The project of the Sapsan multifunctional missile system

The latest tragic events in Ukraine have revealed many circumstances that caused several major defeats of the army of this country during the military operation, called the antiterrorist operation. Among them, the lack of competent commanders of all levels, technical backwardness and a deep systemic crisis of the management system. Arms are obsolete models of technology, long written-off in neighboring countries. Among them, the rockets "Tochka-U". The question arises as to what they plan to replace in the near future. Until recently, it was believed that the newest PTR "Sapsan" would replace the "Skat" complex, which had become obsolete many years ago. How are things in the field of re-equipping the Ukrainian tactical deterrent forces?

Questions, questions

Declared by the current leadership of Ukraine, external aggression from Russia in the event of its reality could cause a complete and rapid collapse of its defense. Among the main reasons for the inability of the Armed Forces to resist not only the hypothetical offensive of the Russian army, but also any other combat capability, analysts call the absence of a modern operational and tactical missile system. "Peregrine Falcon", which has been under development since 2007, does not really exist. Moreover, according to Pavel Lebedev, who was the Minister of Defense in 2013, there is not only an experimental product, but even a design technical documentation. The project spent money, the result is zero. Who will bear the punishment for this and who is to blame for this situation? Is it really that bad? What is the way out, if indeed the war will begin? There are more questions than answers. The fact is important: there is no Sapsan missile system in Ukraine.

From "Borisfen" to "Sapsan"

The inadequacy of the Ukrainian defense was not denied during the entire period of independence of this country. Already in 1994, a general decision was made to begin work on a missile complex project that surpassed Soviet analogues in capabilities, and three years later it was documented by the Security Council of the country. The executor was appointed the Dnepropetrovsk design bureau "Yuzhnoe", which is the leading profile enterprise. The project "Borisfen", started in 1994, was the first step taken to solve this problem. The base was the development of the "Thunder" complex, which was planned to be produced for export, perhaps even cherishing the hope of interest to them from the Russian Defense Ministry. The works were conducted until 2003, but they were stopped due to lack of funding. President of Yushchenko, who came to replace the former director of Yuzhmash, LD Kuchma, in 2006 initiated the development of the fully Ukrainian Sapsan missile system and allocated twelve million dollars for it. Perhaps, this amount seemed to him quite large.

From sketch to project

The draft project was ready by 2010. He spent 6 million 800 thousand dollars from the allocated amount. Direct design required additional costs, and the remaining funds were not enough. The fact is that the missile system is a dear thing, especially at the development stage. Yuzhnoye and the general director of the National Space Agency (NKA) promised to deliver the result by 2011, but only in case of planned financing. This question was difficult, the money lacked chronically. At the beginning of this year, now the new head of state V. Yanukovych said that with the cost of creating a Sapsan missile system in the amount of 3.5 billion hryvnia by 2015, he will be ready and will go to the troops. It will be built in Ukraine, from domestic units and components, with the participation of seventy enterprises of the defense complex. The deadline is until 2017. In 2012, AP Kushnarev was appointed the head of the department. The money was allocated, first 105, and then all 196 million hryvnia. These costs will then be called ineffective.

Problems

Taking the decision in 2013 to close the project and stop financing it, P. Lebedev may have misjudged the situation. However, another option can not be ruled out, the one at which the head of the military department knew the true state of things, but, on the emotional side of the matter, intentionally mislead the public. Did the minister know that instead of almost 200 million hryvnia KB, developing the "operational and tactical missile complex" Sapsan "(this in Ukrainian sounds like it sounds like an operational tactical missile system) received the amount budgeted and few Exceeding 68 million? Probably, he guessed, otherwise he would have to be dismissed for incompetence.

Ministerial leapfrog

In 2012 there was no money at all. And in the current 2013 at that time, too. In the time that has elapsed since the beginning of the work, defense ministers changed one by one in the sequence of Gritsenko-Yekhanurov-Ivashchenko-Yezhel-Salamatin and, finally, Lebedev. Either none of them was interested in Sapsan, or everything, from their point of view, was in order.

It is difficult to assume that one of the most important defense projects was left unattended by the changing ministers and presidents. There were checks, and reports too. The state of affairs with Sapsan could not be a surprise, everyone knew perfectly well that money was not allocated, and the work was actually stopped. It is simply impossible to imagine the problem suddenly arising. No one beat the alarm ...

What shall we shoot?

Now the main thing, that is, what the Sapsan operational and tactical missile system should be like, according to the technical task and design intent. The main thing in it is a rocket.

Ukraine is a nuclear-free country, so the use of warheads with special charges is excluded for ideological reasons. For economic reasons, the system - according to the plan - is given the possibility of conducting fire by three types of missiles with high-explosive combat units of various purposes: ballistic, anti-aircraft and anti-ship. Accordingly, the range of action of the shells is different. Which one - the table will show.

The spread of hits is allowed in the range from 2 to 200 meters, depending on the type of control system and the head. The mass of the rocket is also different, the lightest is a zenith (1.1 tons), heavier than all ballistic (3.3 tons), and in the middle between them - anti-ship (2.1 tons). The throwing masses are also different: the biggest of them is for a ballistic munition (480 kg). It is almost half a ton of cassettes capable of killing all living things on an area of 10,000 square meters, or a monoblock of enormous power. BC anti-aircraft munitions - progressive fragmentation-ampoule type. Missiles of all types are single-stage.

Architecture of the complex

According to its typical composition, the Sapsan missile system is a battery unit consisting of a mobile command post and the following machines: preparation of initial data, transport-loading, geological support, maintenance, combat alert and two or three self-propelled launchers. Each UE must carry transport-launch containers, from which the projectile is launched by mortar method. It can operate autonomously in automated mode. Each of the battery vehicles is based on a multi-wheeled multi-wheeled chassis (presumably designed by KrAZ or the Morozov Design Bureau), in the loaded condition, their mass should not exceed 21 tons. To start, you can use a mobile command post, remote console, or carry it out from the operator's cabin. Time to bring to full combat readiness - no more than 20 minutes. Here, in general, and everything that is known about the project of the multifunctional missile complex IFPC "Sapsan". This is the plan.

The problem of the complex

Again, according to the plan, this type of weapon should be used as an effective means of deterring a potential adversary in case of danger of large-scale aggression. If there is no nuclear weapon in the arsenal, it remains to count on high-explosive high-explosive ammunition capable of hitting large enemy formations and armored vehicles at a distance of up to five hundred kilometers in case of its accumulation in a relatively small area. The Sapsan missile system with a ballistic missile can also be used to suppress control systems, including headquarters, communication centers, warehouses, railway stations, airfields and other enemy infrastructure. The designation of antiaircraft and anti-ship munitions is indicated by their name, which does not need comments. The only argument against this universality is that any multi-purpose system works in every available function worse than a highly specialized one. However, in this case the economic factor prevails.

Why will "Luch" cope better?

Now it's time to return to the question of what prompted the military leadership to refuse further financing of the Sapsan project. Multifunctional missile system of the Ukrainian army is still needed, it's just that according to the official version the performer was not up to par, did not live up to expectations, and it needs to be changed. An organization is also found, which can be delegated to the task - KB "Luch" from Kiev. There is no doubt in the highest qualification of the specialists of this bureau. There are only two questions: first, will they be able to cope with the task in the absence or lack of funding? Secondly, how long will they need to develop a non-core project for them? The fact is that Luch is engaged in anti-tank missile systems, like the very American "Javelins", which the current government is trying to buy at a price of half a million for a set (and this is second-hand!) Abroad. Judging by the fact that the need for imports exists, with finances from "Ray," too, things are not the best way.

About the state program

They close weapons projects in Ukraine often. However, the program for creating a tactical missile system "Sapsan" differs from other, less significant ones in that it is part of the overall state target strategy, which, besides it, includes only three areas: construction of corvettes for the Navy, An-70 aircraft for transport military aircraft (Own and foreign) and the technology of ammunition disposal. Thus, all major state defense priorities can be counted on the fingers. And one more will remain in the reserve. This means that the task is vitally important, and without its decision on the independence and reliability of the protection of frontiers and speech can not be.

What's next?

And the last, albeit naive, but urgent question: when will the Ukrainian army be equipped with Sapsans? There is no clear answer to it. The country is dominated by a military conflict. It requires huge daily costs, while the material loss it produces is growing all the time. Ukraine threatens to collapse, and to bring the project to the production phase, according to A. Degtyarev , the chief designer of the design bureau, the amount of 3 billion 700 million hryvnia is required. If it is allotted, the tests can be started in 2018. However, this estimate was calculated in those relatively recent times, when the dollar rate was completely different, and inflation, although it took place, but did not gallop. In addition, the Ukrainian president and government may have other concerns.