One of the meanings of the English word Club is “club”. And this is a very appropriate name for the Russian Club-K missile weapons container complex. Appearing out of nowhere, the Russian “club” can quickly calm down any unruly aggressor.
Imagine an early summer morning somewhere on the coast of Latin America or Southeast Asia. Or Africa. A light breeze from the ocean, leisurely waves, lush greenery, an old steamboat, which just as leisurely chugs somewhere along the shore with several shabby containers on board... But this idyll is unexpectedly disrupted by a group of ships of an unexpected aggressor, who predatory and treacherously decided to attack peaceful and friendly Latin American (African, etc.) workers, whose whole “guilt” was that uranium, diamonds, oil, gas or something similar were found on their lands. And to protect this “good”, they recently bought a few Kalashnikov assault rifles (AK) from old friends in a distant northern country….. Introduced? Now imagine that enemy ships are coming closer and closer. And it seems that nothing, not even AK, can save a small but proud country from the inevitable enslavement of the mercenaries of the shark of world imperialism! But what is this?! The shabby containers on the deck of the old steamship suddenly open up and from there, a few moments later, cruise missiles are launched, which rapidly rush over the surface of the water towards the enemy fleet, which has believed in its impunity. And while he, stunned by the suddenness of the attack, frantically tries to intercept the missile “slap” from the old vessel, another swarm of anti-ship missiles rises from the shore - from those containers where, according to enemy intelligence, local fishermen lived only yesterday. The aggressor is in panic! His fleet is sinking fast! The admiral is still trying to turn around his flagship, half-dead from a missile attack, in order to get away from these inhospitable shores. But at this moment, the adversary’s flagship receives a couple of torpedoes from an unknown submarine that came from nowhere, and that’s where it all ends. The enemy fleet is destroyed. The peaceful and hardworking people of a small but proud southern country are fishing out the surviving sailors and paratroopers of the aggressor from the ocean, and glorifying the wisdom of their leaders, who quietly bought from their big northern brother not only Kalashnikov assault rifles, but also Club-K container missile systems.
Making the “club” There has never been a battle like the one described above. Just as there was no unidentified submarine, which put an end to the attempt of a hypothetical aggressor to attack a hypothetical peaceful country. But the Club-K missile weapons container complex itself, of course, exists. And it works approximately as described at the beginning of this material. Adjusted for the fact that, for example, the Kh-35UE anti-ship missile, which is included in its composition, is designed to destroy surface targets with a displacement of up to 5000 tons. That is, it is, of course, unlikely to seriously hit the George W. Bush aircraft carrier with a displacement of 99,000 tons, even if it breaks through to it. But a frigate of the Oliver Hazard Peri class is guaranteed to be destroyed. But first things first. The new Russian Club missile system first became publicly known at the beginning of this century. And this was connected with the creation of the Novator Design Bureau (Ekaterinburg) of a new Russian tactical cruise missile based on the Kalibr design and development project.
To be fair, it must be said that the rocket itself, called “Alpha,” was presented back in 1993 at the Moscow Aerospace Salon and at an arms exhibition in Abu Dhabi. But integral missile systems for hitting various types of ships and ground (shore) structures Club-N (based on surface ships), Club-S (based on submarines), Club-M (self-propelled launcher on land), Club-U ( the possibility of placement on ships of small displacement) appeared at the end of the last - beginning of the present centuries. Their development was the Club-K container missile weapons complex, the concept of which in export version was first shown to the general public at the LIMA-2009 arms salon. Two years later, the Russian concern Morinformsystem-Agat presented a full-scale prototype at exhibitions and is now ready to produce this missile system in series. The Club-K's combat capabilities are, in fact, the quintessence of the entire Club family of missile systems developed in Russia. It is designed to destroy both surface ships of various classes and types, as well as ground and coastal targets.
The main element of the new missile system is a universal launch module, designed in the form of a standard 20 or 40-foot sea container. It contains 4 missiles. A vertical launch launcher is provided for 3M-54KE, 3M-54KE1, 3M-14KE missiles, and an inclined launcher for Kh-35UE missiles. The starting module is completely autonomous and already constitutes an independent combat unit. However, the complete set of the Club-K complex, in addition to containers with missiles, consists of three more containers, one of which houses the fire control system, the other contains combat control, communications and navigation equipment, and the third contains power supply, life support and fire extinguishing systems. So, what can it do, this Russian “container club”? The 3M-54TE and 3M-54TE1 missiles developed by Novator are used against surface ships of all classes and types, both single and as part of a group, in conditions of strong electronic and fire countermeasures. The firing range of the first missile is up to 220 km, the second - up to 300 km (all tactical and technical characteristics are given according to open sources published on the export versions of these missiles). 3M-54TE1 carries a high-explosive charge of 400 kg, but moves at subsonic speed. The 3M-54TE has half the charge, but when approaching the target it reaches a speed almost three times the speed of sound. The onboard control system of the 3M-54TE/3M-54TE1 missiles is built on the basis of an autonomous inertial navigation system. Pre-launch preparation, formation and input of a flight mission are carried out by a universal control system. Guidance on the final section of the trajectory is done using a noise-resistant active radar homing head (ARGS-54), which has a maximum range of up to 65 km.
Since during the final flight segment, which is about 20 km long, the combat stage of the 3M-54TE missile is reduced to a height of up to 10 m, the ARGS-54 can operate in sea conditions up to 6 points. The 3M-14TE missile is, in fact, an analogue of the 3M-54TE1 missile. But it has a high-explosive fragmentation warhead weighing 450 kg, therefore it is designed to destroy command and control facilities, air defense systems, airfields, military equipment and manpower in areas of concentration, naval bases and other important military and civilian infrastructure at a distance of up to 300 km. After launch, it flies along a predetermined route, built taking into account reconnaissance data on the position of the target and the presence of air defense systems at the enemy. The missile is capable of traversing zones of the enemy's developed air defense system, which is ensured by low flight altitudes (20 m above the sea, 50-150 m above the ground) with terrain contouring and guidance autonomy in the “silent” mode in the main area. Correction of the flight path on the cruising section is carried out according to data from the satellite navigation subsystem and the terrain correction subsystem. Guidance on the final section of the trajectory - 20 km, is also carried out using an anti-jam active radar homing head (ARGS-14E), which effectively identifies low-visibility small targets against the background of the underlying surface. In 2011, at the IMDS-2011 exhibition, Russian companies also demonstrated the Club-K version with Kh-35 missiles, which were developed by the Zvezda Design Bureau to replace the outdated Termits and are now successfully used as part of the Uran ship systems (SS- N-25 "Switchblade") and coastal missile systems "Bal" (SSC-6 "Sennight"). Of course, the mass of its warhead - 145 kg, is significantly inferior to the mass of the warheads of the 3M-54KE, 3M-54KE1, 3M-14KE missiles. But it will be enough to sink not only the frigate, but also some of the destroyers. In addition, the Kh-35UE modification of this missile now flies to a range of 260 km, although the length of the missile in the ship version is still less than 4.5 meters. Therefore, to place it in a container version, a 20-foot container is sufficient. And although this missile is still subsonic, its new homing head will make it possible to capture targets at a range of 50 km. Asymmetrical response The main advantage of the new Russian Club-K missile system is stealth and surprise. Today, in all corners of the world, billions of standard 40 and 20-foot containers are moved every hour and every day in various directions. Transport companies in China alone have more than 100 million units.
And in appearance, containers with Club-K are no different from others. They don’t even “sound”, so the missile “filling” can only be detected if such a container is opened or it starts working. And these weapons can be placed anywhere - on a car trailer, on a railway, on any cargo ship, just in a warehouse on the shore. Therefore, the appearance of such weapons caused an explosion of emotions in the Western press. “The Russian Club-K missile system will completely change the rules of war and lead to a large-scale proliferation of ballistic missiles,” said the British The Daily Telegraph. “One of the Russian companies is marketing a new combat system with cruise missiles, which has enormous destructive power. This installation can be hidden in a sea container, which makes it possible for any merchant ship to destroy an aircraft carrier,” echoed Reuters. In fact, the idea of camouflaging missiles is, of course, not new. Soviet engineers successfully, for example, camouflaged Scalpel intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) with a firing range of more than 10 thousand km under the guise of an ordinary cargo and passenger train (the famous Soviet combat railway missile systems “Molodets”, the production of which is now being revived in Russia). In the early 80s of the last century, the Soviet Union also conducted experiments on basing Ka-27 helicopters and Yak-38 attack aircraft not only on ships, but also on civilian vessels. At the same time, the Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering began to work on the idea of placing a small-sized Courier ICBM in a cargo container, but this work was stopped under US pressure in 1991 and the then leader of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev announced that the Soviet Union would no longer work on the creation of small-sized intercontinental ballistic missiles. But the followers of the Soviet engineering school were still able to place the missiles in a standard cargo container. And even though this is not an ICBM, but a tactical cruise missile (more precisely, there are 4 of them in each container), this does not make the success any less. Moreover, in this form, Russian missiles will find their buyer faster.
First of all, among those countries that cannot, are not ready or do not want to spend a lot of money on creating large armed forces and adhere to a defensive strategy. Because the Club-K complex is, first of all, a means of defense rather than attack. It is, of course, possible to use this complex as an attack weapon, but there are much cheaper and more effective means for this type of combat. But repelling an enemy attack, using the advantage in stealth and surprise, is just right for Club-K. Because even an enemy with superior strength will first think about whether he should attack at all if he can suddenly get hit in the ear with a “club” arriving from nowhere. “When starting to develop the Club-K missile system, we proceeded from the understanding that not all states have the opportunity to maintain in their fleet such expensive “toys” as corvettes, frigates, destroyers, cruisers and other powerful, well-equipped missile weapons ships.
However, no one has the right to deprive them of the opportunity to ensure their sovereignty. At the same time, the potential aggressor must really understand that he can receive unacceptable damage for himself,” the Morinformsystem-Agat concern once outlined the ideology for creating this missile system. Of course, Club-K does not completely replace the Navy and Naval Aviation. But for poor states with a long coastal strip, it allows you to build an optimal and highly effective defense system that can change its configuration very quickly, flexibly, and most importantly, unnoticed by a potential enemy. And none of the world’s arms manufacturers, except our gunsmiths, can now offer such a defense option.
The so-called throw tests of the Kh-35UE missile, fired from launchers located in a standard cargo container of the Club-K complex, were successfully completed. The launch took place on August 22 at one of the specialized test sites.
The X-35 anti-ship missile is distinguished by its stealth and flight to the target at an altitude of no more than fifteen meters, and at the final part of the trajectory - four meters. The combined homing system and powerful warhead allow one missile to destroy a warship with a displacement of 5,000 tons.
Roll tests are the first stage of testing any missiles. It becomes clear whether the launch preparation algorithms have been developed correctly, how the product itself reacts to given commands, and in general whether the missile is capable of leaving the launcher without any problems.
Unfortunately, we have developed a strange practice. Tanks, missiles, airplanes are still in the drawings, but it is already stated that they will definitely be put into service with a specific date indicated. All dates pass, years fly by, but the promised miracle weapon is still not there. So the belated message about the successful launch of a rocket from the Club-K container gives hope that the work is going on schedule and in the right direction. That is, there was a thorough check of the results obtained, and only after that the success was publicly announced.
| Video: Sergey Ptichkin / RG |
For the first time, a prototype of this missile system was shown at a military-technical salon in Malaysia in 2009. He immediately created a sensation. The fact is that Club-K is a standard 20- and 40-foot cargo containers that are transported on ships, by rail or by trailers. Inside the containers there are command posts and launchers with multi-purpose missiles such as Kh-35UE, 3M-54E and 3M-14E, capable of hitting both surface and ground targets.
Any container ship carrying a Club-K is essentially a missile carrier with a devastating salvo. And any train with such containers or a convoy of heavy-duty container carriers are powerful missile units capable of appearing where the enemy is not waiting.
Nothing like this has been developed either in the USA or in Western Europe. At first, adherents of world order were even indignant, expressing concern that such containers with missile surprises could fall into the hands of terrorists, which is unacceptable. Later, however, they calmed down, which is natural - Russia does not trade weapons with terrorists.
But allegations have emerged that the developers of the original missile system are simply bluffing, trying to push a dummy onto the world market. According to Western engineers, it is physically impossible to place four launchers and a control cabin in the limited space of a cargo container, and the Russians are definitely not able to do this.
Successful tests on August 22 showed that Club-K is not a fiction, but a real combat system. As RG learned, similar tests are now being prepared with 3M-54E and 3M-14E missiles. By the way, the 3M-54E missile is capable of destroying even an aircraft carrier. Moreover. It is planned that the Club-K mobile missile systems will take part in the large-scale exercises "Caucasus-2012", that is, their military tests are beginning.
By the way, the English word Club has several Russian synonyms: club, container and club. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the new “Dubina” turned out to be not a primitive weapon at all, but one of the most high-tech missile systems in the modern world.
... the fight was inevitable. At 17:28, the signalmen lowered the Dutch flag, and a banner with a swastika flew up on the gaff - at the same moment the raider “Cormoran” (German cormorant) fired a point-blank salvo from its six-inch guns and a torpedo tube.
The mortally wounded Australian cruiser Sydney, with her last effort, fired three shells into the German bandit and, engulfed in flames from bow to stern, left the battle. On the raider, the situation was also bad - the shells pierced the Kormoran (the former diesel-electric ship Steiermark) and disabled the power plant transformers. The raider lost speed and extensive fires broke out. At night, the Germans had to abandon the ship, at which time the glow of the dying Sydney was still visible on the horizon...
317 German sailors landed on the coast of Australia and, observing exemplary order, surrendered; the further fate of the cruiser "Sydney" is unknown - none of the 645 people on its crew escaped. Thus ended a unique naval battle on November 19, 1941, in which an armed civilian ship sank a real cruiser.
Where would a smart person hide the sheet? In the forest
The container complex of the Club-K missile is externally a set of three standard 20- or 40-foot cargo containers, which house a universal launch module, a combat control module and a power supply and auxiliary systems module. The original technical solution makes the “Club” practically undetectable until the moment of its use. The cost of the kit is half a billion rubles (frankly speaking, not so little - the Mi-8 helicopter, for example, costs the same).
"Club" uses a wide range of ammunition: Kh-35 "Uran" anti-ship missiles, 3M-54TE, 3M-54TE1 and 3M-14TE missiles of the "Caliber" complex to destroy surface and ground targets. The Club-K complex can be equipped with coastal positions, surface ships and vessels of various classes, railway and automobile platforms.
Analogs
In a broad sense, the practice of concealing weapons has been known since the birth of Humanity.
In the narrow sense, there are no analogues to the Club complex.
ABL on the stern of the nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser USS Mississippi
Of the systems closest in purpose, I could only remember the armored launcher Armored Box Launcher (ABL) for launching Tomahawks. ABLs were installed in the 80s on Spruance-class destroyers, battleships, as well as on the helipads of nuclear-powered cruisers of the Virginia and Long Beach class. Of course, no versatility was provided - the ABL was a compact box-type launcher and was used exclusively on warships. ABL was withdrawn from service after the introduction of the new Mark-41 UVP.
Club-K for attack
If a samurai takes his sword 5 centimeters out of its sheath, he must stain it with blood. The ability to kill an enemy in one movement, only momentarily showing the weapon and hiding it back, was considered especially chic. These ancient rules best describe Soviet "special purpose trains." The RT-23UTTH “Molodets” railway-based strategic missile system was guaranteed to provide the enemy with a “one-way ticket.”
The developers of the Club complex often draw an analogy between their product and the RT-23UTTH. But here there is the following “nuance”: the railway complex with the “Molodets” ICBM is designed for a preventive/retaliatory nuclear strike in the event of a global war; it is understood that a second shot will no longer be required. Such weapons must be hidden and camouflaged whenever possible, so that at the right moment they can suddenly be “snatched from their sheaths” and hit an enemy on the other side of the Earth with one blow.
Unlike the truly formidable RT-23UTTH, the Club complex is a tactical weapon and its power is not so great that it can finish off enemy forces with one, ten or even a hundred launches.
During Desert Storm, the US Navy fired 1,000 Tomahawk cruise missiles at Iraqi positions. But the use of a colossal number of Tomahawks did not decide the outcome of the local war - another 70,000 air combat sorties were needed to “consolidate” the resulting effect!
What, in fact, prevented the Coalition forces from continuing to fire at Iraqi positions with Tomahawks? The exorbitant price of cruise missiles is $1.5 million! For comparison: the cost of one hour of flight of an F-16 fighter-bomber is 7 thousand dollars. The cost of a laser-guided bomb is from 19 thousand dollars. A combat sortie of an aircraft costs tens of times less than a cruise missile, while a tactical bomber does its “job” better, more quickly, and can carry out strikes from an “airborne duty” position.
The use of cruise missiles against conventional targets is too ineffective and wasteful: Tomahawks are always used only in conjunction with aviation and ground forces, as an auxiliary means for suppressing air defenses and destroying critical targets in the first days of the war. Therefore, during local operations, the Club missile system loses its advantage - stealth. What is the point of disguising a launcher as a cargo container if, over the course of several months, thousands of armored vehicles, a million soldiers and hundreds of warships are transferred to the operation area in front of the whole world (this is exactly how much effort was required to carry out Desert Storm). Simply installing several “Club” kits on a container ship and organizing a trip to the shores of a “probable enemy” is pointless from a military point of view.
Club-K on defense
Specialists of JSC Concern Morinformsystem-Agat are positioning their Club missile system on the world market as an ideal weapon for developing countries - simple, powerful, and most importantly, it implements the principle of “asymmetry” so beloved by Russian designers - for example, the annual volume of transportation in China has more than 75 million standard containers! It is impossible to find three containers with a “surprise” in such a cargo flow.
The unprecedented secrecy of the Club complex allows, in theory, to equalize the chances of strong and weak armies. In practice, the situation is somewhat more complicated: a set of three “standard 40-foot containers” is not a weapon in itself, because The Club missile system faces an acute problem of external target designation and communications.
20-foot Club-K container with launcher for launching Uran anti-ship missiles
The armies of the NATO bloc are well aware that target designation and communications are stumbling blocks for the developers of any weapon, therefore they are taking unprecedented measures to destroy enemy communications - in zones of local conflicts the sky is buzzing with radio reconnaissance and electronic warfare aircraft. Radars, radio towers, command centers and communications centers are the first to be hit. Aviation, using special ammunition, disables electrical substations and de-energizes entire areas, depriving the enemy of the opportunity to use mobile and telephone communications.
It is naive to rely on the GPS system - NATO specialists know how to ruin the enemy’s life: during the aggression in Yugoslavia, GPS was turned off all over the world. The American army can easily do without this system - the Tomahawks are aimed using TERCOM, a system that independently scans the terrain; aviation can use radio beacons and military radio navigation systems. This situation was corrected only with the advent of Russia’s own global positioning system, Glonass.
High-quality data for developing a combat mission for a cruise missile can only be obtained from spacecraft or reconnaissance aircraft. The second point is excluded immediately - in a local war, air supremacy will immediately pass to the stronger side. All that remains is to receive data from the satellite, but here the question arises about the possibility of receiving information in conditions of severe electronic suppression, and working electronics unmask the position of tactical missiles.
An important factor is that the cargo turnover of standard 40-foot containers in third world countries (namely, they are the promising customers of the Club complex) is quite limited. The above figure of 75 million refers only to China with its super-industry and billion-dollar population. The USA, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea, and Eurozone countries are the main operators of “standard 40-foot containers.”
Container terminal in New Jersey
Three containers standing among the African slums will immediately arouse suspicion, given that the processing and analysis of satellite images is carried out by a computer, which instantly notes all the nuances. 12-meter containers cannot appear in the right place on their own - trailers and a truck crane are needed - such fuss will immediately attract attention. Moreover, now any military specialist in the world knows that the containers may contain the Club complex (in principle, suspicious containers can contain any weapon, so they should be destroyed).
And the third question: against what targets in a defensive operation can the Club complex be used? Against advancing tank columns? But the loss of one or two tanks will not affect the aggressor’s advance in any way. Against enemy airfields? But they are far away, and the maximum firing range of Caliber missiles is 300 km. Attacks on landing sites on the coast? It's a good idea, but even without taking into account the possibility of a breach, several missiles with a 400 kg warhead will not cause serious damage.
Club-K as an anti-ship weapon
The most realistic option for using a missile system. Several containers on the coast can provide control of territorial waters and strait zones; protection of naval bases and coastal infrastructure, as well as provide cover in landing areas.
The problems are still the same - shooting at maximum range is possible only with the use of external target designation. Under normal conditions, the detection range of surface targets is limited by the radio horizon (30...40 kilometers).
But then, what is the difference between the Club complex and the Bal-E mobile coastal missile systems already put into service? There is only one difference - secrecy. But visual secrecy is not the most reliable means. In combat conditions, an activated radar clearly reveals the location of a missile position, and electronic reconnaissance aircraft can detect the operation of the complex’s electronic equipment.
On the other hand, self-propelled Bal-Es on a cross-country chassis can be made up to look like anything and hidden in any port hangar. Bal-E, like Club, can use Kh-35 Uran anti-ship missiles. In principle, the experience of original camouflage of missile positions has been known since Vietnam, and this does not require buying a launcher for half a billion rubles.
To guess which Club-K containers are in, you will have to sink a beautiful ship
As for the idea of installing containers on small ships and container ships, using them in the ocean as ersatz missile carriers to destroy naval ships of a “probable enemy,” the practice of installing weapons on merchant ships has been known since the time of Columbus’s caravels. At the beginning of the article, a case was given of the successful use of a civilian ship by the Germans - the Cormoran, using the factor of surprise and the carelessness of the Sydney crew, launched a preemptive strike and destroyed a large warship.
But... with the development of aviation and radar equipment, the idea of a “raider” disappeared into oblivion. Equipped with modern electronics, carrier-based and base patrol aircraft check hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of the ocean surface in an hour - a lone raider will no longer be able to so easily disappear into the vast expanses of the sea.
Dreaming of an “attack container ship”, in one of the containers of which the launcher of the Club system is hidden, the following problems need to be solved: firstly, who will give the container ship target designation at a range of 200 kilometers? Secondly, a container ship that appears in a combat zone can be easily boarded or destroyed as posing a potential threat. For the US Navy, this is a common event - in 1988, American sailors shot down an Air Iran passenger Airbus and did not even apologize. Do not forget that the container ship does not have any means of self-defense (and their installation immediately unmasks a civilian ship), and during Operation Desert Storm, the US Navy and the Royal Navy of Great Britain shot everyone in the combat zone for no reason. craft larger than a boat - British Lynx helicopters were especially rampant, destroying many patrol boats and trawlers converted into minesweepers using miniature Sea Skua missiles.
Conclusion
The wise Lao Tzu once said: “Sending unprepared people into battle means betraying them.” I am categorically against any “asymmetrical” means. In modern conditions, their use leads to even greater human losses, because no “cheap asymmetric means” can withstand a well-equipped and trained army, air force and navy. I am all for the development of real combat systems and the construction of real warships, and not “container ships with missiles.”
As for the prospects of the original Club-K missile system (“an accessible strategic weapon” according to its creators), I have no right to draw any conclusions here. If Club-K is successful on the world market, then this will be the best refutation of all military theories, although these are already problems of the Open Joint Stock Company Concern Morinformsystem-Agat.
Much more pleasant is the fact that cruise missiles of the Kalibr family have a diameter of 533 mm, which means they are adapted for launching from torpedo tubes of Russian nuclear-powered Shchukas. This is a real Russian combat system!
Note. The German auxiliary cruiser Cormoran was a large ship with a total displacement of 8,700 tons. The fuel supply allowed him to circle the globe four times (without any nuclear reactors!). The raider's armament is 6 x 150 mm guns, 6 torpedo tubes, 2 seaplanes, a hundred sea mines.
CONTAINER MISSILE WEAPON COMPLEX “CLUB-K”
CONTAINER COMPLEX MISSILE WEAPONS “CLUB-K”
The CLUB-K mobile-modular missile system, which has no analogues in the world, opens a new page in the creation of a new generation of defensive weapons. It was developed by JSC Concern Morinformsystem-Agat.
By developing this system, our country not only proved that it can create and bring to market fundamentally new weapons systems in the shortest possible time. Domestic specialists have actually opened a revolutionary direction in the design of military equipment.
The Club-K containerized missile system is designed to destroy surface and ground targets with cruise missiles. The Club-K complex can be equipped with coastal positions, surface ships and vessels of various classes, railway and automobile platforms. Functionally, the Club-K complex consists of a Universal Launch Module (USM), a Combat Control Module (CCU) and a Power Supply and Life Support Module (MES). The Universal Launch Module houses a lifting launcher for 4 missiles. The USM is designed for preparing and launching missiles from transport and launch containers.
The Club-K containerized missile system is designed to engage surface and ground targets with 3M-54TE, 3M-54TE1 and 3M-14TE cruise missiles.
The Club-K complex can be equipped with coastal positions, surface ships and vessels of various classes, railway and automobile platforms.
The Club-K complex is housed in a standard 40-foot sea container.
Functionally, the Club-K complex consists of a Universal Launch Module (USM), a Combat Control Module (CCU) and a Power Supply and Life Support Module (MES).
The Universal Launch Module houses a lifting launcher for 4 missiles. The USM is designed for preparing and launching missiles from transport and launch containers.
MoBU provides:
— daily maintenance and routine checks of missiles;
— receiving control center and firing commands;
— calculation of initial shooting data;
— conducting pre-launch preparations;
— development of flight missions and launch of cruise missiles.
MoBU and MES can be structurally designed and manufactured in the form of separate standard sea containers.
PECULIARITIES:
— Possibility of use from any land and sea platforms
— Prompt delivery and installation on a carrier or shore position
— Defeat surface and ground targets
— Possibility of increasing ammunition load
Missiles used
3M-54KE (3M-54TE) and 3M-54KE1 - cruise missiles for hitting surface targets;
3M-14KE (3M-14TE) - cruise missiles for hitting ground targets;
Kh-35UE - cruise missiles for destroying surface targets.
The Club-K missile system was first presented by the Russian Novator Design Bureau at the Asian Defense Systems Exhibition LIMA-2009, held from April 19 to April 22, 2009 in Malaysia. At the II International Military Exhibition and Conference "DIMDEX-2010", held on March 29–31, 2010 in Doha (Qatar), the Russian exposition presented data on new systems of the Club missile family. These are the Club-M coastal missile system, the Club-U modular missile system and the Club-K container missile system.
JSC Concern Morinformsystem-Agat presented a unique open exposition at IMDS-2011 in St. Petersburg, and then at MAKS-2011 in Zhukovsky, where full-scale samples of the newest containerized missile weapons system “Club-K” were presented for the first time in two versions versions: 40-foot container with 3M-54TE, 3M-54TE1 and 3M-14TE missiles; 20-foot container with Kh-35UE missiles. As it became known, “Club-K” recently returned from the training ground.
At the exhibition “Technologies in Mechanical Engineering - 2012”, the Morinformsystem-Agat Concern showed the KKRO and demonstrated the possibility of using the latest Kh-35UE cruise missile with a target designation and target detection system. Functionally, the Club-K complex includes a universal launch module (USM), a combat control module (CMCU) and a power supply and life support module (MES). In general, the system can be made in a single-module design.
NPO PROGRESS LLC offers a technical solution for the use of the GALS-D2-4 type missile weapon in container complexes of the Club-K type, which includes a high-precision inertial-satellite system that performs the functions of high-precision topographic location with an accuracy of no worse than 0.7 d.u. , guidance and navigation.
At the International Forum "Technologies in Mechanical Engineering-2012", OJSC "CDB "Titan" demonstrated to specialists one of its recent developments, the universal launch module of the "Club-K" missile weapons container complex. He was represented by the General Director and General Designer of OJSC Central Design Bureau Titan, Doctor of Technical Sciences Viktor Shurygin. “We participated in this show together with the main developer of this complex, the Russian concern Morinformsystem - Agat. “Live” technology is not photographs, not models, or even films; the effectiveness of viewing it is always immeasurably higher. But domestic manufacturers cannot afford to constantly transport large-sized samples of their products over long distances. And in this sense, the next forum in Zhukovsky is especially important for all participants and guests,” V. Shurygin commented on the situation.
Successful throw tests of the Club-K container missile system with the Kh-35UE missile took place in September 2012, said a source at the Morinformsystem-Agat concern, which conducted the tests. “The throwing test program has been completed in full. Experts assess them as successful,” the source said.
According to him, similar tests of the Club-K complex with 3M-54E and 3M-14E missiles will be carried out in the near future.
“The tests have once again shown that customers are offered not a model or mock-up, but an operating container missile system, which allows turning any ship into a missile ship,” he said. He recalled that the Club-K complex was demonstrated at a number of international exhibitions and aroused great interest among foreign customers.
The Club-K complex is housed in a standard railway container. It can only be detected during a missile launch, when the complex is brought into combat readiness. At other times, it looks like an ordinary railway container.
According to the head of the concern where CLUB-K was developed, Georgy Antsev, the era of modular weapons is coming. Combat systems will be assembled from unique cubes. And Russia is becoming a kind of trendsetter in this direction.
The idea of placing various combat systems in special mobile modules is not new. However, only we guessed to use standard containers - 20 and 40 feet - as such modules. They contain multi-purpose missiles such as Kh-35UE, 3M14, 3M54, as well as reconnaissance and combat control systems. It is planned to use unmanned helicopters of an original design.
From container cubes you can easily and quickly assemble defensive missile systems of any power and any purpose, and then secretly move them to a possible combat zone. Any container ship with Club-K complexes becomes a missile carrier with a crushing salvo. And any train with such containers or a convoy of heavy-duty container carriers are powerful missile units capable of appearing where the enemy is not waiting.
The know-how is not only high mobility, but also ease of maintenance, as well as disposable use. There is no need for special and expensive vehicles, transport-loading machines, and much more that is required in classical missile systems.
The costs of any state for such missile weapons are becoming affordable. It is no coincidence that interest in CLUB-K is growing on the global arms market. By the way, the appearance of the first such systems in the form of models at international exhibitions even scared some in the West. Moreover, one of the semantic contents of the English word “club” is a club. And the Russian club will crush anything.
The Morinformsystem-Agat concern held a number of meetings and negotiations at the international exhibition of aerospace and naval equipment LIMA-2013 in Malaysia on the issue of supplying for export the new container missile system "Club-K". “There has been quite a lot of interest in the complex, we have held negotiations. Moreover, this is not the first negotiation, we are moving forward little by little,” said Georgy Antsev, General Director, General Designer of the Morinformsystem-Agat concern.
The Daily Telegraph argues that if Iraq had had Club-K missile systems in 2003, a US invasion of the Persian Gulf would have been impossible: any civilian cargo ship in the Gulf would have posed a potential threat to warships and cargo.
Pentagon experts are concerned that Russia is openly offering Club-K to anyone who is under threat of attack from the United States. If this missile system enters service with Venezuela or Iran, this, according to American analysts, could destabilize the situation in the world.
CHARACTERISTICS
| TACTICAL AND TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS | CRUISE MISSILES | |||||
| 3M-54KE | 3M-54KE1 | 3M-14KE | X-35UE | |||
| Type of warhead | penetrating high explosive | high explosive | high-explosive fragmentation penetrating type | |||
| Firing range, km | 12,5-15…220 | 12,5-15…275 | up to 275 | up to 260 | ||
| Main stage flight speed, m/s | 180…240 | 180…240 | 180…240 | 260…280 | ||
| Maximum speed of combat stage, m/s | not less than 700 | UNIVERSAL ROCKET SYSTEM "CALIBER" (CLUB)|||||
For the first time, the Club-K missile system was presented by the Russian Novator Design Bureau at the Asian Defense Systems Exhibition, held in April 2009 in Malaysia. In Russia, “Club-K” was shown to the general public in St. Petersburg at the IMDS-2011 naval show. The system is a launcher with four Kh-35UE anti-ship cruise missiles, as well as missiles of the 3M-54KE, 3M-54KE1 and 3M-14KE types.
The complex looks like a standard sea (20 or 40 foot) cargo container used for sea transportation. Thanks to this camouflage, it is almost impossible to notice the Club-K until it is activated. Functionally, the Club-K complex consists of a universal launch module (USM), a combat control module (CCU) and a power supply and life support module (MES). Russian developers call the missile system “affordable strategic weapons”; each container costs, according to various estimates, about 10...15 million dollars.
The Club-K containerized missile system has caused real panic among Western military experts, as it can completely change the rules of modern warfare. The compact container can be mounted on ships, trucks or railway platforms, and due to the excellent camouflage of the missile system, the enemy will have to conduct much more thorough reconnaissance when planning an attack.
In fact, the situation is much worse. It's simply catastrophic. The fact is that in any decently developed country, all ports and railway stations are simply filled with 40-foot containers. These containers, in addition, are widely used as temporary warehouses and for housing workers’ cabins, as well as for equipment - for example, modular oil and gas boilers, diesel power plants, tanks with liquids, and so on are mounted in them.
Thus, the entire territory of the country is filled with tens and even hundreds of thousands of such containers. Which ones contain rockets inside? How to determine this? Civil transport is perfectly suited for transshipment of such cargo. A huge number of railway platforms, river and sea vessels and even cargo trailers can transport such containers.
The Daily Telegraph argues that if Iraq had had Club-K missile systems in 2003, a US invasion of the Persian Gulf would have been impossible: any civilian cargo ship in the Gulf would have posed a potential threat to warships and cargo.
Pentagon experts are concerned that Russia is openly offering Club-K to anyone who is under threat of attack from the United States. If this missile system enters service with Venezuela or Iran, this, according to American analysts, could destabilize the situation in the world.
“This system allows for the proliferation of cruise missiles on a scale that we have never seen before,” Pentagon defense consultant Ruben Johnson assesses the Club-K’s potential. - Thanks to careful camouflage and high mobility, you can no longer easily determine that an object is being used as a launcher. First, a harmless cargo ship appears off your coast, and the next minute your military installations are already destroyed by explosions.”
The main element of the Club missile system is the universal Alpha missile, which was demonstrated in 1993 at the arms exhibition in Abu Dhabi and at the MAKS-93 international aerospace show in Zhukovsky. In the same year it was put into service.
According to the Western classification, the rocket received the designation SS-N-27 Sizzler (“hissing”, for the characteristic hissing sound at launch). In Russia and abroad it was designated as “Club” (Сlub), “Turquoise” (Biryuza) and “Alpha” (Alpha or Alfa). However, these are all export names - the domestic military knows this system under the code “Caliber”.
India became the first foreign customer of the sea-based Club missile system. Surface- and underwater-based missile systems are installed on Project 11356 frigates (Talwar class) and Project 877EKM diesel submarines of the Indian Navy, built by Russian enterprises. On previously purchased submarines, the Club complex is installed during repair and modernization work.
The Club missile system is also supplied to China, and agreements have been reached on supplies to several other countries. Iran and Venezuela have already expressed their interest in purchasing the new product, reports the Sunday Telegraph.
But so far we have been talking about sea-based Club systems - for surface ships and submarines. Now Russian developers have taken a revolutionary step - they put ship-based missiles in a standard container and achieved their autonomous launch. And this radically changes the tactics and strategy of using missiles.
At the same time, formally, Club-K missiles are not subject to any restrictions. Their flight range is up to 250-300 km, and they are not even ballistic, but winged. The Americans themselves once removed cruise missiles from the agreements limiting the export of missile technology - and now they are reaping the benefits.
Why did Club-K scare Pentagon military experts? In principle, in combat and technological terms there is nothing super new there - the complex “shoots” subsonic cruise missiles of various modifications (even the 3M54E missile is subsonic - only the last 20-30 km its strike part passes at 3M supersonic in order to effectively overcome powerful air defense and create a large kinetic impact on a large target). The system allows you to hit sea and ground targets at a distance of 200-300 km from the launch point, including aircraft carriers - but it is not Wunderwaffe in itself.
The main thing here is different - the entire complex is designed in the form of a standard 20 or 40-foot sea container. This means that it becomes virtually invisible to any type of aerial and technical reconnaissance. This is the whole point of the idea. The container may be on board a merchant ship. On the railway platform. It can be loaded onto a semi-trailer and delivered as normal cargo to the area of application by a regular truck. Truly, how can one not remember the railway launchers of Scalpel ballistic missiles from the times of the USSR!
However, if the destruction of “refrigerated trucks” can be explained by the needs of monitoring the launches of ballistic missiles, then here you won’t be able to ride a crooked goat. Cruise missiles, “this is a means of coastal defense” - and that’s it!
It goes without saying that during an attack, air defense systems are first suppressed, and then the coastal defenses are blown to smithereens. But there is nothing to spread here - hundreds, or even thousands and even tens of thousands of false targets (ordinary containers, which someone aptly called “red blood cells of world trade”) simply will not allow any fluff or dust to be allowed.
This will force aircraft carriers to stay away from the coast, thereby limiting the range of aircraft from them - this time. If it comes to landing, then some of the containers can “open” and send landing ships to the bottom - that’s two. But to hell with them, with the ships - but there is also a landing party, the main striking force and equipment, the losses of which are operationally irreplaceable.
And thirdly, this allows you to keep more serious weapons and reserves closer to the coast. After all, we have driven away the aircraft carriers, and their ability to influence the shore is greatly reduced.
Of course, it would be nice to hide coastal air defense systems in containers like this. Then for sure - the sea borders will be locked. And, of course, trade, trade and trade these systems again. After all, no one is forbidden to defend themselves.
Now let's figure it out - is Club-K really as scary as it is painted to be? It must be said that the Club family now includes several cruise missiles of various purposes, ranges and power.
The most powerful of them is the winged anti-ship 3M-54KE, created on the basis of the Granat missile, designed specifically for attacks on aircraft carriers. Its flight takes place at a speed of 0.8 M (0.8 speed of sound). When approaching the target, it is separated from the main engine and accelerates to Mach 3 - over 1 km/s - at a flight altitude of 5-10 m. The high-penetrating warhead contains 200 kg of explosive. The missile's range is 300 km.
The ZM-54KE and ZM-54KE1 anti-ship cruise missiles have a similar basic configuration. They are made according to a normal winged aerodynamic design with a drop-down trapezoidal wing. The main difference between these rockets is the number of stages.
The ZM-54KE rocket has three stages: a solid-fuel launch stage, a sustainer stage with a liquid jet engine, and a third solid-fuel stage. The ZM54KE missile can be launched from the universal vertical or inclined launchers ZS-14NE of a surface ship or a standard 533 mm caliber torpedo tube of a submarine.
The launch is provided by the first solid propellant stage. After gaining altitude and speed, the first stage separates, the ventral air intake extends, the second stage sustainer turbojet engine starts, and the wing opens. The missile's flight altitude is reduced to 20 m above sea level, and the missile flies to the target according to target designation data entered into the memory of its on-board control system before launch.
During the cruising phase, the missile has a subsonic flight speed of 180-240 m/s, which means it has a longer range. Target guidance is provided by an onboard inertial navigation system. At a distance of 30-40 km from the target, the missile makes a “slide” with the activation of the ARGS-54E active radar homing head.
ARGS-54E detects and selects surface targets (selects the most important) at a distance of up to 65 km. The missile is aimed in an azimuth sector of -45°, and in a vertical plane in a sector from -20° to +10°. The weight of the ARGS-54E without body and fairing is no more than 40 kg, and the length is 700 mm.
After the target is detected and captured by the homing head of the ZM54KE missile, the second subsonic stage separates and the third solid-fuel stage begins to operate, developing a supersonic speed of up to 1000 m/s. During the final 20 km flight segment, the rocket descends to a height of up to 10 m above the water.
At supersonic speed of a missile flying over the crests of waves in the final section, the probability of intercepting the missile is low. However, to completely eliminate the possibility of the ZM-54KE missile being intercepted by the target’s air defense systems, the on-board missile control system can select the optimal route to reach the attacked ship. In addition, when attacking large surface targets, several missiles can be launched in salvo, which will approach the target from different directions.
The missile's subsonic cruising speed allows for minimal fuel consumption per kilometer of travel, and supersonic speed should ensure low vulnerability from the enemy ship's short-range anti-aircraft self-defense systems.
The main difference between the ZM-54KE1 cruise missile and the ZM-54KE missile is the absence of a third solid fuel stage. Thus, the ZM-54KE1 missile has only a subsonic flight mode. The ZM-54KE1 missile is almost 2 meters shorter than the ZM-54KE. This was done in order to be able to place it on small displacement ships and submarines that have shortened torpedo tubes manufactured in NATO countries.
But the ZM-54KE1 missile has almost twice the warhead (400 kg). The flight of the ZM-54KE1 rocket is the same as that of the ZM-54KE, but without acceleration at the final stage.
The ZM-14KE cruise missile in its design and tactical and technical data is almost no different from the ZM-54KE1 missile. The difference is that the ZM14KE missile is designed to destroy ground targets and has a slightly different control system. In particular, its control system includes a bar altimeter, which ensures greater secrecy of flight over land by accurately maintaining altitude in terrain-following mode, as well as a satellite navigation system, which contributes to high guidance accuracy.
As for the new Kh-35UE cruise missile, we will consider it a little later in a separate article.
It should be noted that a number of significant technical factors are ignored in Western media publications. For example, “Club-K” is positioned by its manufacturer, JSC Concern Morinformsystem-Agat, as a universal launch module that houses a lifting launcher for four missiles. But in order to bring the Club-K complex into combat mode and launch missiles, two more of the same 40-foot containers are required, which contain the Combat Control Module and the Power Supply and Life Support Module.
These two modules provide:
- daily maintenance and routine checks of missiles;
- receiving target designation and firing commands via satellite;
- calculation of initial shooting data;
- conducting pre-launch preparations;
- development of flight missions and launch of cruise missiles.
It is clear that this requires trained combat crews, a centralized command post, satellite navigation and communications. This is unlikely to be available to terrorists, even if they are from Hezbollah. They do not have their own satellites; Club-K, naturally, is tied to the Russian space constellation and corresponding control.
The real purpose of the Club-K container complex is to arm mobilized civilian ships during a threatened period. In the event of possible aggression, a coastal state can quickly receive a small fleet designed to combat a naval strike group of a potential enemy.
The same containers located on the coast will protect it from approaching landing craft. That is, it is a very effective defense weapon. At the same time, it is very cheap - about 15 million dollars for a basic complex (three containers, 4 missiles). This is an order of magnitude lower than the cost of a frigate or corvette, which are usually used for coastal defense.
"Club-K" is capable of replacing the fleet and naval aviation. For poor countries with a long coastline, this is a serious alternative to purchasing expensive equipment, which is usually purchased in Western European countries. Spanish frigates, German submarines, French missile systems, Italian helicopters and other weapons, components for which are manufactured in a dozen countries, may lose a significant sector of the market.
/Based on materials from warcyb.org.ru, ru.wikipedia.org and i-korotchenko.livejournal.com/
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