A lot of discussion on the Russian Internet was caused by the news about the impending acquisition of operational combat readiness of the heavy ultra-long-range hypersonic air-to-air missile R-37M, which should become the largest caliber for gaining air supremacy in the ammunition of the 5th generation Su-57 multifunctional fighters … Nevertheless, the admission of a pilot batch of these products to the combat units of the Aerospace Forces equipped with the first serial Su-57, announced by Boris Obnosov, the general director of the Tactical Missile Armament Corporation, during a conversation with Interfax journalists, is unfortunately section of high-profile news in the field of the formation of the Aerospace Forces of Russia. And there are several very good reasons for this.
Firstly, taking into account the July statement of the chairman of the State Duma commission on legal support for the development of military-industrial complex organizations Vladimir Gutenev, which was far from being remembered in the best light, about the alleged "unjustified high cost of serial production of the Su-57 and the provision of delicate services of these machines", as well as information from the Deputy Minister defense of Alexei Krivoruchko on the transfer of only 2 PAK FA to the Lipetsk 4th Center for Combat Use and Retraining of Air Force flight personnel in 2019, it is easy to assume that in the same European theater of operations, replete with hundreds of modern transitional fighters (F-16C / D Block 52+, "Rafal" and "Typhoon"), the "bundle" of two "Sushki" and 8 R-37M in their internal bays of weapons will not make much of the weather. The maximum that can be counted on from such a small link in combat conditions is, for example, the destruction of one or a pair of radar patrol aircraft and E-3A / C guidance with the help of R-37M missiles, as well as the interception of a couple of F-15E " Strike Eagle”and the F-35A using medium-range air-to-air missiles.
Secondly, the R-37M URVB does not belong to the promising types of air-launched interceptor missiles, but is only an improved modification of the already well-known R-37 ultra-long-range air-to-air missile (RVV-BD), developed on the basis of the R-33 / C for integration into the armament control complex of the MiG-31BM long-range interceptor, which provides for hardware and software synchronization of the Product 610M with the powerful on-board radar system Zaslon-AM. As a result, the optional R-37M upgrade package, in comparison with the conventional R-37, includes only a more advanced data exchange bus, which allows it to be used not only in the KUV and the ammunition load of the modernized Foxhound, but in the armament kits of the stealthy Su-57 fighters. as well as machines of the transitional generation "4 ++" Su-30SM and Su-35S. At the same time, the slightly modified brainchild of the state machine-building design bureau Vympel, apparently, has retained all the design features (and hence disadvantages) of the R-33S / R-37 missiles, which will make it possible to effectively use it only for eliminating air - strategic means of information support of the enemy (drones RQ-4A / B "Global Hawk", MQ-4C, aircraft RTR RC-135V / W, radar reconnaissance E-8C, etc.), as well as tactical fighters carrying suspension full combat load in the shock version and possessing mediocre maneuverability.
The fact is that, despite the maximum speed on the cruising section of the trajectory of 6M (6380 km / h), the design safety margin of the R-37M allows it to realize its own overload of only 20-22 units, which causes the maximum overload of the target to be hit by 7 -8 units Moreover, such an indicator can be achieved only when the P-37M's flight speed is about 1700 km / h or more. Conclusion: if a maneuvering enemy fighter will fly in low-altitude or medium-altitude mode, then it will be extremely difficult to intercept it when launched from a distance of 250-300 km, since the R-37M moving along an aeroballistic trajectory will use up the solid fuel charge of the engine at the beginning of the cruising section of the trajectory, which means that when returning to the dense layers of the stratosphere and troposphere, the interceptor rocket will lose speed at a galloping pace due to aerodynamic braking, which will ultimately reduce its maneuverability to zero. Of course, the mass of 600 kg contributes to the partial preservation of the speed parameters of the rocket in the dense layers of the atmosphere, but the diameter of the body of 380 mm, which provides a high coefficient of aerodynamic drag, is still a defining characteristic in the deterioration of the energy parameters of the R-37M at distances close to the maximum radius of action.
As for the onboard radio-electronic equipment of the rocket, in particular, the active radar seeker, then, at first glance, everything is quite good. Active radar homing head 9B-1103M-350 "Washer" with an antenna blade diameter of 350 mm (installed on a standard R-37) allows you to capture a target with an RCS of 1.5 square meters. m (F / A-18E / F "Super Hornet" with suspension) at a distance of 30 km, while the frequency of a higher-performance on-board computer reaches 50 MHz, and conventional mechanical gyroscopes are replaced by fiber-optic and mechanical ones with forced launch.
The developer claims that the range of the radio correction channel from the carrier of the standard R-37 reaches only 100 km (1/3 of the range). This means that, starting from a distance of 100 km, the R-37 (and possibly the R-37M) switches to semi-active radar homing, which can be disrupted by means of modern electronic warfare stations such as AN / ALQ-249 "Next Generation Jammer" which will soon be equipped with US-based carrier-based electronic warfare aircraft EA-18G "Growler". Consequently, the R-37 / M will switch to the inertial guidance mode with all the ensuing consequences, one of which is the error in reaching a target that does not stand still. And if at the moment of convergence with the target at a distance of 30-40 km the scanning cone of the seeker "Washer" covers the latter (this may not happen), then a "re-capture" will occur, allowing the interception to continue. But this will require a sharp maneuver of the R-37M, which will deprive the rocket of another 15-20% of its speed. There will be nothing to compensate for this loss, since the solid propellant rocket charge has been used up. Here are the main disadvantages of the AA-13 "ARROW". It makes no sense to exaggerate the problem of the large EPR R-37M, which makes it vulnerable to ship-based missiles SM-6 (RIM-174 ERAM) and air combat missiles AIM-120C-7 / D; this has been known to specialists for a long time. It's time to recall another long-range air combat missile, which was forgotten by the Ministry of Defense and the Russian Aerospace Forces.
We are talking about the unique "Product 180-PD" (air-to-air missile RVV-AE-PD), equipped with an integral ramjet rocket engine that allows maintaining the highest maneuverability and speed even at critical distances close to the range. This product, development and research work on which was completed back in 2012, could not only complement the far from brilliant capabilities of the R-37M in the fight against enemy tactical aircraft, but also fend off the threat from similar British MBDA “Meteor” missiles. ", Which have already outstripped our serial RVV-SD and R-27ER for a long time. The possibility of regulating the supply of the gas generator to the IRPD by means of a special valve in front of the combustion chamber would make it possible to maintain flight at a moderate speed of 2, 7-3M for more than 140-150 km from the point of release from the suspension unit, after which the full supply of fuel was opened, and the rocket accelerated to 4, 3-4, 7M, which would ensure the interception of even maneuvering anti-ship missiles at a distance of 170 km. Nevertheless, neither the Vympel people (against the background of the lack of funding), nor the Ministry of Defense are still in no hurry to implement this wonderful project, and this is alarming …
