Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/1064315
Meanwhile in Poland... Poland has been a Spike user since 29 December 2003, when the techni- cal tests were finished after Rafael won the tendering procedure of July 2002. The supply included 264 launchers and 2,675 missiles. A contract for another 1,000 missiles to be supplied by 2020 was signed in 2017 – the official version was that it had to do with the program of equipping the Rosomak IFVs, but the actual reason is different. The Polish Armed Forces have already launched ~600 missiles, and the ordered batch is to fill the gaps and make it possible to keep on training system opera- tors. So in fact, there has been no increase in the number of missiles or launchers. While the users of the Israeli weapon are very satisfied with it, there are actually some issues underlying the program, all of which result from acting in a chaotic manner, no systemic approach, and contenting oneself with mediocrity, all features inherent to the Polish way of dealing with virtually anything. First, given a choice between three types of fuel, it was decided to go for the cheapest option, which tends to generate a big trail of smoke some- times in the spring and fall. The manufacturer knew about the problem, so did military, but as the most feature-rich guidance and training pro- gram solutions were chosen, it was necessary to look for some ways to cut costs – which affected, among others, the selected type of fuel. The currently ordered missiles come with different types of fuel. Second, the Mesko final assembly plant has some problems with deliv- ering the expected quality. The defect rate for the Spikes imported from Israel ranged from 1.5 to 3.5%. At present, in the case of some batches manufactured at ZM Mesko, this rate reaches even over 10%. Right now, there is a fierce argument between the army and the manufacturer. The former argues that the defectiveness of the equipment is the manufac- turer's fault, but the latter points to poor level of training of the operators or to the operators having health problems(!). This would be really funny (especially in the context of professional operators) if it didn't concern missiles worth $150,000 apiece, which don't fly as they should. And it's probably a poor consolation that there were similar problems with the missiles assembled in Spain. The third strange thing was the fact that there was no service and logis- tics center for Poland – works aiming to create one have just started. This means that for a decade, 264 launchers and 2,675 missiles mainte- nance have been handled by three people, with only one of them with a license for all maintenance levels. As a result, the average waiting time for an inspection was over half a year, with at least 1/3 of systems always "waiting in line" to be maintained. The fourth thing is the matter of shooting at training grounds – since thermal blankets are a treasure to training ground commands, targets would be sometimes heated up by burning car tires (which was pointless from the point of view of training operators to combat targets of a small ΔT) or would not be heated at all, which combined with daytime and "IR crossover" occurring at certain times of the year brought a range of bo- nus attractions to missile operators... What's more, the missiles would often be fired at standard tank profiles, which are almost 2D, without an upper surface. In consequence, the image of such a target in the camera of a diving Spike looked like an upright razor. Even if the missiles had correct trajectories, it was no wonder that they missed targets of such a background temperature. It is a fact, however, that Polis soldiers have contributed greatly to the Spike program, and our domestic patents and solutions have been rapid- ly implemented by the Israeli Rafael. Firstly, it was the Polish who offered and helped with the development of a fully manual guidance mode. Sec- ondly, our studies have made it possible to combat targets with water or the sun in the background. Thirdly, it has been our soldiers' persistence that has proven that the Spike can be transported and landed with sol- diers, despite the fact that MOD and the command of the missile and LAND FORCES