Hi! I fly in DCS competitively and I deal with this a lot so here's my understanding. You need to "Notch" or beam against the missile itself if it's an Active

Hi! I fly in DCS competitively and I deal with this a lot so here's my understanding. You need to "Notch" or beam against the missile itself if it's an Active Radar Missile or Fox-3. The jet's radar isn't good enough for terminal guidance. However if the firing jet is close enough it can maintain a pulse STT which cannot be notched and the missile will stay in Semi-Active mode and follow your beam to the target. However in a Beyond Visual Range fight usually you can't stay nose on to the enemy since he will be firing his own missiles. Most missiles will be fired in Active mode (Fire and Forget) followed by evasive maneuvering once they enter their terminal phase and "Go Active." TWS launched active missiles will usually go active within some pre-calculated distance based on target size. Newer missiles probably use better guidance but they are all pretty freaking secret. Computer vision would make for some seriously effective datalink guided missiles. But the kind of computers you can stick in the front of a 335lb solid rocket propelled tube that pulls 10-20Gs is very limited. Mostly just: "Go after jet shaped hot thing" or "Go after metal thing that moves fast." We haven't really seen that level of air combat in real life though. Typically you would only see fights like that in a symmetric situation. (EG: India vs. Pakistan, China vs. Russia) Most jets shot down by AAMRAMS from the US are 3rd generation fighters sold to second world countries. Typically we require visual ID and warnings in rules of engagement making BVR impossible.