Soviet RAT-52 aerial torpedo shown under one of the two outboard pylons on the Il-28T naval bomber.
Source: www.airwar.ru -
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The RAT-52 is an early Cold War era rocket powered aerial torpedo of Soviet origin. It was developed for anti-shipping use by jet-powered naval bomber aircraft. A rocket powered torpedo was developed in the later stages of World War 2, but was never adopted. The rocket powered torpedo has a very fast underwater speed, but is powered only for a short duration of time. The high speed was envisioned to reduce the time in which the target can take evasive maneuvers, increasing chances to hit.
The RAT-52 is a rather unique torpedo. This is mainly since it is powered by a rocket that is ignited and burns underwater. A magnesium alloy body was used to reduce the weight. As an aviation torpedo it has four large tailfins to stabilize its glide path upon release. Before entering the water a retarding parachute is employed. after
The RAT-52 is fitted with a 240 kg warhead and a contact fuse. This warhead was determined to be effective against a frigate sized target. Multiple torpedoes can be used to engage larger targets. Soviet calculations estimate that 8 hits are able to sink a 50.000 t aircraft carrier. The RAT-52 reaches speeds of 58 to 68 knots underwater depending on release speed. The range is rather short, being only 500 to 600 meters. This requires dropping the RAT-52 torpedo in a very small engagement zone near the target. Combined with the high speed of the jet-powered naval bomber this requires special radar and optical sights.
The RAT-52 was envisioned to include passive acoustic homing. Testing proved that the noise of the jet engine causes too much interference and the homing system was removed from the design. Gyroscopes are used to keep the torpedo on the predetermined heading. Heading and moment of release are determined by the PSBN-M radar sight and the OPB-6SR optical sight on the launch aircraft. Tests in 1953 showed a 17 to 38% chance to hit a non-maneuvering target with a single weapon. Chances to hit increased when dropping larger numbers of torpedoes. The optimal launch altitude was found to be around 4 km, resulting in a good mix of minimizing time to hit and maximizing stand-off release range for the launch aircraft.
The World War 2 era Tu-2T propeller aircraft was the testbed and briefly was the first (semi-)operational platform for the RAT-52. The main platform for the RAT-52 would be the jet powered Il-28, able to achieve twice the speed. The regular Il-28 bomber aircraft could carry one RAT-52 in the bomb bay. The Il-28T torpedo bomber added two underwing pylons for a total of three weapons. The Tu-14T had two underwing pylons while the Tu-16T bomber could carry four RAT-52 in its bomb bay.
The RAT-52 was one of the most important post World War 2 aerial torpedoes in Soviet use. It complemented a vast arsenal of less capable World War 2 era aerial torpedoes. With the advent of radar guided anti-aircraft guns an aerial torpedo with standoff range and high release speed was very important. The anti-shipping role later taken over by anti-ship missiles. The RAT-52 was officially removed from Soviet navy service in 1983. The RAT-52 was also acquired by China, which produced the domestic Yu-2 after the Sino-Soviet split.
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