R-31 (missile)
| R-31 (missile) | |
|---|---|
| General Information | |
| Type | Submarine-based ballistic missile |
| Local name | R-31, D-11, RSM-45, 3M17 |
| NATO designation | SS-N-17 Snipe |
| Country of origin |
.svg){kind=small} Soviet Union
|
| Manufacturer | Arsenal design office (OKB-7) |
| development | 1971 |
| Commissioning | 1980 |
| Working time | 1980-1990 |
| Technical specifications | |
| length | 11.06 m |
| diameter | 1,540 mm |
| Combat weight | 26,900 kg |
| Drive First stage Second stage |
Solid rocket engine Solid rocket engine |
| Range | 3,900 km |
| Furnishing | |
| steering | Inertial navigation system |
| Warhead | 1 nuclear warhead with 500 kt |
| Detonator | Programmed detonator |
| Weapon platforms | Submarine |
| Lists on the subject | |
The R-31 is a submarine -assisted ballistic medium-range missile ( SLBM ) from Soviet production. The NATO code of the weapon system is SS-N-17 Snipe . The GRAY index for the missile complex is D-11 and the missiles are labeled 3M17 . In the START contracts it is listed as RSM-45 . The R-31 was the Soviet Union's first SLBM with solid fuel propulsion.
development
After the first attempt to develop an SLBM with solid rocket engines with the RT-15 project failed, development of the R-31 began in 1971 in the OKB-7 Arsenal design office (then Frunze design office) in Leningrad . The first test start took place in 1979 on the Kapustin Jar test site . The first tactile start from an underwater platform took place in 1976 at the Balaklawa test site . The installation of the D-11 missile complex in the submarine K-140, a boat from Project 667A , had already begun in 1972 . The first test launch from the now project 667AM "Nawaga-M" ( NATO code name : Yankee II class) designated submarine took place in December 1976 in the Gulf of Kandalaksha . After the test series was completed in 1979, the D-11 missile system was declared operational in 1980.
A planned version with 3–8 MIRV warheads and a vehicle-specific version was not implemented. A total of 36 3M17 missiles were produced for the Soviet Navy .
technology
The 3M17 was a two-stage medium-range rocket with solid rocket engines . The drive stages were mounted one above the other and ignited one after the other. The shell of the first drive stage was made of steel . The shell of the second drive stage consisted of a titanium alloy and composite materials . A solid fuel based on ammonium perchlorate and butyl rubber was used. The 3M17 rocket was additionally equipped with GMCP rocket engines at the rocket tip. These were arranged on a concentric ring axially around the tip of the rocket. These rocket engines were ignited after the rocket was ejected from the launch silos using gas pressure. This drive led the rocket to the surface of the water. He created a cavitation gas bubble , which reduced the fluid dynamic stress on the rocket surface. After the rocket pierced the surface of the water, the first stage rocket engine ignited. Then the GMCP rocket engines were blown off the top of the rocket. The 3M17 rocket was controlled by means of inertial navigation platforms with a digital Mir-type navigation computer. After both drive stages had burned out (boost phase), the re-entry body carrier continued to climb on a ballistic curve. Then the re-entry body carrier was set in rotation about the longitudinal axis by a rocket engine and the re-entry body was detonated. This weighed 450 kg and was equipped with a thermonuclear nuclear warhead. This had an explosive power of 500 kt and could be ignited in the air or on contact with the ground. The re-entry bodies reached a scattering circle radius of 1400 m. Due to its relatively low accuracy, the R-31 could only be used against so-called "soft targets" such as population centers , industrial complexes , port facilities , airfields and railway junctions . As a result, the R-31 was only suitable as a second strike weapon .
The submarine K-140 was equipped with 12 missile silos for 3M17. The rocket complex with solid rocket rockets had clear advantages over rockets with liquid rocket engines. In contrast to the rockets with liquid rocket engines, the rocket silos of the 3M17 did not have to be flooded with seawater before launch. This reduced the time to prepare for takeoff to 3.5 minutes. After that, the rockets could be launched at an interval of 5 seconds. Thus the submarine could launch all 12 missiles within a minute. The rocket launch could take place from a depth of 50 m at 5 knots speed. Overall, however, the performance of the R-31 fell short of expectations. The 3M17 missiles were expensive and difficult to produce. Compared to the rockets with liquid rocket engines, the 3M17 missiles also had a significantly lower range, payload and accuracy. Because of this, only the submarine K-140 was equipped with the D-11 missile complex and the project was not pursued any further.
status
As part of the START 1 agreement, the submarine K-140 was decommissioned in early 1990. In the course of the separation of the R-31 in the fall of 1990, the submarine K-140 launched all 12 missiles. The rockets were blown up after a certain flight time and the remains fell into the sea. The last of the remaining R-31 missiles was scrapped in 1995.
Web links
- R-31 in the Encyclopedia Astronautica (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Pavel Podvig: Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces. MIT Press, 2004, ISBN 0-262-16202-4 . Pp. 327-330.
- ^ Peter Lobner: Marine Nuclear Power 1939-2018. 2018. p. 198.
- ↑ Bastion-Karpenko.ru: РАКЕТНЫЙ КОМПЛЕКС Д-11 С БРПЛ Р-31 (3М17)
- ↑ a b c Militaryrussia.ru: Р-31 / 3М17 - SS-N-17 SNIPE
- ↑ DTIG: Sea-based ballistic guided missiles from the former Soviet Union. DTIG - Defense Threat Informations Group, January 2007.
- ^ Peter Lobner: Marine Nuclear Power 1939-2018. 2018. p. 266.