- This article is about the Argentine/Middle Eastern Condor/Badr missile, for the US Navy's air-to-surface missile see AGM-53 Condor.
The Argentine Condor missile was a multinational space research program started in the 1970s. It involved significant contract work being performed by German company MBB (now a group within Daimler AG), but later developed into a ballistic missiles program.
Condor I[]
The original Condor[1] had little military capability but helped build expertise later used for the Alacrán missile program.[2] The Alacrán program developed a functional short-range ballistic missile.
Condor II[]
During and after the 1982 Falklands War (Spanish language: Guerra de las Malvinas ) France (which supplied missiles) placed an arms embargo on Argentina, causing the Argentine Air Force, under the command of Ernesto Crespo, to develop its own medium-range missile in the Condor II[3] program. This program was undertaken in close collaboration with Egypt, and then Iraq[4] (the Iraqi version was called BADR-2000),[5] however it was discontinued in the early 1990s by President Carlos Menem because of political pressure from the United States.[6] The missile was developed in Falda del Carmen, Córdoba Province. The designer and creator of the missile was MIT-trained engineer Miguel Vicente Guerrero.
In 1997, the Argentine Air Force reported to the US Congress that it still possessed 2 of the missiles that were to be destroyed.[citation needed]
Condor III[]
There have been reports of a Condor III program. The Condor III would have an increased range to some 1,500 km (930 mi) with the same payload as the Condor II.[citation needed]
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ "Condor 1". Astronautix.com. http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/condor1.htm. Retrieved 2013-10-14.
- ↑ "Alacran". Astronautix.com. http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/alacran.htm. Retrieved 2013-10-14.
- ↑ "Condor 2". Astronautix.com. http://www.astronautix.com/lvs/condor2.htm. Retrieved 2013-10-14.
- ↑ "Argentina | Country Profiles". NTI. http://www.nti.org/country-profiles/argentina/delivery-systems/. Retrieved 2013-10-14.
- ↑ "Badr-2000 - Iraq Special Weapons". Fas.org. http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/missile/badr-2000.htm. Retrieved 2013-10-14.
- ↑ "Condor Missile Programme (Hansard, 5 March 1996)". Hansard.millbanksystems.com. 1996-03-05. http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/written_answers/1996/mar/05/condor-missile-programme. Retrieved 2013-10-14.
External links[]
- (Spanish) Condor 1-AIII
The original article can be found at Condor (Argentine missile) and the edit history here.