Obviously, in the wake of the fruitful communication between President Putin and Donald Trump and to give a motivating further positive communication impulse to our American "partners", the Russian Defense Ministry has pleased with new videos on samples of weapons from the presidential "package of gifts to America on March 1". That is, for aeroballistic hypersonic combat equipment (AGBO) Avangard 15Yu71 as part of a complex with ICBM 15A35-71, a hypersonic aeroballistic aircraft missile "Dagger", a combat multipurpose self-propelled underwater vehicle "Poseidon" (underwater system "Status-6"), land-based missile with unlimited range and nuclear rocket engine "Burevestnik", laser complex "Peresvet" and heavy liquid ICBM "Sarmat". And what did we see interesting and new there?
In general, we saw something, although not as much as we would like, but this is quite understandable, because there are also people across the ocean who are carefully peering into such videos, fetching information from there and trying to distinguish it from "disinformation ". So, point by point.
There is nothing fundamentally new about the Sarmat (presumable missile index 15A28) in the video. The footage of the transport of the TPK with the rocket to the silo is shown, where the launch is carried out, its installation in the mine, and the actual throwing launch. One of the 3 conducted, although there is an assumption that there were 4 of them, only the "partners" could have reported about one launch, it happens, and not only with the "Sarmat", recently it happened with "Yars", it seems, when NOTAM about There was a launch, but there was no official launch, although some "UFO wreckage" with bolts in accordance with GOST did get into the press. Let's clarify right away that all the Sarmat's throw tests were with the inclusion of the 1st stage of the rocket, and not only with the activation of the PAD, as such tests usually begin. That is, the developers are so confident in the product that they immediately skipped this phase. According to the procedure for installing the product in the mine, it was not possible to discern anything particularly new - and so it is known that for the Sarmats, possibly converted, TPKs remaining from ICBMs 15А18 and 15А18М will be involved - the diameter is approximately one, the mines are the same, the dimensions are similar, which wasting money in vain?
Also shown are old shots from workshops where "Sarmat" is assembled, where only narrow specialists can admire the high weight culture of parts, and non-specialists will probably notice that the names of machines and other equipment are smeared in the video. Sanctions, we will not substitute good partners.
But the good news is that there are no more jump launches, the tests are moving to the flight design stage. The infrastructure for such launches has already been created at the Plesetsk test site and everything is almost ready, so we will be patient.
In the video with "Avangard" there are no actual video frames that shed light on something new. On which ICBM will initially (and then, obviously, on part of the "Sarmatov" group) be based AGBO "Avangard" - it's not a secret, it's 15A35 (UR-100NUTTH), a third-generation ICBM, with such a makeweight that immediately became a complex of the fifth, if not the sixth generations of DBK - combat missile systems of the Strategic Missile Forces. But not a simple 15A35, because they are already very many years old and can only be used for tests and combat training launches, but more than three dozen 15A35s purchased in the early 2000s in Ukraine for debts. In a "dry" canned state, without fuel, that is, all these years the missiles have not "ticked" age, and they will stay in silos for a long time, being a "missile special forces" of the Strategic Missile Forces and frightening "partners" with bad consequences. The wisdom and foresight of our military-political leadership in such matters is admirable. After all, they were probably bought for such use, because all these years they modestly lay in the arsenals and waited in the wings, and not to "replenish the rapidly thinning missile group", as experts wrote at that time. True, AGBO itself used to be different, but this is not so important. It is interesting that our leadership did not turn out to be as far-sighted with the issues of ensuring independence from that Ukraine on the ship's gas turbine engine, although the fact that the situation in the current "territory of the wildlings" is heading towards bad - many, including at the very top, understood for a long time and prepared. Why did it happen?
But in the animation itself (of poor quality, but everything is clear here - or you have access to such secrets, but you do not know how to make high-quality animation, because there is no time for that in the service, or you know how, but you cannot see the admission, as your ears without a mirror) in the video with the flight of the Avangard AGBO, one moment drew attention to the target - it was specifically indicated that the AGBO could bypass the zones of, in general, a non-threatening missile defense system, according to the signals of the satellite constellation. Which means that the problems of communication with the apparatus flying in a dense plasma cloud have been solved by our developers. By the way, this hints that the tasks of aiming at a target from such a "cocoon" of plasma for our hypersonic anti-ship missiles or missile launchers and other AGBOs are also quite solvable, namely, that in recent months, various comrades unfamiliar with the topic like to point out their unsolvability in the vast information space, gentlemen, but most often the same gentlemen.
On "Poseidon" they finally showed him himself, "without clothes" in the form of a container or something else. Self-propelled underwater vehicle (SPA) "Poseidon" - they continue to call it so stubbornly, obviously because it clearly assumes a significant number of types of combat load, such as thermonuclear warheads of special power for the destruction and pollution of large coastal areas, or a large warhead or medium power against naval groupings (as shown in the video) or generally non-nuclear, perhaps a load in the form of mines or some kind of self-propelled modules with a load, or, in general, reconnaissance equipment. That is, it is a universal apparatus, and the system itself is called "ocean multipurpose", including at least two nuclear submarines under construction, the Poseidons themselves and various other underwater drones, both reconnaissance and combat. So, it certainly inspires respect for its size. And it is surprising that the data previously "exposed" about the caliber of this super torpedo (1500-1600 mm), judging by the video, is incorrect - the real caliber is probably closer to 1800-2000 mm, but the length is just not very different from the declared one earlier - 24-25 m. The larger caliber is probably due to the fact, most likely, that the reactor or engine compartment has become larger. Although, according to the video footage, it seems that the general layout roughly corresponds to the one on that memorable presentation, "accidentally" lit up at the Security Council of the Russian Federation, and in which many did not believe for a long time, neither here nor in the West. And in vain - Russian propaganda is so deceitful and shameless that it is she who must be believed. Unlike the never-lying Western media.
About "Dagger" was written only recently, so I will briefly note a number of details. It was reported that a squadron of MiG-31K fighters is on experimental combat duty in the Southern Military District, including with the implementation of scheduled flights on duty over the Caspian Sea (maybe over the Black Sea, too, but they did not say). More than 350 flights have already been completed, including 20% with air refueling (in a previous publication it was suggested that it was MiG-31B aircraft that were used for alteration, possibly BM / BSM, as such). The license plates of the cars on the video were covered up as best they could, why - it's not very clear, because many were already shining and the cars were from Akhtuba. Moreover, flights within the framework of duty for non-nuclear strategic deterrent forces have been carried out precisely since April 2018. And then it could well have come to a direct clash with the United States in Syria, so the "Daggers" were expectedly included in the list of retaliatory measures, more precisely, their probable application. That already says about the combat readiness of the new weapon. Together with the crews of Long-Range Aviation, a tactical flight exercise was carried out with the development of practical actions to defeat ground and sea targets. In the course of this exercise, the issues of planning, preparation and joint use of the Kinzhal aircraft missile systems and Tu-22M3M long-range missile-carrying bombers, as well as fighter air cover for the actions of air strike groups, were worked out in detail. Moreover, the flight is shown together with the MiG-31K together with the Tu-22M3M bomber with the X-32 anti-ship missile system. Obviously, they worked out the tactics of joint use, for example, first the most dangerous targets are attacked from a long distance by the MiG-31BK, and then from a smaller distance - by the Tupolev with the Kh-32.
The video about the Burevestnik cruise missile of unlimited range also turned out to be quite interesting. There was nothing new in flight tests, but they showed a TPK with another version of a new rocket. Apparently, this is not exactly the rocket that was shown earlier - the nose of the rocket has "chopped" shapes characteristic of measures to reduce the RCS, like the Kh-101 / Kh-102 ALCM and, presumably, the Kh-50 (X -SD), as derived from them. Apparently, on the first prototype, they worked out the layout, various solutions, the very possibility of flying such a revolutionary design as a nuclear-powered missile-powered missile launcher. And the new one is closer to the serial product. In fact, this is what the RF Ministry of Defense is talking about.
Currently, the creation of an unlimited-range cruise missile is being carried out as planned. On the basis of the specified requirements, the design of the rocket components is being improved, their ground tests are being carried out, and flight tests of experimental models of the cruise missile of the improved design are being prepared. At the same time, technical means for preparing and conducting a launch are being developed, and technological processes for manufacturing, assembling and testing the rocket are being improved. The ongoing complex of works makes it possible to move on to the creation of a fundamentally new type of weapons - a strategic complex of nuclear weapons with a missile equipped with a nuclear power plant.
The TPK of the new missile is also interesting. And by its shape, and much more - by its fasteners. Which are probably unified with a number of existing self-propelled wheeled launchers, including obsolete ones - they will be removed from service, and the good will not be lost. But it is quite clear that the Petrel is still a long way from being put into service.
The very "thing in itself" remains the same combat laser complex "Peresvet", which is already in the army.
At present, the Peresvet laser systems that have entered the troops have been deployed in their places of deployment, and active work has been organized to master new weapons. The necessary infrastructure has been prepared to carry out combat duty in the places of deployment, and special structures have been erected to accommodate equipment and duty shifts. The personnel of the units equipped with the Peresvet laser combat complex underwent retraining at the Mozhaisky Military Space Academy and are currently improving their professional knowledge, skills and abilities in the classroom for special, technical and tactical training.
The fact that the complex is in the Space Forces (VKS) also hints at its combat mission: the defeat of the spacecraft of the enemy's orbital grouping, probably, first of all, view reconnaissance and space echelon vehicles of the missile attack warning system or missile defense system. Should he destroy them? Not necessarily, disabling the equipment is enough. But, given a number of assumptions about the power and power source of this complex, the power and destruction, at least in low orbits, may be enough.
So far, all that can (or should be) said about what has been shown, we are waiting for further disclosure of the cards.