The origin of the RSD-10 mobile ground missile system with an intermediate-range ballistic missile began in the 70s. The main developer of the RSD-10 is the Moscow Institute of Heat Engineering, the head of the project development, academician A. Nadiradze. The development of the rocket, which received the index 15Ж45, was carried out using the base of 2 stages from the PGRK Temp-2S rocket. Major new developments:
- unit for cutting off the propulsion system for the second stage;
- connecting compartment;
- a split warhead.
The end of practical factory testing of all the developed solutions was marked by flight tests of the RSD-10 at the Kapustin Yar range at the end of September 1974. It took the designers about 1.5 years to eliminate the identified problems, and to go through the full program of state tests. In mid-March 1976, the State Commission signed the RSD-10 acceptance certificate and the Pioneer complex was accepted by the Strategic Missile Forces of the Soviet Union. The complex replaced the R-14 missiles in the armament of the USSR Armed Forces, this caused a well-known commotion abroad and was reflected in the name of the complex - SS-20 or "Thunderstorm of Europe".
At the beginning of August 1979, a rocket with improved characteristics called "15Zh53" entered the tests. The tests took place at the same test site as 15Ж45. The tests lasted more than a year and the comments were eliminated. In mid-December 1980, the improved complex under the designation "Pioneer UTTH" arrives at the Strategic Missile Forces. The main differences between the 15Zh53 rocket are the improved control system and the instrument cluster. Improvements made it possible to increase the hitting accuracy up to 450 meters. Replacing the engines increased the breeding radius of the BB and increased the range of the complex to 5.5 thousand kilometers. In 1987, the Soviet Union possessed 650 15Zh45 and 15Zh53 missiles. All of them were intended for a retaliatory strike against various targets in Europe, the Middle East, the United States and Asia. RSD-10 and "Pioneer UTTH" were in service until 1991. According to the INF Treaty, since 1991, the complexes begin to be eliminated. First, the missiles were destroyed by launching missiles. It is worth noting that the complexes showed during the liquidation launches that all the characteristics correspond to the factory parameters. The following complexes were eliminated by detonating missiles directly in factory containers, the chassis of the complexes after dismantling, were sent to the storage places of automotive equipment. By mid-1991, all missiles had been destroyed. Several units of both missiles and complexes were left as exhibits for domestic and foreign museums of military equipment.
Composition and structure of the "Pioneer" complexes
The standard composition of the complex includes the following components:
- ballistic missile 15Zh53 or 15Zh45;
- PU;
- vehicle for loading missiles;
The rocket consists of two sustainer stages, an aggregate-instrument unit and a warhead. They are connected to each other using docking compartments. DU of the 1st stage consists of a body made of fiberglass and a solid propellant charge, bottom and nozzle covers, and a nozzle. The lower compartment houses the braking motors and steering gear equipment. To correct the trajectory and control the flight, 8 steering grids of the aerodynamic and gas-dynamic type were used. The propulsion system of the 2nd stage repeated the basic design of the propulsion system of the 1st stage, but the flight control was carried out according to a different principle. To control the yaw and pitch angles, the method of gas injection from the gas generator into the supercritical part of the nozzle was used. To control the roll angles, the method of running gas through a special device was used. Two-stage propulsion systems used a traction cutoff system. The engines are turned off by opening a dozen holes in the front of the combustion chamber. The pressure in the chamber drops and the solid fuel stops burning.
The missile control system is the development of designers under the supervision of Academician N. Pilyugin. The missile control system was built using an onboard VM, which ensured the achievement of the declared factory characteristics, routine maintenance and inspections.
All important control units had redundant redundant units. This increased the reliability of the control system. All equipment is located in a hermetically sealed compartment. MIRV type multiple warhead with three BB. The power of one BB is 150 kilotons. Each warhead was individually aimed at a selected target. The stage for breeding the BB had its own control system and solid fuel control system. The head part is made without an aerodynamic fairing, the BB, to improve the aerodynamic characteristics of the flight, the stages were located at an angle to the rocket axis.
Manufacturing options for warhead missiles of the "Pioneer" complex:
- Mod 1. MS of monoblock type. Range of application up to 5 thousand kilometers;
- Mod 2. MS of the separable type. Three BB with ID. Range of application up to 5.5 thousand kilometers;
- Mod 3. RG monoblock type. BB power - 50 kilotons. Range of application up to 7.4 thousand kilometers. Not serially produced.
The operating mode implied placing the rocket in a hermetically sealed TPK. The container was placed on a self-propelled launcher. The PU automobile six-axle chassis was received from MAZ-547. In addition to the TPK with a rocket, equipment for conducting technical control and launching a rocket is also located on the chassis. Despite its weight - about 80 tons, the speed of the SPU was quite solid - up to 40 km / h, it could move on any roads, overcome a meter-long ford and rise up to 15 degrees. Turning radius 21 meters. The launch was carried out from prepared positions such as "Krona" or equipped field positions. PU was hung on jacks and leveled. The powder pressure accumulator was used to eject the rocket from the TPK during the launch. At a given altitude, the main engine of the 1st stage was turned on. "Krona" - a metal structure to exclude constant reconnaissance control over the movement of the complexes. It has a through gate, which makes it possible to easily maneuver large-sized military equipment. Electric ovens are located near the inner walls of the Krona, which prevent the possibility of thermal imaging detection inside the Krona. When the rocket is launched from the "Krona", metal sheets are thrown from the roof with the help of squibs. The container is raised into the formed "slot" and firing is carried out. On the route of the complex, there were enough of such structures to mislead the tracking enemy.
Main characteristics of RSD-10:
- used rocket 15Ж45;
- range of application from 600 to 5 thousand kilometers;
- KVO 0.55 kilometers;
- the mass of the warhead from the version is from 1500 to 1740 kilograms;
- length 15Ж45 16.49 meters;
- length 15Ж45 in TPK 19.32 meters;
- diameter 179 centimeters;
- weight 15Ж45 37 tons;
- weight of the equipped TPK 42.7 tons;
- PU length, height and width, three meters each;
- drive for lifting TPK - hydraulic type;
- the crew is three people.
Additional Information
According to known American intelligence, as of 1986, the Soviet Union had 441 deployed launchers. According to official data, according to the 1987 treaty on the elimination of the INF Treaty between the Union and the United States, the Union possessed 405 deployed launchers and 245 missiles were stored in arsenals and warehouses. During their operation, the missiles did not experience a single destruction and not a single accident. For all the time, 190 launches of these missiles were made, the total probability of hitting a target is 98 percent.
