Yugoslavia - AM-500 air dropped bottom mine

[nuk92]

DB Selector

DB3K

Baseline

2090 - Mine [Mk52 1000lb]

Hypothetical

Yes

Name

Mine [AM-500] -- Yugoslavia

Length (m)

-

Width/Span (m)

-

Diameter (m)

-

Weight (kg)

572kg

Range (nm)

-

Target Altitude / Depth (ft)

-459ft - -16ft

Launch Altitude / Depth (ft)

197ft - 5000ft

Warhead

AM-500 [300kg TAH] (450 DP)

Targets

Surface Vessel, Submarine

CEP (m)

No response

Sensors

-

Weapon Codes

Mine - Magnetic Fuze, Simple Magnetic, Mine - Passive Acoustic Fuze, Narrow-Band (Advanced), Mine - Delay Counter, Mine - Arming Delay, Mine - Target Discrimination / Identification, Is Retarded Munition

Comments

This weapon is hypothetical, tests were underway when Yugoslavia collapsed. It is described as a non-contact bottom mine. Yugoslavia was developing 4 new types of naval mines at the time having developed a few types in the prior decades. One of them could be called a copy of the Italian Manta mine. All previous Yugoslav bottom mines had both magnetic and acoustic fuses. The acoustic fuse is described as in "passive mode" which then enables the magnetic fuse. During the tests 12 mines were dropped of which 10 "active" and 2 "passive"... you can't find much more information. Also TAH was used in newer sea mines which were produced by Yugoslavia from the 80s on. TAH = 1.5 TNT equivalent. This also could be at least partially a joint development between Yugoslavia and Romania since Romania had a very similar bottom mine that could be deployed by the IAR-93B.

Since the 1980s Yugoslavia had experience in building non directional and directional hydrophones with electronic circuits which would activate seamines only when specific acoustic signatures are detected. Yugoslavia is known to have recorded acoustic signatures of foreign vessels which entered the Adriatic Sea. SAM-M.80:

https://www.paluba.info/smf/index.php?topic=2035.msg52408#msg52408

Sources

Serbian source: www.paluba.info/smf/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=20.0;attach=768407;image https://imgur.com/hkIoZJ7 https://www.mycity-military.com/imgs4/157102_59514354_Orao%20Yu-44.jpg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2PKUP0iXnE

The source for the weight is this (av. mina - aviation mine thus the name Aviation Mine AM-500) https://i.imgur.com/mULggYY.jpg

TAH post by lovac: http://www.paluba.info/smf/index.php?topic=7990.60

[nuk92]

The standard J-22 Orao II loadout would be finished with this. The few modified Oraos which can carry ECM Pods will be covered in a seperate request.

[nuk92]

updated, removed as loadout for in service Oraos, added to hypothetical Yugoslav 1992+ Oraos