FAB with UMPC-P: limit parameters glider
Let's return to the topic of aerial bombs with unified planning and correction modules (UMPK), or more precisely, to increasing the range of use and safety for the carrier of this weaponsSince the majority of aerial bombs used with the UMPK are high-explosive, we will henceforth refer to them as “FABs with UMPK”.
In the previous article FAB with UMPK-R: Inexpensive, Long-Range, High-Precision Munition we considered the possibility of equipping the FAB with the UMPK with one or several solid-fuel rocket boosters borrowed from the composition of some serial products, for example, unguided aviation missiles (NAR), with or without modification, as well as the feasibility of using the said FAB with UMPK-R from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of the Grom type, of course, if the said UAVs are accepted for supply to the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (AF RF) and are mass-produced in the foreseeable future.
Today we will talk about an alternative way to increase the range of FAB with UMPK, without using any engines, as well as increasing the mass of their simultaneous use.
"Condor"
In September 2022, the author published the material Project Condor: death from heaven, within the framework of which it was proposed to create the most inexpensive long-range kamikaze UAVs, or, more precisely, long-range guided gliding munitions (LRGM).
In particular, the UPB-BD "Condor" proposed to completely abandon any engines, to use a glider with high aerodynamic quality, to manufacture it from polymers using injection molding machines or extrusion, with an aluminum internal frame, and to carry out guidance using signals from satellite navigation systems.
It was planned to use warheads of 122-mm projectiles of the Grad multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS), high-explosive fragmentation (HE) as ammunition for the UPB-BD "Condor" artillery 152 mm caliber shells or any similar serial products.
Proposed appearance of the UPB-BD "Condor" with a rotating wing
The production of UPB-BD "Condor" was supposed to be carried out in huge batches - approximately 150-300 thousand items per year, which would require the creation of a plant with 20-40 robotic conveyor lines, including extrusion machines, machining sections, assembly and much more.
To use the UPB-BD "Condor", it was planned to use modified Il-76 type transport aircraft equipped with racks for transportation and dropping.
Fixed-wing version of the UPB-BD "Condor"
At the time of publication of the above article, the Russian Armed Forces did not have ammunition of this type - episodic use of FAB with UMPK in the Ukrainian theater of military operations began in November-December 2022.
By the way, using standard ammunition with a little modification has become the norm for FPV-dronesFor example, UAVs "Privet-82" and "Privet-120" from KB "Oko" They use 82mm and 120mm mortar mines as warheads, respectively.
Even now, despite the creation and active use of FAB with UMPK, in the author's opinion, gliding kamikaze UAVs like UPB-BD "Kondor" can be both relevant and effective. By prioritizing manufacturing technology, they can be produced in hundreds of thousands per year.
However, let's return to the FAB with UMPK - what can the UPB-BD "Condor" concept give to this weapon?
The answer is a greater planning range and mass application.
If you look at the FAB with the UMPK, you can see that the wingspan, which provides the gliding range, is relatively small, especially considering the dimensions and weight of the delivered aerial bombs.
Most likely, this is due to the limitations imposed by the carriers - tactical aircraft. It is enough to remove this limitation and we can consider the option of increasing the FAB airframe with UMPK.
But how to remove it?
Use other types of carriers for the use of FAB with UMPK, for example, transport aircraft, as in the concept of using UPB-BD "Condor", however, let's take everything in order.
Limit Parameter Planner
For the UPB-BD "Kondor" we considered two options - with a rotary and with a fixed wing: accordingly, in the variant with a rotary wing, the UPB-BD "Kondor" were located in parallel, in rows, and in the variant with a fixed wing - in series. For the FAB with UMPK, the glider can also potentially be made in the form of a rotary or fixed wing.
In the variant with a rotary wing, the glider's wingspan can be larger, which means the gliding range can be higher, in addition, in this case, the FAB with UMPK-P can be used not only from transport aircraft, but also from some other types of carriers, which is discussed below. The disadvantages include increased complexity of the design, the risk of failure of the deployment mechanism or loss of ammunition when the wing is unfolded.
In the fixed-wing version, the risk of failure is minimized, but the wingspan will be limited by the width of the cargo compartment of the carrier aircraft. The Il-76 has a cargo compartment width of 3,4 meters, while the existing UMPK has a wingspan of 2,5 meters. Is it worth the effort to increase the wings by less than 1 meter?
More likely no than yes, however, combined options can also be implemented, when the wing planes will initially be slightly open to simplify their further opening and reduce the load on the opening mechanism.
In general, there are many options here, for example, the use of an opening X-shaped wing, as in the concept depicted in the material: When size matters: UMPC on FAB of increased power.
Or it could be a biplane, or a sesquiplane, with the wings placed above and below the FAB with UMPK, as in the image at the beginning of this article. The disadvantage of the "biplane" scheme is the high "profile drag" caused by the influence of two pairs of wings on each other, while the lift increases by only 20%, but the strength of the product structure increases.
In any case, the optimal aerodynamic design of a glider with limiting parameters can only be selected based on the results of strength and aerodynamic calculations.
There is another question: how will a larger glider affect the visibility of the FAB with the UMPK?
Of course, visibility will increase, and the gliding speed will also decrease. On the other hand, radar stations (RLS), whose operation is based on the Doppler effect, see low-speed targets worse. If indirect wings are used, their opening angle can be selected in such a way as to minimize the reflection of radiation in the direction of the radar, reorienting it to the sides according to the canons of stealth technologies.
There is also a “matryoshka” option, when a glider with maximum parameters is placed on top of the existing UMPK.
That is, after the FAB is dropped, the UMPK-P uses the capabilities provided by the maximum-parameter glider, which is just a frame with wings and an opening mechanism (if necessary). Control is carried out by the standard control bodies of the existing UMPK.
At a certain distance, for example, several dozen kilometers from the target, the outer glider is dropped / shot off, and the UMPK opens its standard wings. This somewhat complicates the design and increases the total weight of the product, but at the final stage of the flight, the enemy will be dealing with conventional, fairly high-speed and small-sized FABs with UMPK.
The advantage in this case is also that there is no need to rework the existing UMPK; only the external glider of the limit parameters is developed.
Now let's return to potential carriers.
Transport and more
As we have already mentioned above, transport aircraft of the Il-76 family are considered as the main carrier of the FAB with UMPK-P.
Il-76-MD-90A
Why exactly them?
In fact, we don’t really have an alternative – other transport aircraft with comparable or greater carrying capacity are not produced in Russia.
It is important to understand that transport aircraft using FAB with UMPK-P are not considered as a replacement for tactical aircraft.
If tactical aircraft mainly carry out strikes with FAB with UMPK on targets located on the line of combat contact (LBC) and adjacent territories, then transport aircraft using FAB with UMPK-P must work on objects located in the operational depth of enemy territory.
In fact, there is nothing special about using transport aircraft as carriers of certain weapons; on the contrary, this is a promising direction that has not yet been developed in our country; we have already talked about this in our materials. The feasibility of using strategic, long-range and transport aircraft as carriers of FAB-3000 with UMPC и Wartime missile-carrying bomber: the question is not the plane, but its contents.
Is it worth putting transport planes at risk?
If the range of the FAB drop from the UMPK-P is 150-200 kilometers, then there will be no risk - the enemy simply does not have anti-aircraft missile systems (SAM) capable of operating at such a range, unless, of course, someone decides to send them deep into enemy territory in order to reach some very attractive target.
In addition, the Russian industry has now reached the production of 6 Il-76-MD-90A units per year; no other aircraft of comparable size and load capacity are produced at such a rate. According to open data, it is planned to reach a production capacity of up to 8 units per year or more.
From a distance of 150 kilometers, transport aircraft will be able to deliver massive FAB strikes with UMPK on targets located deep in enemy territory
According to open data, in order to ensure the maximum range of the FAB with UMPK, the Su-34 fighter-bomber accelerates to high subsonic speed and launches it from an altitude of about 11-12 kilometers.
Carrier transport aircraft will most likely use FAB with UMPK-P differently, approaching the drop point, turning in the direction "away from the target" while simultaneously gaining altitude at an echelon of 11 to 12 kilometers, i.e. reaching the "ceiling". The drop will be carried out by gravity - self-descent of FAB with UMPK-P from the guide racks.
That is, the drop altitude can be comparable to that of tactical aircraft, but the drop speed will initially be almost zero, which should be compensated by the greater lift and aerodynamic advantages of the FAB with UMPK-P. By the way, an additional streamlined "cover" for the FAB can be made on extrusion machines, increasing its aerodynamic perfection.
The dimensions of the cargo compartment of the Il-76 family of aircraft will potentially allow them to carry two to three dozen FABs with UMPK-P, and possibly even more – this will depend on the caliber of the aerial bombs and the configuration of the airframe’s maximum parameters.
There is another version of the FAB carrier with UMPK-P - these are long-range supersonic bomber-missile carriers Tu-22M3.
At present, little is heard about the use of these machines; either their resources are being preserved, or their main weapon – the supersonic cruise missiles (KR) Kh-22/Kh-32 – is being preserved.
Potentially, one Tu-22M3 aircraft can carry four FABs with UMPK-P on twin underwing pylons, dropping them, like the Su-34, from a height of 11-12 kilometers at the maximum permissible speed determined by the capabilities of the UMPK-P. Of course, such a scheme of use will put forward increased requirements for the strength of the UMPK-P design, in addition, the Tu-22M3 will only be able to hang FABs with UMPK-P in the version with folding wings.
The mass of even two FAB-500 with UMPK-P will be significantly less than the mass of one Kh-22/Kh-32 cruise missile.
Accordingly, if transport aircraft provide mass production, then the Tu-22M3 will provide the delivery of FAB with UMPK-P to the maximum range, approaching that of some types of cruise missiles.
From a distance of 200 kilometers, FAB with UMPK-P can potentially reach even Kyiv
Conclusions
Of course, as in the case of UMPK-R, the UMPK-P considered in this article is only a concept that requires a lot of calculations, as well as access to classified information to confirm its feasibility and feasibility.
Theoretically, it is possible to increase the range of FAB with UMPK using a glider with extreme parameters, but in practice everything may be much more complicated. At the same time, we must take an example from the enemy, who shows much greater breadth of views and flexibility in matters of testing various concepts of weapons and tactics of their use.
What are the numerous hybrids of Soviet/Russian and Western weapons worth? If the author had tried writing a couple of years ago about the integration of the Buk air defense system and Western air-to-air missiles or Western cruise missiles and Su-24, Su-27, MiG-29 aircraft, what would have happened? "the author doesn't understand anything about this... the protocols are incompatible... different design schools...".
It is necessary to separately mention the use of transport aircraft as carriers - we definitely cannot avoid this if we want the Russian Air Force to have the ability to covertly and simultaneously use a large number of high-precision weapons, be it FAB with UMPK-P, cruise or aeroballistic missiles.
Currently, FABs with UMPKs cause significant inconvenience to the enemy at LBS, and if their range increases, it will be possible to aim to solve other problems with the help of FABs.
For example, to simultaneously “take out” all substations in Kharkov or all territorial assembly centers (TACs) and police departments from four transport aircraft, disrupting busification activities, or to simultaneously cover any large industrial enterprise of the enemy working for the defense industry, with the total destruction of its production capacities.
Well, and finally, “not just aerial bombs”, because we don’t have an unlimited number of them either, so the UPB-BD “Condor” concept also has every right to exist as the most inexpensive, high-precision method of delivering ammunition deep into enemy territory.
Information