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Aviation History
1964
1964 - 1412.PDF
RIGHT International, 7 May I9t4 781 In this year's May Day parade through Moscow approximately 100 rocket- carrying vehicles took part—a record number, by a wide margin. In- cluded was a new tracked chassis carrying a pair of missiles of a type not previously seen. This combination is illustrated in both photographs on t/iis page, and is discussed in the text Missiles and Spaceflight NEW RUSSIAN MISSILE Included in the military parade through Red Square, Moscow, on May Day was a guided weapon not previously seen in public. Carried in pairs on one of the later designs of tracked chassis not previously used in such a role, the missile appears to be employed in a surface-to-air function, although it may well also serve for surface- to-surface bombardment. Aerodynamically the weapon appears to have a cruciform of tapered, unswept moving wings set at 45°, and vertical and hori- zontal tail fins which appear to be fixed. The upper vertical tail fin, however, seems to have some form of spoiler or trailing-edge surface, presumably for roll-stabilization, as well as at least one aerial. Each of the four moving wings has a forward-facing probe on its tip, presumably to sense dynamic pressure and/or angle of attack or yaw, reminiscent of those fitted to the tail surfaces of Soviet fighters. Propulsion is almost certainly by means of an integral ramjet. This arrangement resembles the US Navy's Talos, and would restrict trajectory to below about 120,000ft. Unlike the American wapon, the boost phase is provided by four wrap-round rocket motors mounted on the afterbody. In this respect the Soviet missile follows British practice, and features discernible in the photographs include outward-canted rocket nozzles and circular-wedge motor noses to ensure clean separation. Diameter of the ramjet body seems to be something like 3ft, which is greater than that in any Western weapon. Flight speed is probably of the order of Mach 2 to 2.5. One especially noteworthy feature is the length of cylindrical centrebody ahead of the annular intake. It would be reasonable to suppose that this provides space for the warhead, although it would certainly reduce ramjet performance as a result of the boundary layer forming upstream of the intake. The pointed nose is painted red; it might possibly contain radar. The general appearance of the weapon is clearly shown in the two accompanying photographs. The total number of these missiles included in the parade appears to have been 12 (six vehicles). A French Missile Tracking Station is to be set up in the Azores, under an agreement signed last month between France and Portugal. According to French radio reports, "The base was made necessary by the construction, still in progress, of the Landes Experimental Centre for Ballistic Missiles, at Biscarosse. This base is destined to facilitate experiments with devices that will help in the further development of the French strike force. From Biscarosse tests will be carried out and, so that they may be of value, it is necessary to have a radio station situated along the axis of the missiles' trajectory to pick up telemetry signals. It will permit the gathering of data about the trajectory, the behaviour in flight of the missile and the point of impact. It will also perhaps assist in the recovery of the missile heads." This side view reveals the genera/ proportions of the new Russian weapon, and the manner in which it is carried. The tracked vehicle acts as the launcher, both missiles apparently being elevated to firing angle together °n o central girder. Two ""ss/'/es in the parade carried serial numbers 284565 and 284572 •:•:,_ < "' Jiimiiiii|iiwiiiiiiiii'l[l ifflfflWl1 ""^^"""jf
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