Spatula

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Spasatel model

The Spasatel ( Russian Спасатель - "the savior") is a ground-effect vehicle project planned by the Soviet Ministry of Defense and classified as "top secret" at the time . The vehicle was originally intended to serve as a missile carrier for the Lun project , but was then converted into an ambulance, but never completed.

aims

The military advantage of ground-effect vehicles over ships and submarines was that they had no draft during operation and therefore could not be detected by the sonar ; Compared to aircraft , the advantage, in addition to the large payload , was the low altitude , which made radar detection difficult. Especially at the time of the Cold War and given the state of the art at the time, this was an interesting option for quickly and inconspicuously transporting many people or a large load over long distances. Today this approach is technically obsolete due to better camouflage and location techniques .

history

Originally it was supposed to be built as a second rocket carrier ground effect vehicle. After the Soviet nuclear submarine Komsomolez sank in an accident in 1989 , killing 42 people, this second vehicle was converted for use in the sea ​​rescue service and could have carried up to 500 passengers.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union , the project was canceled due to a lack of financial resources. The military missions at sea were also greatly reduced, so that the purpose of the mission was reduced. The superstructures and sheaths of the spatula are complete and 98 percent complete. After the bankruptcy of the Ekranoplan plant, the Spasatel was not scrapped, but - like the whole area - simply left in the state of production.

present

The unfinished Spasatel still exists today in an old industrial complex in Nizhny Novgorod ( 56 ° 21 ′ 46.4 ″  N , 43 ° 52 ′ 44 ″  E ). (As of 2006)

Advocates, enthusiasts and former employees of the plant are still working on the completion of the large ground effect vehicle. So far it has been very difficult to procure components and machines because the project was not officially supported. Access to and manufacture of the Spasatel was therefore very costly and labor-intensive, and the likelihood that it would ever “fly” was very low. All employees of the Spasatel project worked on a voluntary basis.

According to press reports in December 2017, the development of the Spasatel is to be resumed, and the vehicles are then to be used primarily in arctic waters : the first Spasatel is to be tested in five years. Production is scheduled to begin in eight years. According to Russian media, the project is already included in the armaments budget for 2018-2025.

Technical specifications

(The data is based on the first project and its experience.)

Parameter Data
crew 9 + 19 rescue workers
Passengers 150-500
length 73.8 m
span 44.0 m
height 19.2 m
Takeoff mass 400 t
speed Normal altitude: 450–550 km / h
Maximum altitude: 20–100 km / h
Range Normal
altitude: 3000 km, maximum altitude: 400 km
Max. Duration at sea 5 days
Normal altitude 1-5 m
Search height 500 m
Maximum height 7500 m
Max. Wave height Take-off and landing: 2.5–3.5 m
Flight: unlimited
Engines 8 × Kuznetsov NK-87 turbofans
Thrust 127.4 kN per engine

Comparable types

Web links

Commons : Spasatel  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Для российских ВС создается транспортно-десантный экраноплан «Спасатель». mskgazeta.ru, accessed December 29, 2018 .
  2. ↑ Part Plane, Part Ship, This 'Ekranoplan' Was a Giant Rescue Vessel. warisboring.com, accessed December 29, 2018 .
  3. ^ Project 903 Lun / Spasatel. globalsecurity.org , accessed December 29, 2018 .
  4. ↑ a b Ekranoplane «Spasatel» presentation iiaat.guap.ru (English).
  5. ↑ NATO already extremely alarmed: Putin's "Monster of the Caspian Sea" is returning. focus.de , November 18, 2017, archived from the original on November 17, 2017 ; accessed on November 18, 2017 .
  6. ^ Development of New Ekranoplan Type GEV for Russia`s Navy is underway. navyrecognition.com, October 30, 2017, accessed December 29, 2018 .
  7. ↑ Ekranoplan Reborn: the transport-landing craft for the Russian military will be created by 2025. defense-blog.com, October 28, 2017, accessed on December 29, 2018 .