It is obvious that the process of updating the army's armament and equipment fleet must be continuous. To do this, simultaneously with the development of the latest models, the development of the next generation of systems should begin. A similar approach is planned to be used for the further development of military air defense. According to the military department, in the foreseeable future, work will begin on the creation of promising types of weapons, which are to get into the troops in the distant future.
The existing plans of the Ministry of Defense and the views of specialists were announced at a recent military-technical conference. On March 23, in Izhevsk, on the basis of the IEMZ Kupol enterprise, a meeting was held “A promising short-range air defense missile system. Its place is in the guise of military air defense for the period 2030-2035”. The event was led by the commander-in-chief of the ground forces, Colonel-General Oleg Salyukov. The meeting was also attended by the head of Udmurtia, Alexander Soloviev, the chief of the air defense of the ground forces, Lieutenant General Alexander Leonov and other representatives of the armed forces and industry.
Round table “A promising short-range air defense missile system. Its place is in the guise of military air defense for the period 2030-2035”. Photo of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
During the round table, experts from the defense industry and the military read out two dozen reports on various features of the development of air defense systems, the specifics of their work, changes in the appearance of air defense, etc. The army and industry discussed the issues raised and made some conclusions. In addition, recommendations were formed for carrying out new research projects, which in the long term will lead to the emergence of new weapons.
Some details of the development of the military air defense were announced by Lieutenant General A. Leonov. Speaking at the round table, the military leader said that from 2020, the main direction for the development of anti-aircraft systems will be the creation of a single multifunctional universal weapon system for military air defense. During the first half of the next decade, the scientific and technical basis for the subsequent creation of such a system should be laid. For this, a number of breakthrough research projects should be opened and carried out.
In connection with the need for further development of anti-aircraft systems, the command of the ground forces came up with a proposal to conduct new research and development. In 2018, it is proposed to launch a new research project under the code "Standard". Leading industry organizations should be involved in its implementation.
During work on the "Standard" theme, the domestic industry will have to analyze the technical capabilities of enterprises in the creation of promising models of air defense weapons for the ground forces. Among other things, it is required to study the possibility of using the so-called. new physical principles of defeat. Then it is proposed to develop promising short-range and medium-range anti-aircraft missile systems. Other air defense systems can also be created. All new means, including anti-aircraft complexes and detection systems, must be combined into a common network-centric system.
Lieutenant General Leonov added that on the basis of the results of the research work "Standard", breakthrough development work should be opened in the future. Already in the course of these projects, information-compatible anti-aircraft weapons should be created, controlled by a single control system. In new developments, it is required to use the principles of modularity, a high degree of unification and versatility.
Speech by the commander-in-chief of the ground forces, Colonel-General O. Salyukov. Photo of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces clarified in his speech that at the moment his structure is working on its own recommendations, which will have to be taken into account by new research projects. Further, after carrying out the necessary research and development work, with the active assistance of the ground forces, it is planned to formulate a tactical and technical assignment for new projects of promising air defense means.
In its official announcement about the roundtable, the Department of Information and Mass Communications of the Ministry of Defense recalled that the main short-range anti-aircraft missile system in the military air defense system is currently the Tor-M2 system. The task of this complex is the implementation of anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense at the divisional level. It can protect ground formations from cruise and anti-radar missiles, planning bombs, aircraft, helicopters and drones.
It is not at all difficult to notice that during the recent event it was only about preparing for the development of promising projects. At the moment, the military have only the most general considerations regarding the appearance of promising air defense systems for ground forces. Only next year, it is planned to start research work that will identify existing and new threats, as well as formulate requirements for new projects. Completion of R&D "Standard" will allow the start of design work, but this will happen only in a few years - apparently, only at the beginning of the next decade.
The lack of accurate data on new anti-aircraft missile systems in the presence of information about their planned development has become a good reason for discussions and forecasts. For several days now, domestic and foreign experts have been trying to predict what consequences the recent statements of Russian military leaders will have, and what equipment the ground forces will be able to receive in the future. For obvious reasons, any current forecasts can come true, however, another scenario should not be ruled out. The emergence of new air defense systems is a matter of a very distant future, because of which many things may have time to change.
Keeping in mind the dubious nature of such an undertaking, we will nevertheless try to present an approximate appearance of promising air defense systems, the creation of which will be facilitated by the future research work "Standard". The goal of the entire program is to create air defense systems for the ground forces, which in itself can be a good hint in building new versions.
Modern SAM "Tor-M2". Photo Wikimedia Commons
One of the main features of the anti-aircraft systems of military air defense is high mobility. The task of the complexes of this class is to accompany the columns of military equipment on the march and in places of concentration, while providing reliable cover from possible attacks from the air. In this regard, any military air defense complex should be based on a self-propelled chassis and include the minimum required set of components. In domestic practice, the most popular are tracked chassis of several models, capable of carrying all the required units, including detection systems and weapons.
The first results of the Standard program will appear no earlier than the middle of the next decade. According to current plans, by this time the ground forces will have to master the latest armored vehicles of new families. Now the development of unified armored platforms "Kurganets-25", "Boomerang" and "Armata" is underway. All of them, in theory, can become the basis for promising air defense systems. The use of such chassis will make it possible to unify anti-aircraft systems with other armored vehicles of the troops, thereby simplifying the joint operation of different models, and also eliminating possible problems with working in the same battle formations.
At present, small and medium-range military air defense systems use missile weapons (the "Tor" family) or a combined complex with missiles and cannons ("Pantsir-S1"). It is likely that in the future this approach to the armament of anti-aircraft systems will be retained. The further development of missile weapons will make it possible to improve the main combat characteristics of equipment in accordance with the requirements of the time. In addition, it is quite possible to keep the cannons. In this case, the combined missile and cannon systems will be able to independently implement echeloned defense with the destruction of targets in an optimal way.
During recent speeches, Russian military leaders, among other things, talked about the use of new physical principles for hitting a target. What exactly was meant is not entirely clear, but such statements allow making the most daring assumptions. Naturally, given the current level of technology development, one should not expect the appearance of anti-aircraft weapons based on rail guns, directed energy weapons, etc. Nevertheless, some existing developments in the field of alternative weapons systems may well find application in the field of air defense. Moreover, some of these ideas have already been tested in practice.
High-power lasers are of particular interest in the context of the development of anti-aircraft systems. Several decades ago, self-propelled laser systems were created in our country, capable of striking the optoelectronic systems of aircraft. With the help of such an effect, the anti-aircraft complex could interfere with the attack or interfere with the correct operation of some guidance systems of aviation weapons. Also, a hypothetical air defense complex of the distant future can use the principles of electronic warfare. A properly selected high-power jamming signal aimed directly at the target could have the most serious impact on the operation of its on-board systems.
Pantsir-S1 anti-aircraft missile and cannon system. Photo by the author
Regardless of the class and type of weapons used, a promising complex must meet a number of important requirements, which will directly affect its combat effectiveness. A combat vehicle must have its own means of tracking the air situation, tracking targets and targeting weapons. At the same time, it is necessary to use communication and control systems that allow a separate complex to transfer the collected information to other consumers, as well as receive target designation from third-party sources. Separate complexes and entire batteries should form a single information network covering large areas. Such a possibility will to some extent simplify the organization of air defense, as well as increase the combat effectiveness of individual formations due to the possibility of timely notification of possible threats.
As the experience of operating modern air defense systems shows, the most important feature of their onboard equipment is the automation of various processes. In the future, this trend in the development of technology will continue, thanks to which electronics will take on new functions and will be able to perform them much faster and more efficiently than humans. The operator will be able to control the complex, controlling only the most important parameters and issuing basic commands.
In the context of interaction with troops on the march, it is necessary to recall another important opportunity, which is not yet available for all domestic anti-aircraft systems. Detection, tracking and attack equipment must be capable of firing on the move. Unfortunately, at the moment, only the last complexes of the "Tor" family can move, simultaneously studying the air situation and launching missiles. Other systems need to be stopped to start.
Requirements for the range and altitude of target destruction should be formed when developing a technical assignment for a new project. There is reason to believe that within the framework of the "Standard" research and development work, requirements will be developed for several complexes of different classes with radically different characteristics. Currently, the military air defense includes short-range air defense systems that are responsible for hitting targets at distances of less than 15 km, short-range (up to 30 km), medium (up to 100 km) and long-range, destroying targets at distances of more than 100 km. It is too early to say which classes the Standard family developments will belong to. Judging by the known data, the development of new short-range, short-range and medium-range systems is most likely.
Authors of promising projects will have to take into account the characteristic features of the development of aviation and other areas of this kind. Manned aircraft are gradually receiving means of reducing visibility, and are also equipped with more advanced means of destruction with an increased firing range, allowing them to operate from outside the zone of responsibility of existing air defense systems. Unmanned aerial vehicles, especially of the light and ultralight classes, are also becoming a serious problem. Thus, the new generation anti-aircraft systems will have to learn to find and destroy a variety of targets, including very complex ones. Further development of manned and unmanned aircraft, as well as aircraft weapons will be a new challenge for promising air defense systems.
General view of the Sosna air defense missile system. Drawing NPO "High-precision complexes" / Npovk.ru
Another serious problem for anti-aircraft systems can be considered progress in the field of ground-based missile weapons. Even existing and in service operational-tactical missile systems are a very difficult target for modern air defense systems, and not all air defense systems are capable of fighting them. Given such threats, it should be expected that new anti-aircraft systems, including short and medium-range ones, will be able to intercept complex ballistic targets.
In general, there is reason to believe that, despite the expected timing of appearance, promising technology in terms of the main features of the appearance, goals and objectives will not seriously differ from the existing models. Moreover, it cannot be ruled out that as a result of the R&D "Standard" new complexes will appear, which are a deep modernization of the existing ones. In this case, of course, the newest element base, modern components, etc. will be used. This approach will allow you to solve the assigned tasks with minimal effort and without significant problems.
It should be noted that the next anti-aircraft missile system, created by deep modernization of existing models, may enter service in the very near future. Since 2013, the domestic industry has been testing the new Sosna system, which is a further development of the Strela-10 family complexes. According to reports, this year "Pine" will complete the state tests, after which it can be recommended for adoption. Then the new equipment can go into series and go to the troops. Obtaining a large number of Sosna air defense systems will allow the ground forces to decommission some outdated samples and thereby improve their security in various situations.
In parallel, the development of other anti-aircraft systems, belonging to the families "Tor", "Buk" and "Pantsir", continues. A deep modernization of the existing models has already led to the rearmament of some units, and the further continuation of such work in the future will again have a positive effect on the combat effectiveness of the military air defense. Apparently, the current projects will provide renewal of the fleet of equipment over the next few years. Not earlier than the middle of the next decade, in this capacity, they will be replaced by new developments created as a result of the future research "Standard".
According to the statements of the military leaders, research work, the purpose of which will be to determine the requirements for promising anti-aircraft systems, will start in the next 2018. Not earlier than 2020, based on the results of the "Standard" theme, a tactical and technical assignment will be formed, according to which the development of new projects will be carried out. The design process is likely to be completed only by the middle of the decade. Thus, even in the absence of serious problems, experimental equipment of new types will be able to enter testing only in the second half of the twenties. The beginning of mass production and supplies to the troops, respectively, should be attributed to the early thirties. It can be assumed that promising anti-aircraft missile (or other) complexes of new types will serve for at least several decades, up to the fifties-sixties.
Such a time frame for the emergence and operation of promising technology is a serious challenge for all participants in new projects. When formulating technical requirements, it is necessary to take into account possible ways of further development of manned and unmanned aviation, aviation weapons, radio-electronic equipment, etc. The development of the appearance of promising anti-aircraft complexes with such conditions is a particularly difficult task. Russian specialists will start solving it next year. What will be the results of R&D "Standard" and whether today's forecasts came true - it will become known not earlier than the beginning of the twenties.
