targets flying higher, lower than the carrier plane. It was also planned to create one warhead with a combined guidance system. Ultimately, however, in the early 1970s, two versions of the missile were introduced to the line: R-23T (thermally guided) and R-23R (semi-active radar). Generally, it is assumed that the AA-7 Apex missile was the Soviet equivalent of the AIM-7 Sparrow missile. Missiles of this type were used in combat, among others, during the Iraqi-Iranian war (1980-1988), but also in the course of operations in Lebanon in 1982. The AA-7 Apex missile was operated in countries such as India, Romania, Syria and the Soviet Union.