FIM-92F Stinger

NOTE: This article is about FIM-92A/FIM-92F Stingers featured in the main ArmA games. For its U.S. military counterpart in ArmA 3's CSLA Iron Curtain Creator DLC, see FIM-92 (CSLA).

The FIM-92F Stinger is a 70 mm surface-to-air missile launcher featured in ArmA: Cold War Assault, ArmA: Armed Assault and ArmA 2.

ArmA: Cold War Assault

«

The Stinger missile, a full-dimensional protection weapon, is the Army's system for short-range air defense that offers ground forces some protection against low-altitude airborne targets such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, and cruise missiles. Weapon Description

»

FIM-92 Stinger
Faction	United States
Type	Surface-to-Air Missile Launcher
Diameter	70 mm
Magazine capacity	1
Variants	None
Games

The FIM-92 Stinger is used exclusively by U.S. military forces in ArmA: Cold War Assault.

Overview

The FIM-92 is a portable, shoulder-launched, surface-to-air missile launcher.

It is designed to launch missiles fitted with high-explosive fragmentation (HE-Frag) warheads, and has an effective range of between 400 and up to a maximum of 1,200 metres. The FIM-92's sight is not magnified and uses a dual-circle reticle for aiming.

The FIM-92 is the standard issue SAM launcher of the U.S. Armed Forces. It is serves as a short-ranged, infrared-guided SAM launcher that is optimised for taking down helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.

Each missile is quite heavy to carry and takes up to six inventory slots. This prevents its user from being able to carry more than one missile at a time, and essentially turns the FIM-92 into a single-shot weapon.

Despite this drawback, the FIM-92 is extremely effective against every aircraft in Cold War Assault, with a single hit usually being more than enough to bring down (if not outright destroy) any helicopter or jet.

---

Munitions

Stinger Missile

The Stinger can only load one type of missile. It occupies six inventory slots:

Damage type	Base damage value
High-Explosive	400

Missiles are always hard launched with an initial velocity of 30 m/s. They take a further three seconds after launch to reach a top speed of 350 m/s in mid-flight. The warhead itself has a blast radius of 2 metres.

---

Trivia

• While the FIM-92 and 9K32 share identical roles in real-life as short-range IR-guided SAMs, they are completely different weapons and are (even the earliest models of the FIM-92) actually able to lock to targets at far greater distances than their in-game counterparts.
  • The drastic reduction in range was most likely done for gameplay "balancing" purposes, as the lack of deployable countermeasures for aircraft in Cold War Assault (as opposed to later titles in the series) would have made helicopters almost impossible to fly against AA-equipped infantry units.

---

Gallery

ArmA: Armed Assault

«

The Stinger is a man-portable, shoulder-fired anti-aircraft guided missile system designed to defeat low-altitude air targets. The system is a fire-and-forget missile with a passive infrared seeker and IFF (Identification-Friend-or-Foe) system. The latest versions have improved range, maneuverability and significant countermeasures immunity. Library Description

»

FIM-92F Stinger
Faction	U.S. Army RACS
Type	Surface-to-Air Missile Launcher
Diameter	70 mm
Magazine capacity	1
Variants	None
Games

The FIM-92F Stinger is used by both U.S. Army and RACS military forces in ArmA: Armed Assault.

Overview

The FIM-92F is an updated model of the older FIM-92A Stinger model. Like its Cold War Assault predecessor, it remains as a man-portable, infrared-guided SAM.

The Armed Assault FIM-92F continues to use 70 mm missiles fitted with HE warheads. Function-wise, it is still a fire-and-forget IR-guided launcher, though its maximum lock-on range has been increased to 2,500 metres instead.

When it comes to performance, the FIM-92F isn't that much different to its SLA counterpart aside from the Stinger missile's HE warhead being slightly more powerful. This is generally unnoticeable in actual gameplay however, as a single missile is always enough to severely damage almost every helicopter or jet upon impact.

---

Munitions

Stinger Missile

The Stinger is only able to load and fire one type of missile. It requires six free inventory slots:

Damage type	Base damage value
High-Explosive	70

Missiles are hard launched with an initial velocity of just 5 m/s. They will continue to gain speed 2.5 seconds after launch until they reach a maximum of 800 m/s in mid-flight. Their warheads have a blast radius of 7 metres.

---

Trivia

• Upon Armed Assault's release, Stinger missiles were initially capable of highly unrealistic flight profiles.
  • Regardless of how hard an aircraft manoeuvred or flew, they would continue making split-second turns to home in onto their targets with pinpoint accuracy. Depending on the trajectory of the aircraft and the user's launch position, it was even possible to see Stingers making 90 degree perpendicular turns one second after being fired.
  • This was partially addressed following Patch 1.02, which greatly reduced the Stinger's manoeuvrability and eliminated its ability to perform physically impossible turns.
• Like most launcher-type weapons, the player is never shown holding the FIM-92F by its grip and incorrectly wields (and reloads) the launcher like an M136.

---

Gallery

ArmA 2

«

The Stinger is a man-portable, shoulder-fired anti-aircraft guided missile system designed to defeat low-altitude air targets. The system is a fire-and-forget missile with a passive infrared seeker and IFF (Identification-Friend-or-Foe) system. The latest versions have improved range, maneuverability and significant countermeasures immunity. Armoury Description

»

FIM-92F Stinger
Faction	USMC U.S. Army British Army NAPA Takistani Rebels ION
Type	Surface-to-Air Missile Launcher
Diameter	70 mm
Magazine capacity	1
Variants	Stinger
Games

The FIM-92F Stinger is used by several BLUFOR and Independent factions in ArmA 2.

Overview

Returning from Armed Assault, the FIM-92F continues to serve as the primary SAM launcher used by both U.S. troops and now, the British military, Chernarussian guerilla fighters, and PMCs as well.

It has several improvements over its predecessor from Armed Assault; namely increased range (it has a maximum lock-on distance of 4,800 metres), better manoeuvrability for the Stinger missile itself, as well as improved resistance to countermeasure flares.

The FIM-92F's utility also extends to mounted weapons fixated onto certain vehicles such as the HMMWV Avenger and M6 Linebacker.

Once more, the FIM-2F remains as the BLUFOR counterpart to the 9K38 Igla SAM used by the Russian Armed Forces. It relies on IR guidance to track targets like the 9K38, is highly resistant to infrared countermeasures, has a similar operating range, and utilises missiles with high-explosive fragmentation (HE-Frag) warheads that occupy up to six inventory slots at once.

However, in terms of actual performance the FIM-92F is slightly inferior to its modern Russian counterpart in two ways. Unlike the 9K38, the FIM-92F's maximum range caps out at 4,800 metres compared to the former's maximum of 5,200 metres. The Stinger missile itself is also less agile, and can be completely outmanoeuvred by nimbler or fast fixed-wing aircraft like the Su-34.

While the FIM-92F cannot match the 9K38 directly in those aspects, it is far superior to the older Russian-made 9K32 in every way and remains as a reliable SAM launcher.

---

Munitions

Stinger Missile

FIM-92Fs can only be loaded with one type of missile. Each missile requires six free inventory slots to carry:

Damage type	Base damage value
High-Explosive	70

Missiles are soft launched with an initial velocity of 40 m/s. The missile's motor will ignite 0.25 seconds after leaving the tube, and will continuing gaining speed over a period of 2 seconds until it reaches a maximum of 750 m/s.

The seeker has a 20% chance of losing lock to countermeasure flares, while the warhead retains a blast radius of 8 metres.

---

Trivia

• A dual-mount version of the FIM-92F is fitted onto a tripod as a static weapon.
• In contrast to its depiction in the British Armed Forces DLC, the real-life British Army does not operate the Stinger or any of its sub-variants.
  • The closest equivalent to the Stinger would be the "Starstreak" SAM designed by Northern Ireland-based Thales Air Defence Ltd. Unlike the FIM-92F, the Starstreak is actually in service with both conventional and special operations units within the British military.
• Curiously, certain scripts for ArmA 3's End Game showcase (added with the Apex expansion) have comments and classnames that reference a munition for what could have been a Stinger-type weapon (Classname: M_NAAL_F).
  • Given the script's comments explicitly referring to the munition's classname as a placeholder however, the Stinger (or its equivalent) was most likely scrapped early in Apex's development.
  • The release of the Tanks DLC would finally add the Stinger, albeit only as a vehicle-mounted weapon in the form of SAAMI missiles used on the AWC Nyx light tank.

---

Gallery

External links

• Wikipedia: FIM-92 Stinger
• Wikipedia: Starstreak

See also

Variants

• Stinger (Static defence counterpart)

Weapons of comparable role and configuration

• 9K32 Strela (Soviet counterpart, ArmA: CWA only)
• 9K38 Igla (Russian Armed Forces counterpart, ArmA 2 only)
• Titan MPRL (NATO/CSAT/AAF counterpart, ArmA 3 only)

United States - Armoury (ArmA: Cold War Assault)
Handguns	92F 9 mm • Glock 17 9 mm • S&W .357
Submachine guns	MP5SD3 9 mm • UZI 9 mm
Carbines	XM-177E2 5.56 mm (XM-177S)
Assault rifles	AUG A1 5.56 mm • M16A2 5.56 mm (M16A2 GL)
Sniper rifles	M21 7.62 mm
Machineguns	M60 7.62 mm
Grenade launchers	MM-1
Launchers	Carl Gustav M2 • FIM-92 Stinger • M72 LAW
Static	M2
(Parenthesis) denote variants.

Weapons of ArmA: Armed Assault
Handguns	M9 9 mm • Makarov 9 mm
Submachine guns	MP5A5 9 mm
Carbines	AKS-74U 5.45 mm • M4A1 5.56 mm (M4A1 GL, M4, M4 GL)
Assault rifles	AK-74 5.45 mm (AK-74 + GP-25, AKS-74 PSO) • G36 series (G36, G36C, G36K) • M16A2 5.56 mm (M16A2 + M203) • M16A4 5.56 mm (M16A4 M203)
Designated marksman rifles	Mk12 SPR 5.56 mm
Sniper rifles	KSVK 12.7 mm • M107 .50 • M24 7.62 mm • SVD Dragunov 7.62 mm
Squad automatic weapons	M249 SAW 5.56 mm
Machine guns	M240 7.62 mm • PKM 7.62 mm
Grenade launchers	6G30
Launchers	9K32 Strela • FIM-92F Stinger • Javelin Launcher • M136 • RPG-7V
Static	AGS-30 • D-30 • DShKM • M2 • M119A1 • Mk. 19 • Searchlight
(Parenthesis) denote variants. Queen's Gambit

U.S. Army - Armoury (ArmA: Armed Assault)
Handguns	M9 9 mm
Submachine guns	MP5A5 9 mm
Carbines	G36 series (G36C, G36K) • M4A1 5.56 mm (M4A1 GL, M4, M4 GL)
Assault rifles	G36 5.56 mm • M16A4 5.56 mm (M16A4 M203)
Designated marksman rifles	Mk12 SPR 5.56 mm
Sniper rifles	M107 .50 • M24 7.62 mm
Squad automatic weapons	M249 SAW 5.56 mm
Machineguns	M240 7.62 mm
Launchers	FIM-92F Stinger • Javelin Launcher • M136
Static	M2 • M119A1 • Mk. 19 • Searchlight
(Parenthesis) denote variants.

RACS - Armoury (ArmA: Armed Assault)
Handguns	M9 9 mm
Submachine guns	MP5A5 9 mm
Carbines	G36 series (G36C, G36K)
Assault rifles	G36 5.56 mm • M16A2 5.56 mm (M16A2 + M203)
Machineguns	M240 7.62 mm
Launchers	FIM-92F Stinger • M136
(Parenthesis) denote variants.

USMC - Armoury (ArmA 2)
Handguns	M1911 .45 • M9 9 mm
Submachine guns	MP5 9 mm
Shotguns	M1014
Carbines	M4A1 5.56 mm (M4A1 M203)
Assault rifles	M16A4 5.56 mm (M16A4 M203)
Designated marksman rifles	DMR 7.62 mm • Mk12 SPR 5.56 mm
Sniper rifles	M107 .50 • M24 7.62 mm (M40A3)
Squad automatic weapons	M249 SAW 5.56 mm
Machineguns	Mk 48 Mod 0 7.62 mm • M240 7.62 mm
Launchers	FGM-148 Javelin • FIM-92F Stinger • M136 • SMAW
Static	M2 • M252 • Mk19 • M119A1 • Searchlight • Stinger • TOW
(Parenthesis) denote variants.

U.S. Army - Armoury (ArmA 2)
Handguns	G17 9 mm • M1911 .45 • M9 9 mm
Submachine guns	PDW 9 mm
Shotguns	M1014
Carbines	Mk16 CQC 5.56 mm
Assault rifles	SCAR series (Mk16, Mk16 EGLM, Mk17, Mk17 EGLM)
Designated marksman rifles	M14 7.62 mm • Mk17 Sniper 7.62 mm
Sniper rifles	M107 .50 • M110 7.62 mm • M24 7.62 mm
Squad automatic weapons	M249 SAW 5.56 mm
Machineguns	Mk 48 Mod 0 7.62 mm • M240 7.62 mm
Grenade launchers	M32 • Mk13
Launchers	FGM-148 Javelin • FIM-92F Stinger • M136 • MAAWS
Static	M2 • M252 • Mk19 • M119A1 • Searchlight • Stinger • TOW
(Parenthesis) denote variants. Operation Arrowhead

British Army - Armoury (ArmA 2)
Handguns	M1911 .45
Assault rifles	L85A2 5.56 mm (L85A2 UGL)
Designated marksman rifles	L86A2 LSW 5.56 mm
Sniper rifles	AS50 12.7 mm • LRR .338
Squad automatic weapons	L110A1 5.56 mm
Machineguns	L7A2 GPMG 7.62 mm
Launchers	FGM-148 Javelin • FIM-92F Stinger • NLAW
Static	L111A1 • L134A1
(Parenthesis) denote variants. British Armed Forces

NAPA - Armoury (ArmA 2)
Carbines	AKS-74U 5.45 mm
Assault rifles	AK-74 5.45 mm (AK-74 GP-25, AKS-74) • AKM 7.62 mm • AKS 7.62 mm
Sniper rifles	CZ 550 9.3 mm • SVD Dragunov 7.62 mm
Squad automatic weapons	RPK-74 5.45 mm
Machineguns	PKM 7.62 mm
Launchers	9K32 Strela-2 • FIM-92F Stinger • RPG-7V
Static	DShKM • 2B14 Podnos • Searchlight • SPG-9 • ZU-23
(Parenthesis) denote variants.

ION Services - Armoury (ArmA 2)
Handguns	G17 9 mm • M9 9 mm
Shotguns	AA-12
Carbines	M4A1 5.56 mm (M4A3) • XM8 Compact 5.56 mm
Assault rifles	FN FAL 7.62 mm • M16A2 M203 5.56 mm • XM8 series (XM8, XM8 M320)
Designated marksmen rifles	XM8 Sharpshooter 5.56 mm
Sniper rifles	AS50 12.7 mm • KSVK 12.7 mm
Squad automatic weapons	XM8 Automatic Rifle 5.56 mm
Machineguns	PKM 7.62 mm
Launchers	FIM-92F Stinger • RPG-18
(Parenthesis) denote variants. Operation Arrowhead | Private Military Company