The creation of new weapons and equipment is associated not only with the regular achievement of various successes, but also with difficulties of varying degrees of complexity. One of the direct consequences of this is the shift in the timing of the implementation of individual projects and larger programs in general. One example of such a situation is the development of the latest shipborne anti-aircraft complexes of the Redut family. Even after several years of development and testing, these systems still have not gotten rid of all their shortcomings, which, among other things, interferes with the implementation of the schedule for the launch of the launch vehicles.
According to various sources, the development of the 9K96 Redut air defense system project could start about two decades ago. The goal of the project was to create a new shipborne anti-aircraft complex with a vertical launcher and the ability to intercept air targets at ranges of at least 50-70 km. The development of the new system was carried out by specialists from NPO Almaz, now part of the Almaz-Antey Air and Space Defense Concern. Design work on the "Redoubt" theme was completed not earlier than the middle of the last decade. Subsequently, testing of individual elements of the complex began, followed by checks of the entire system as a whole. In addition, from a certain time, the Redut complex was the basis for a new project of the Vityaz land-based air defense system. In the future, on the basis of "Vityaz" was created another project of the ship-based air defense missile system 9K96-2 "Polyment-Redut".
Corvette "Smart" project 20380
In 2011, the domestic shipbuilding industry completed the installation of the first Redut complex on a standard carrier, which was the Project 20380 Soobrazitelny corvette. A number of 9M96 guided missiles were also manufactured for testing. In the spring of next year, reports appeared in the domestic media about the imminent start of test launches of new missiles from the carrier ship. It was assumed that by the end of 2012, the industry and the fleet will complete testing of the new air defense system, which will open the way for it to mass production and full operation.
Nevertheless, for various reasons, the test program with the participation of "Savvy" was seriously delayed. In addition, it became necessary to conduct additional test launches using ground stands. In 2013, the first 9K96-2 Polyment-Redut complex, which differs from the basic equipment, was installed on a standard carrier represented by the frigate Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov (project 22350). It was planned to start testing the complex of the second model immediately after bringing the carrier ship to the appropriate degree of readiness.
Several years ago, the situation with two air defense systems of the "Redoubt" family looked ambiguous, however, in general, it did not give any particular cause for concern. However, later it became clear that both projects faced the most serious problems that could prevent their quick and complete implementation. For one reason or another, the Redut and Polyment-Redut systems are still not ready for operation. Moreover, problems with anti-aircraft systems prevent the launch of the carrier ships from service, which has already led to several shifts in the timing of their transfer.
According to the latest reports from officials, not so long ago the date of the planned transfer of the frigate "Admiral Gorshkov" was again shifted to the right. Previously, it was assumed that the ship would be delivered at the end of autumn 2016, but later the dates were postponed again. At the end of December last year, it was reported that the ship would enter the Navy over the next few months. On January 25, the domestic press published a new statement by the President of the United Shipbuilding Corporation Alexei Rakhmanov. The head of the organization said that due to the need to continue testing weapons, the delivery of the lead frigate of Project 22350 is postponed to the end of July.
The existing problems with the lead ship, as well as some other factors, have a negative impact on the timing of the construction of the first serial ship of Project 22350. The frigate Admiral of the Fleet Kasatonov is still under construction. It is planned to bring it for testing this summer. The ship will be handed over to the customer no earlier than the end of 2017. Considering that Admiral Gorshkov was founded back in 2006, and the construction of Admiral Kasatonov started in 2009, then the current situation may be a reason for pessimism.
Frigate "Admiral Gorshkov" project 22350
In the context of the construction and testing of Project 22350 frigates, the main factor that had a negative impact on the timing of the work was precisely the problems with the Polyment-Redut anti-aircraft complex. In mid-July last year, the media reported the suspension of testing of this weapon. The reason for the suspension was the current state of the project, namely the impossibility of obtaining the required characteristics. With reference to unnamed sources in the Military-Industrial Commission, it was argued that there was a failure to obtain the required characteristics of the 9M96, 9M96D and 9M100 missiles. It was reported that the latest tests of the air defense system at that time took place in June, but did not give the expected results. The identification of the next design flaws did not allow the tests to continue without failures.
In early August last year, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who oversees the development of promising types of weapons and equipment, said that the Collegium of the military-industrial complex received from the Almaz-Antey concern a package of documents on testing promising anti-aircraft systems for the navy. Information from the transferred documents, however, was not disclosed.
On August 10 - a few days after the announcement of the transfer of documents - it became known that the board of directors of NPO Almaz had made a decision to change the general director of the enterprise. The place of Vitaly Neskorodov's general director was taken by Gennady Bendersky, who previously headed the Lianozovo Electromechanical Plant. According to the official statement of the press service of the enterprise, the reasons for the change of the general director were the systematic failure to fulfill the instructions of the management of the concern, neglect in work and loss of trust.
Soon the Internet edition "Lenta.ru" published information about the possible reason for the change in the leadership of the NGO "Almaz". With reference to unnamed sources in the defense industry, it was asserted that V. Neskorodov was dismissed precisely because of problems with the projects of the Redut family and, in particular, in connection with repeated delays in the commissioning of the complexes. Officials, however, did not comment on such news in any way.
At the end of August, there were new reports on the progress of work on the projects of the Redoubt family. After a long period of setbacks, the military and system developers still managed to carry out effective shooting. On August 25, the Soobrazitelny corvette successfully intercepted a target missile launched from the Geyser small rocket ship. The conditional enemy used electronic countermeasures, because of which the calculation of the "Redut" complex had to operate in a difficult jamming environment. Nevertheless, the conditional target was detected and successfully intercepted.
Rocket launch by Corvette "Savvy"
It should be noted that this was not the first case of the successful use of Redut missiles to hit a conventional target. So, during 2015, the military department reported five times about missile firing, which ended in the defeat of the intended target. Four times, the "Savvy" corvette destroyed conventional targets in the form of cruise missiles of various types. Of particular interest are the tests carried out on October 1, 2015. In the course of these firing, the target of the Redoubt missiles was not an aerial object, but the so-called. marine shield mounted on a surface platform. Despite the difficult jamming environment, the anti-aircraft missile successfully hit a target imitating an enemy ship. Thus, in practice, the possibility of using existing anti-aircraft missiles and in the role of anti-ship missiles was confirmed.
As recent events and reports show, the Redut and Polyment-Redut projects are faced with certain problems that do not yet allow the navy to adopt these complexes. As a result, a sufficiently large number of ships are not yet able to obtain anti-aircraft weapons with the required characteristics and capabilities. Moreover, such problems lead to noticeable delays in the delivery of already built and tested ships.
For obvious reasons, the military department and defense industry enterprises are in no hurry to disclose detailed information about the course of tests and emerging problems. In this regard, all known data on this subject were published by the domestic press with reference to unnamed sources, which may be a reason for doubting their reliability. At the same time, there are some possibilities to determine, if not the essence of the problems, then at least the sphere where they are observed.
The anti-aircraft systems 9K96 "Polyment" and 9K96-2 "Polyment-Redut" should use guided missiles of several types. These are the 9M96, borrowed from the S-400 land-based air defense system, its modified version of the 9M96D and the newer 9M100 with higher characteristics. The use of a unified rocket suggests that there are no significant problems with the 9M96 product, since its design has already been tested within the framework of a previous project. Thus, the source of problems for the entire program may be missiles of two other types, which is confirmed by rumors and not officially confirmed information circulating in the relevant circles over the past several years.
Within the framework of the projects of the Redoubt family, it is proposed to equip the launch vehicle with a universal vertical launcher with the number of cells corresponding to the available space. Depending on the type and size of the ship, it is possible to use a launcher with a capacity of 4 to 12 missiles. The design of the installation makes it possible to place missiles of other types and smaller sizes in each cell with a corresponding change in the composition and dimensions of the ammunition ready for use. Starting is carried out in a cold way, using a starting powder charge. The main engine is started after the rocket leaves the cell.
Launcher while firing
The complexes of the family can use various radar equipment to search for targets and guide missiles. The initial detection of air targets is carried out using the standard radar of the carrier vehicle. Also, radars of the "Polyment" and "Furke-2" types, proposed for use on ships of different projects, should interact with the air defense system. The missiles of the medium and long-range complex must use combined guidance with inertial and radio command control when entering the target area, followed by switching to active radar homing. The 9M100 product, designed to destroy targets at short ranges, is reportedly equipped with an infrared seeker with target acquisition immediately after leaving the launcher.
To attack targets at short ranges, within the range from 1 to 15 km, the 9M100 guided missile has been developed. The fight against air targets at medium range (according to some sources, up to 40-50 km) should be carried out using the 9M96 missile. The task of the 9M96D project and other variants of the medium-range missile is to increase the main characteristics of the power plant to a level that allows it to hit targets at distances of about 100-120 km.
According to the news of recent months, the projects of the 9K96 Redut and 9K96-2 Polyment-Redut naval anti-aircraft systems faced serious problems, apparently related to new types of missiles. This led to noticeable delays in the implementation of existing plans and repeated delays in the completion of both the projects themselves and directly related programs. Apparently, it is precisely because of the problems of the Polyment-Redut complex that the fleet still cannot receive the lead ship of project 22350, Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov. In addition, if the existing problems persist for some time, similar consequences are possible for the "Admiral of the Fleet Kasatonov".
Nevertheless, the current situation, which is a cause for serious concern, is still not devoid of preconditions for restrained optimism. After numerous failures and even a change in the leadership of the development organization, two promising projects show some positive results. Various plans still have to be adjusted, but now there is a real opportunity to meet the newly established deadlines.
At the moment, it is safe to say that the Russian navy will no longer give up the anti-aircraft systems of the Redoubt family. Despite all the problems, the new air defense means will be brought into service, full-scale serial production and operation on new ships. However, previous problems, even after getting rid of them, will still remind of themselves. First of all, they will manifest themselves in the form of a later formation of a ship group with new weapons. In addition, it should be noted that abandoning new projects at the current stages no longer makes sense, which is why the development of weapons should continue until the required results are obtained.
Despite all the existing and identified problems, the two types of anti-aircraft systems will still be brought to operation by the fleet, although the timing of this can still be a matter of controversy. According to the latest data, the first sample of the "Polyment-Redut" complex together with the carrier ship "Admiral Gorshkov" will be handed over to the fleet in the middle of this summer. The delivery of a new type of lead frigate with advanced armament will become an important event both in the context of the projects of the Redoubt family and in the entire modern history of the Russian fleet.
