Starstreak is a British short range Man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) manufactured by Thales Air Defence (formerly Shorts Missile Systems), in Belfast. It is also known as Starstreak HVM (High Velocity Missile). After launch, the missile accelerates to more than Mach 4,making it the fastest short-range surface-to-air missile in the world.[5] It then launches three laser beam riding submunitions, increasing the likelihood of a successful hit on the target. Starstreak has been in service with the British Army since 1997. In 2012 Thales rebranded the system under the ForceSHIELD banner.
Three stages;
- 1. Ejects the missile from the tube, lanyard attached, 10hz spin
- 2. Lanyard pulls a pin out, which ignites the second stage accelerating the missile to mach 3+ in a couple of secconds, 35hz spin.
- 3. Three separate darts are released and glide 6+km to the target at high speed. This is the only stage that is guided. Laser guidance is provided by the launcher.