S-200 SAM – the long arm of the Soviet air defense
The first Soviet SA-75 Dvina SAM system, which had the ability to be relatively quickly redeployed, had a range of 29 km and an altitude reach of up to 22 km. As the family of "seventy-fifth" systems was improved, the firing range and ceiling increased, but even the latest S-75M3/M4 Volkhov SAM systems with rocket 5Ya23 (V-759) could hit targets at a distance of up to 56 km, and the ceiling reached 30 km.
The S-75 air defense missile systems were the most widely used anti-aircraft missile systems in the military Defense the USSR and the most combat-ready systems in the world. However, even before the launch of the first modification of the Dvina into serial production, it was clear to specialists and the leadership of the Ministry of Defense that in order to create defense lines on the probable flight paths of enemy aircraft, aviation to the most populated and industrially developed areas of the country it is necessary to have a mobile anti-aircraft system with a greater range and altitude of target interception. In addition, the characteristics of the "seventy-five" were not always sufficient to reliably counter supersonic high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft, long-range radar patrol aircraft and active jammers.
Development and composition of the S-200 air defense missile system
Government decrees adopted in 1957 issued a task to develop a new long-range SAM system, and designated the lead organizations. KB-1 GKRE was responsible for creating the system as a whole and the ground-based radio-technical means of the fire complex. OKB-200 GKAT was engaged in creating the anti-aircraft guided missile, initially designated V-2. A. A. Raspletin and P. D. Grushin were appointed general designers of the system as a whole and the missile, respectively.
The preliminary design for the V-860 (5V21) missile was released by OKB-2 in late December 1959. Particular attention during the design was paid to taking special measures to protect the missile's structural elements from aerodynamic heating that occurs during a long (more than a minute) flight at hypersonic speed. For this purpose, the areas of the body that are most heated during flight were covered with heat shielding. To reduce costs and facilitate mass production, the anti-aircraft missile was mainly constructed using readily available materials that are widely used in aircraft manufacturing. Particular attention was paid to manufacturability, for which the most highly productive manufacturing processes were used: hot and cold stamping, large-scale thin-walled casting of magnesium alloy parts, precision casting, and various types of welding.
The developments obtained during the creation and operation of the SAMs used in the S-25 and S-75 SAM systems were used in the design of the new long-range liquid-propellant missile. The jet engine with a turbopump system for feeding fuel components into the combustion chamber operated on components that had already become traditional for domestic first-generation missiles. The oxidizer was nitric acid with the addition of nitrogen tetroxide ("melange"), and the fuel was triethylaminexylidine (TG-02, "tonka"). The liquid-propellant rocket engine was made according to an "open" scheme: the combustion products of the gas generator, which ensured the operation of the turbopump unit, were emitted into the atmosphere. The initial launch of the turbopump unit was provided by a pyrostarter.
Although the operation of rockets fueled with a caustic, flammable oxidizer and toxic fuel required careful adherence to safety measures and the use of special respiratory and skin protection, the liquid jet engine made it possible to obtain a high specific impulse of thrust and, as a result, the required characteristics in terms of range and altitude. For the launch and acceleration of the rocket at the initial stage, solid-fuel boosters were used, operating on the TFA-53KD mixed fuel and separated after its use.
Since the first version of the 5V21 SAM was inferior in range to the solid-fuel missile used in the American MIM-14 Nike Hercules SAM, the developers were instructed to increase the range of destruction of supersonic targets with the Il-28 EPR to 110-120 km, and subsonic targets to 160-180 km. The solution was found in using the "passive" section of the missile's movement and maintaining a controlled flight after the end of its cruise engine.
The rocket launch is inclined, with a constant elevation angle, from a launcher guided by azimuth.
The two-stage anti-aircraft missile is designed according to a normal aerodynamic scheme, with four triangular wings of high aspect ratio. The first stage consists of four solid-fuel boosters located between the wings. Flight on the cruise section was provided by a liquid two-component rocket engine 5D67 with a pump system for feeding fuel components to the engine. The cruise stage is composed of a number of sections in which a semi-active radar homing head, onboard equipment units, a high-explosive fragmentation warhead with a safety-actuating mechanism, tanks with fuel components, a liquid rocket engine, and missile rudder control units are located.
Layout diagram of the 5V21 SAM
The launch weight of the missile was 7100 kg, the diameter of the cruise stage was 860 mm, and the length was 10 mm. The warhead weighing over 600 kg was equipped with 200 kg of TNT-hexogen alloy and contained about 90 ready-made striking elements weighing 37-3 g, which were waste from ball bearing production. When the warhead is detonated by a radio fuse, the angle of fragmentation is 5°. A number of sources say that ready-made striking elements have an effective range of up to 120 m, but for high-speed small-sized targets this figure is significantly less. There were also versions of missiles with a nuclear "special" warhead, designed to destroy group targets. Unlike the S-100 and S-75 air defense systems, the S-125 missiles, equipped with a “special” warhead, could not be used against ground (surface) targets.
The 5V21 missile was automatically guided to the echo signal reflected from the target, received by the homing head and the semi-active radio fuse associated with it. Control commands were generated in accordance with homing using the proportional approach method or with homing using the constant lead angle method between the missile velocity vector and the "missile-target" sighting line. The missile's onboard radio equipment also included a control transponder.
After reviewing the draft design, a system combining a fire complex, missiles and a technical position was adopted for further design. The fire complex included:
- Command post (CP), which controls the combat operations of the fire complex;
- Situation verification radar (SVR);
- Digital computer;
- Shooting channels.
The firing channel of the fire complex allowed, without reloading the launchers, to carry out sequential firing at three air targets with simultaneous homing of two missiles on each target and included a 5N62 (RPC) target illumination radar, a launch position with six launchers, power supply facilities, and auxiliary equipment. The illumination radar consisted of an antenna post and an equipment cabin.
Target illumination radar 5N62V in position
The target illumination radar, emitting in the 4,5 cm range, operated in the coherent continuous radiation mode and had a narrow spectrum of the probing signal, due to which high noise immunity and a large detection range were ensured. Simplicity of execution and reliability of the semi-active homing head of the missile were achieved. But there was also a drawback: in this mode, the range to the target was not determined, which is necessary for determining the moment of missile launch, as well as for constructing the optimal trajectory of missile guidance to the target. Therefore, the RPC could also implement the phase-code modulation mode, which somewhat expands the signal spectrum, but ensures range measurement. Capture of air targets in the monochromatic radiation mode was possible at a range of more than 400 km, and the transition to automatic target tracking by the homing head of the missile was carried out at a distance of up to 300 km. In case of powerful active interference, the missile is capable of homing in on the radiation source, while the radar may not illuminate the target, and the range is set manually. In cases where the target with a small EPR is at a significant distance from the RPC and the power of the reflected signal is not enough to capture the target by the missile in position, a launch with capture on the trajectory is provided.
To track the SAM along its entire flight path, the Raketa-RPC communication line was used, consisting of an onboard low-power transmitter and a receiver with a wide-angle antenna on the RPC. The S-200 SAM hardware included the Plamya digital computer, designed to exchange information with command posts at various levels and automatically determine the launch moment.
The 5P72 launcher is a complex automated machine that provides pre-launch preparation, preliminary targeting and missile launch.
Launcher with anti-aircraft missile
The launcher is equipped with an electric drive for azimuth guidance, an electrohydraulic drive for the lifting mechanism that lifts the swinging part with the missile, and an electrohydraulic drive for the electric air release mechanism. The launcher is controlled by commands from the launch preparation cabin. After the missile is launched, the launcher is automatically docked to one of the two 5U24 loading vehicles, which has a loaded SAM, and loading is performed automatically.
The launch site consisted of a K-3 cabin, designed to prepare and control the launch of missiles, six 5P72 launchers, each of which was equipped with two 5U24 automated loading machines moving along specially laid short rail tracks, and a power supply system.
Loading the 5P72 launcher using the 5Yu24 transport and loading vehicle
The loading machines provided fast, without lengthy mutual alignment with the loading means, supply of heavy missiles to the launchers, too cumbersome for manual reloading, as on the S-75 SAM. Replenishment of the spent ammunition with the delivery of missiles to the launcher from the technical division was carried out using the 5T83 transport and handling machine. In a favorable tactical situation, it was possible to transfer the missiles from the launcher to the 5Yu24 loading machine.
SAM 5V21 on TZM 5T83
The 5Zh51 launch site, which was a group of launch pads for launchers and loading vehicles with a launch preparation cabin, a diesel power plant and access roads providing for the delivery of missiles and loading of the launchers, was developed at the Leningrad Design Bureau of Special Machine Building.
The position, erected in compliance with all standards, was a very fundamental structure and occupied a considerable territory. It is worth saying that the price for a long firing range, height reach and good interference immunity was the high cost and complexity of the system as a whole.
To accommodate part of the combat assets of the radio-technical battery, capital concrete bunkers with earthen fill shelters were erected, which made it possible to protect the hardware and personnel (except for antennas) from missile fragments, small and medium-caliber bombs, and aircraft cannon shells. Separate protected rooms equipped with sealed doors, life support and air purification systems housed the duty room of the radio-technical battery combat shift, a recreation room, a classroom, a shelter, a toilet, a vestibule, and a shower for disinfecting personnel.
Technical position 5Zh61 was an integral part of the S-200A anti-aircraft missile system and was intended for storing anti-aircraft missiles, preparing them for combat use and replenishing the SAMs of the launch sites. The TP included several dozen machines and devices that ensured all work during the operation of the missiles. When changing the combat position, the elements dismantled from the RPC were transported on four two-axle low-deck trailers. The lower container of the antenna post was transported directly on its base after attaching the removable wheel runs and removing the support side frames. Towing was carried out by a KrAZ-214 (KrAZ-255) all-terrain vehicle, whose body was loaded to increase stability and traction.
The command post of the fire complex included a K-9 target distribution cabin, a power supply system consisting of three 5E97 diesel-electric stations and a distribution and conversion device - a K-21 cabin. The division command post was interfaced with a higher command post to receive target designation and transmit reports on its work. The K-9 cabin equipment could interact with higher-level automated control systems.
The mobile fire complex 5Zh53 S-200A SAM was quite bulky and consisted of a command post, firing channels and a power supply system. The firing channel included a target illumination radar and a launch position with six launchers and 12 loading machines.
The S-200 Angara SAM system was adopted into service in 1967. This system used the V-860 (5V21) or V-860P (5V21A) SAMs with a firing range of 160 km.
Long-range radar detection systems attached to the S-200 air defense missile system
For timely detection of an air enemy and issuance of target designation, the regiment or brigade initially used the meter-range standby radars: P-14F and 44Zh6. Later, 5N84A - which had an instrumental range of more than 500 km, as well as centimeter and decimeter stations P-35 and P-37 with a detection range of up to 350-390 km.
Radar 5N84A
Meter-range surveillance radars with bulky antenna systems were very visible on the ground, their deployment and dismantling took a lot of time, and transportation over rough terrain was practically impossible.
Precise measurement of coordinates with the possibility of issuing automated target designation was carried out using PRV-11, PRV-13 and PRV-17 radio altimeters.
Transmitting and receiving cabin of the radio altimeter PRV-13
In the 1970s and 1980s, air defense units that included S-200 divisions were equipped with P-80, 5N87, and 64Zh6 radar systems.
Improvement of the S-200 air defense missile system
The main areas of improvement of the "two hundred" were improving noise immunity, increasing range and reach in height, as well as increasing reliability while reducing the labor intensity of maintenance.
The S-200V Vega modification, accepted into service in 1970, introduced a modernized target channel, improved K-9M command post equipment, and used the V-860PV (5V21P) SAM with a firing range of up to 180 km. In parallel with the increase in the engagement zone, the minimum altitude of fired targets was reduced to 300 m.
A modernized version of the Vega, known as the S-200VM, appeared in 1975. In addition to a number of improvements to the hardware of the command post and the K-3M cabin, the introduction of new tractors, improved launchers and auxiliary equipment, the system was equipped with a unified V-880 (5V28) SAM with a high-explosive fragmentation warhead, and it was also possible to use the V-880N (5V28N) missile, marked with yellow stripes with a "special" warhead. At the same time, the launch weight of the missile exceeded 8000 kg, which is approximately equal to the takeoff weight of the MiG-21 fighter. The far boundary of the engagement zone was increased to 240 km (for a patrolling AWACS aircraft - up to 255 km), the target altitude was 0,3-40 km.
In the second half of the 1970s, the S-300PT multi-channel anti-aircraft missile system with solid-fuel SAMs stored in sealed transport and launch containers and not requiring regular refueling with fuel and oxidizer, as well as maintenance after duty at the launch site, was put into service with the Air Defense Forces of the country, as was the case with the 5V21 and 5V28 SAMs used in the "two hundred". However, despite all the advantages of the towed S-300PT system and the "self-propelled" S-1980PS adopted into service in the early 300s, they were primarily intended to replace the single-channel medium-range S-75 SAMs and could not compete in terms of range with the much longer-range S-200VM complex. In our country, solid-fuel SAMs of anti-aircraft target systems were able to approach the range indicators of the “two-hundredth” family of complexes on the S-300PM SAM, and surpass them on the S-400 SAM, which was accepted into service in 2007.
In order to extend the service life of the "two hundred", improve service and operational and combat characteristics, in 1981 work began on creating a deeply modernized modification of the S-200D "Dubna", the production of which began in the second half of the 1980s. However, few such systems were built from scratch; according to available information, some S-200VMs were upgraded to the S-200D level.
The main difference from previous versions was the introduction of a new RPC, partially transferred to a modern element base for that time, as well as the use of the V-880M (5V28M) SAM or “special” V-880MN, which had a range of more than 300 km.
Evaluation of the S-200 air defense missile system
According to American data, the number of "target channels" of the S-200 built in the USSR was approaching a hundred. But by the time the mass deployment of the S-200 on Soviet territory began, the American programs to create high-speed high-altitude bombers and cruise missiles advertised in the late 1950s were closed due to their high cost and obvious vulnerability to modern air defense systems. Taking into account the experience of the war in Southeast Asia and a series of conflicts in the Middle East, even the B-52 heavy bombers in the United States were modified for operations at low altitudes. Of the real specific targets for the "two hundred", which were less vulnerable to the S-75, only the truly high-speed and high-altitude reconnaissance SR-71 aircraft remained, as well as long-range radar patrol aircraft, electronic reconnaissance aircraft and active jammers operating from a greater distance, but within radar visibility. All of the listed objects were not mass targets, and two or three S-200 divisions in the anti-aircraft missile defense unit should have been quite sufficient to solve combat missions both in peacetime and in wartime.
In order to increase the combat stability of the S-200 long-range anti-aircraft missile systems, it was deemed appropriate to combine them under a single command with the S-75 medium-range and S-125 low-altitude air defense systems, forming mixed-composition anti-aircraft missile brigades that included a command post with 2-3 S-200 firing channels and several S-75 and S-125 anti-aircraft missile divisions. This organizational scheme with a relatively small number of S-200 launchers in a brigade made it possible to deploy long-range anti-aircraft missile systems in a larger number of areas of the country.
An important advantage of the "two hundred" was the use of missile homing. Even without fully realizing its range capabilities, the S-200 SAM system complemented the S-75 and S-125 systems with radio command guidance, significantly complicating the enemy's electronic warfare and high-altitude reconnaissance. The S-200's advantages over the aforementioned systems were especially evident when countering aircraft that set up active interference, which were almost an ideal target for homing missiles.
The presence of S-200 SAM systems in border areas forced NATO aviation to be very careful about the inviolability of Soviet air borders during the Cold War. In most cases, the escort of the ROC "two hundred" of the American P-3 Orion base patrol aircraft or the RC-135 Rivet Joint long-range electronic reconnaissance aircraft was enough for their crews to quickly move their aircraft out of the affected area after receiving a signal about radiation.
The deployment of the S-200 SAM system was appropriate given the adoption by the US Air Force of the AGM-69A SRAM air-to-surface guided missile with a launch range of 160 km. This missile was intended to combat medium- and short-range air defense systems, as well as to strike other pre-detected targets and objects. The missile could be carried by B-52G and B-52H bombers, each carrying 20 missiles (eight in drum-type launchers, 12 on underwing pylons), FB-111s equipped with six missiles, and later B-1Bs, which carried up to 32 missiles. When moving positions forward from the defended object, the S-200 SAM system could destroy aircraft carrying SRAM missiles even before they were launched, which made it possible to expect an increase in the survivability of the Soviet air defense system as a whole.
At the same time, all S-200 family SAMs had a number of significant shortcomings. First of all, this was due to the use of missiles fueled with toxic fuel and an oxidizer based on nitrogen oxides. Uncontrolled contact of fuel components inevitably led to an explosion and fire. In addition, when refueling, draining fuel and servicing anti-aircraft missiles, personnel were forced to use insulating gas masks and protective suits. Failure to comply with safety precautions led to severe poisoning, damage to the respiratory system and skin. Those who served in technical divisions will forever remember the dense clouds of brown-orange-greenish fog that rose during the refueling of SAMs.
Although all modifications of the S-200 SAM system were considered mobile, the relocation of individual elements and the complex as a whole was a very labor-intensive and slow process, and in fact the "two hundred" was "semi-stationary". According to the regulations, the deployment time from the march was 24 hours. But this was possible in favorable climatic conditions and required heroic efforts of personnel.
Trailers with target illumination radar elements prepared for transportation
Very expensive complexes were deployed in well-equipped engineering positions, with capital structures and shelters, the construction of which, of course, required significant labor costs and material resources.
For a long period of time, a strict secrecy regime was maintained regarding the S-200 SAM system. Although the West had known about the deployment of this type of system since the early 1970s, which was visible on satellite images and detected by electronic intelligence, the idea of the S-200 was very superficial. At first, the Americans mistook the 5V11 missile (product "400"), intended for the Dal multi-channel anti-aircraft missile system, which was not adopted for service, created in OKB-301 under the leadership of S. A. Lavochkin, for the SAMs used in the "XNUMX".
In many ways, the Dal SAM system was ahead of its time. The death of S. A. Lavochkin had the most negative impact on the fate of this anti-aircraft system. In our country, a SAM system with comparable characteristics in terms of range and the number of simultaneously fired targets appeared only in the late 1980s.
The 5V11 missiles were displayed at parades, being a source of pride for ordinary Soviet citizens and a source of disinformation and a "scarecrow" for Western intelligence. The "400" products were first carried during a military parade on Red Square on November 7, 1963, that is, immediately after work on the anti-aircraft system was curtailed.
Transport and loading vehicles with 5V11 missiles on parade in Moscow
The commentary provided by the announcers stated that these missiles were “high-speed unmanned interceptors of aerospace targets" Since 1964, the Dal missile system has been demonstrated several times at military parades in the city on the Neva.
In the S-200V/VM/D variants, the "two hundred" surpassed the "Dal" in the launch range of SAMs. Due to a more rational layout, with a comparable launch weight, the length of the S-200 SAM system was significantly shorter. This not only facilitated the transportation and loading of missiles, but also increased the operational overload. As is known, during combat use of the S-75 SAM, the missiles of which were very thin and long, sometimes broke in an attempt to intercept an intensively maneuvering target. In addition, although quite limited, the S-200 complex of all modifications had the ability to maneuver on the ground, which the "Dal" system was completely deprived of. However, the S-200 SAM system had a single-channel target and had a much simpler guidance system.
For the first time for his fellow citizens, the presence of the S-200 long-range air defense system in the USSR was reported on September 9, 1983 by the Chief of the General Staff, Marshal N. V. Ogarkov. This happened at one of the press conferences held shortly after the incident with the Korean Boeing 747, shot down on the night of September 1, 1983, when it was stated that this aircraft could have been hit a little earlier over Kamchatka, where there were “anti-aircraft missiles, called SAM-5 in the US, with a range of over 200 kilometers».
Although the S-200 air defense missile systems were not as intensively involved in armed conflicts as the S-75 and S-125 systems, the “two hundred” were also exported, went to some former Soviet republics after the collapse of the USSR, and have an interesting history exploitation and were used in combat. But we will talk about this in the next publication.
To be continued ...
Information