The successful launch of a massive missile strike on IG facilities in Syria by sea-based cruise missiles (SLCM) Kaliber was highly appreciated not only by ordinary citizens of Russia, but also by those who know in detail the real situation and complexities of the modern military-industrial complex and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
But let's start with the background. At the end of November 2012, in one of the basing points of the ships of the Red Banner Caspian flotilla - the city of Makhachkala hosted the ceremony of raising the naval flag of Russia on the latest missile ship Dagestan, project 11661K. A ship was accepted into the composition of the CCFL, which not only changed the combat capabilities of the flotilla as an operational association, but, one can safely say, significantly strengthened the state's position in the Caspian region.
"Dagestan" was the first ship in the Russian Navy, armed with the newest missile complex "Caliber-NK", designed to launch rocket attacks on targets at a distance of 2600 kilometers. With the sea-based cruise missiles of such a range in service, the Red Banner Caspian Flotilla can already solve not only operational, but also operational-strategic tasks.
Rocket complex "Caliber" conducts its history since the 70-ies, with the cruise missile "Granat". The "Grenade" clash allowed at the turn of the end of the 80-x to raise the issue of developing missiles with sharply improved performance characteristics.
In 90-s, the leaders of the Novator Design Bureau “P. Kamnev and V. Volman were able to preserve and develop the resulting backlog by creating the CLUB family of export cruise missiles.
With the opening of full funding for research and development of the Navy, using the experience gained at the CLUB complex, as well as saved and trained young personnel, work continued on the creation of missiles for the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, including the Caliber complex for the Navy.
In general, the nomenclature of missiles is as follows.
Anti-ship missiles
3MW.COM. .3M-54KEUD (3M-54TEUD) 3M-54KE1UD (3M-54TE1UD) 3M-54KEUS (3M-54EUS) 3M-54E1US, 3M-54KERM (3M-54TERM) and 3M-54KE1RM (3M-54TE1RM) - respectively training and operating bench (for training in refueling with liquid fuel) and training split models of missiles from the PF complex, placed in a transport / launch container / cup for training and practicing the practical skills of personnel on the operation and maintenance of missiles.
3М-54КЭГВМ and 3М-54ТЭГВМ are dimensional and weight models intended for training personnel in loading and unloading operations.
Missiles against ground targets
3М-14К / 3М-14Т (3М-14КЭ / 3М-14ТE) is a standard configuration missile with a high-explosive warhead placed in a transport / launch container / cup.
3M - 14KEU The composition of the TCB complex, placed in the transport and launch container / cup for training and practicing the practical skills of personnel in the operation and maintenance of missiles.
3M-14ТЭГВМ - weight-dimensional layouts designed for training personnel handling.
Anti-submarine missiles
Rocket torpedo 91Р1 (91РЭ1).
Rocket torpedo 91РТ2 (91РТЭ2).
Indexes
"K" - missiles are in transport and launch containers.
"T" - missiles are in transport and launch glasses for submarines.
"E" - export execution (due to restrictions under international treaties).
Separately, it is necessary to dwell on the features of the high-precision cruise missile 3М-14Э. It is intended for destruction in simple and complex weather conditions by day and night of stationary (sedentary) land and sea targets. Typical targets for the 3М-14E rocket are ground command posts, weapons and fuel depots, airfield and port facilities.
The 3М14Э rockets in various configurations are included in:
- Club-S missile system for submarine armament;
- Club-N missile system for arming surface ships;
-Mobile rocket complex Club-M;
rocket complex weapons Aviation-based Club-A.
The Club-S complex’s missiles are launched from standard 534 millimeter-sized submarine torpedo tubes or vertical launch installations from 30 – 40 meters, and the Club-N complex from below-deck standardized vertical 3C-14E launchers or deck inclined PS-14PE.
According to the US / NATO classification, the 3М-14 rocket was designated SS-N-30. The 3M-14E cruise missile is equipped with a starting solid-fuel engine, in the tail section of which there are lattice stabilizers. TRDD-50B propulsion engine is a small-sized dual-circuit turbojet, unified for all Caliber missiles developed by the Omsk Engine-Building Design Bureau (OMKB OJSC). The 3M-14E rocket is equipped with a combined guidance system. In-flight rocket control is completely autonomous. The on-board control system is based on the autonomous inertial navigation system AB-40E (developed by the State Research Institute of Instrument Engineering). The rocket control system includes a radio altimeter of the type RVE-B (developed by UPKB “Detail”) and a satellite navigation system receiver (GLONASS or GPS). The radio altimeter provides a flight in the rounding mode of the terrain by precisely keeping the flight altitude: no more than 20 meters above the sea, no more than 50 to 150 meters above land (approaching the target to 20 m).
The flight of missiles passes along a previously laid route in accordance with intelligence data regarding the target position and the availability of air defense systems. The missiles are able to overcome the zones of the developed enemy air defense system, which is ensured by extremely low flight altitudes with rounding of the terrain and autonomy of guidance in the “silence” mode on the main leg. Correction of the rocket flight trajectory on the march segment is probably carried out according to the satellite navigation subsystem and the terrain correction subsystem. The principle of operation of the latter is based on a comparison of the terrain of a particular area where the rocket is located with reference maps of the terrain along its flight route, previously stored in the memory of the onboard control system. Navigation is performed along a complex trajectory, the rocket has the ability to bypass strong enemy air defense / missile defense zones or difficult terrain sections by entering the coordinates of the so-called turning points of the route into the flight task.
The target trajectory is guided by the anti-jamming active radar homing head ARGS-14E, which effectively highlights subtle, small-sized targets against the background of the underlying surface. The head ARGS-14E with a diameter of 514 of millimeters and a weight of 40 kilograms was developed by JSC NPP Radar MMS (St. Petersburg), has a viewing angle in azimuth (bearing) ± 45 °, in elevation - from + 10 ° to -20 ° . The detection range of a typical target is about 20 kilometers. Exceptional maneuverability allows you to accurately bring a rocket to the target.
The 3M-14E missile is equipped with a powerful 450-kilogram high-explosive warhead with the option of an air blast. A variant of the rocket with a cluster warhead, completed with fragmentation, high-explosive or cumulative striking elements for striking at areal and extended targets.
The flight range of the export version of the rocket is limited to 300 kilometers. For the Russian Navy, the range, according to media reports of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, is 2600 kilometers.
The first launch of this type of rocket took place from the side of the Republic of Kazakhstan "Dagestan" in the spring of 2012. In September, 2012-th "Dagestan" re-launched the SLCM, successfully hitting the coastal target. After these shooting complex was adopted by the Russian Navy.
The main advantages of the complex "Caliber-NK":
-the ability to destroy marine and coastal objects;
-long range and shooting accuracy;
-the possibility of placing the complex on ships of various types, which allows you to effectively solve problems in the composition of the ship's shock groups.
RK "Caliber-NK" entered into service of the newest small rocket ships (MRK) of the project 21631 of the type "Buyan-M", accepted into the Caspian flotilla this year.
From the end of 2013 in the Caspian Sea, the newest IRCs of the 3 rank “Grad Sviyazhsk” and “Uglich” of the 21631 project built by the Zelenodolsk CVD began to be tested. They successfully launched the SLCM in the Caspian Sea. The IRCs of the 21631 project are armed with RK Caliber-NK eight cruise missiles each. The third ship of this project, the Velikiy Ustyug MRK, is already part of the Caspian flotilla.
The series of launch of the SLCM 3М-14 from the ships of the Caspian Flotilla on the Syrian ISIS facilities (total 26 missiles launched) is really a big and significant victory. The Russian Navy has demonstrated in practice the presence of a powerful, high-precision instrument of non-nuclear deterrence and the destruction of remote targets. However, the event has an undistinguished side.
Despite the massive deliveries of SLCMs for export, the Navy actually blew off its rearmament (mass rocketization, let's say so) at a time when the budget allowed it to be done without undue effort. The task and so it is necessary to solve. But now in the midst of a severe economic crisis. The holiday took place, but the question arises: what next?
And then we need blood from the nose to accelerate the mass equipping of the Navy with modern high-precision missiles with the task of not just multiplying the rocket volley, but increasing it more than an order of magnitude. And it is necessary to solve this problem in the conditions of crisis and sanctions, which will require unconventional and tough decisions, up to and including a significant revision of the fleet equipment program. The existing one raises too many questions.
For example, the Pacific Fleet, until the launch of the 949AM project at the Irkutsk nuclear missile system, remains without carriers of non-nuclear SLCMs. At the same time, there are a number of very serious operational problems in this theater, which cannot be solved without using a powerful salvo of SLCMs.
There are questions about the optimal structure of the SLCM carriers by fleets. For example, the effect of 7’s October 2015 attack on ISIS facilities would be significantly greater if submarines of the Black Sea and Northern fleets equipped with Kalibr PK were connected to it from the Mediterranean.
Today, the most decisive actions are needed to give the Navy a real impact non-nuclear potential, up to the adjustment of previously made decisions (LG, Shipbuilding Program, R & D), changes in the structure and distribution of the ship. In order to reduce the cost of creating a powerful group of CBMDs, an accelerated development of the “Big Caliber” is needed (which, according to expert estimates, provides a reduction in the cost of solving problems by about three to four times compared to conventional SLCMs).
In general, we are still only at the beginning of work on the re-equipment of the Russian Navy.