ANTI-TANK MISSILES (ATGW)

HOT

 

HOT 3 launcher on a Eurocopter Tiger of the German Army

HOT (Haut subsonique Optiquement Téléguidé - High Subsonic Optical Guided) is an anti-tank missile system developed by Euromissile (now MBDA), a joint venture of France and Germany, and produced since 1978.

 

It has become one of the most successful missiles of its class, used by no fewer than a dozen countries worldwide and has been validated in actual combat.

HOT uses the same principles for its operation as its American counterpart, the TOW missile: tube-launched, optically tracked, and guided through a trailing wire. The missile system is also commonly mounted on vehicles, and a version exists that can be launched from combat helicopters.

The HOT-2, introduced in 1986, features a larger warhead and a maximum range of 4 kilometres with speeds of up to 900 kmh.

The newest version, HOT-3, has a tandem shaped-charge HEAT warhead as well as improved anti-jamming capabilities. In 1997, HOT-3 was selected to be the base-line and low-cost missile armament of the Tiger attack helicopter for France and Germany at least until the PARS 3 LR becomes available.
 

HOT Specifications
Type SACLOS wire-guided Anti-tank missile
Manufacturer Euromissile
Weight 24kg
Warhead 6.5kg tandem shaped charge can penetrate up to 1300mm armour
Length 1.3m
Diameter 0.15m
Wingspan 0.31m
Performance Range 75m – 4km, guidance wire guided SACLOS