Russia's latest version of their Sprint-like interceptor

Videos below are launches of the endo-atmospheric interceptor component (like the US Sprint ABM, one of my favorite missiles of all time) of the improved A-135 ABM system (A-235) given the task of protecting Moscow. It is claimed that a large part of the changes being made is a switch from nuclear warheads to conventional explosive and kinetic kill vehicles meaning that the Russians are/were way behind US ABM tech. One has to wonder how much stolen US tech is involved in this. Same for China's efforts. After all, the Chinese stole the latest designs for our nukes back in 1999:

BREACH AT LOS ALAMOS: A special report.; China Stole Nuclear Secrets For Bombs, U.S. Aides Say
6 Mar 1999

https://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/06/...stole-nuclear-secrets-for-bombs-us-aides.html

System A-235 /
RTC-181M complex 14TS033 /
ROC "Nudol"

Over time, the prospective missile defense system A-235 (Nudol') must replace on alert set A-135 "Amur", which at this point of time is the basis of a strategic ABM system for the Russian capital. "Amur" had military duty in the early 1990s. According to the developers of the missile defense system, it is able to solve problems and to destroy low-altitude satellites. The system operates fully automatically, including the detection and recognition of the purposes with consequent defeat of warheads ICBMs, precluding detonation of their charges.

So far, information on when exactly the system A-235 will protect the Russian capital, was not disclosed. Also are classified and basic parameters of the missile defense system. To install anti-missile missiles for it developed a new engine and the latest electronics. A-235 will consist of three levels. The structure will include long-echelon missile based on PRO A-925/51T6, capable of striking targets at a distance of 1.5 thousand kilometers and at an altitude of up to 800 thousand meters. For the middle tier will be created 58R6 firing system designed to hit targets at a distance of thousands of kilometers and at an altitude of up to 120 thousand meters.

Finally, in the near Echelon can be included 53T6M missile (probably one of them was tested and December 20, 2011) or PRS-1M/45T6 (PRS-1 missile upgrade/53T6 GAZELLE based). They can destroy targets at a distance of 350 kilometers and at an altitude, according to various estimates, 40-50 thousand meters. Presumably, the long-range missiles will be equipped with a nuclear warhead. According to unconfirmed information the range of the new missile can reach up to 1500 km and a height of hitting targets missiles by the Middle Echelon will be from 50 to 120 km.

Transporter-launcher and Launcher glass container for the new missiles will be made of fiberglass. Their development and production deals with OJSC "Avangard".

One of the successful outcome of the A-135 was missile 53T6 (NATO codification GAZELLE), which is able to intercept ballistic missiles and their head part, flying at speeds up to 6-7 km/s at an altitude of 5 km up to the borders of the middle space. On a number of parameters even this rocket still has no analogs all over the world, and on portable loads it more than 1.5 times surpasses the best foreign samples. "Gazelles" are in constant readiness for operational use. With missiles ready for use during the entire period of operation without the implementation of preparatory technical works and in any climate conditions. The reliability of the defeat of ballistic missiles were fitted with 53T6 nuclear charge.

The A-135 system is in service with 9th Missile Defense Division (village of Sofrino-1). In the same place is located the unique "Don-2n" radar, which, in addition to detect attacks enemy ICBM interceptors on them command and control complex includes the control of outer space. Externally, the radar is somewhat similar to the famous Mayan pyramids and is also a unique military target. So in the course of Russian-American exercises, in which the ability to detect small targets from Engenio, only "Don-2n" radar could detect, and then build a flight path for small space object diameters only 5 cm at a distance of 1500-2000 km.

The operation of the radar station is provided by part of the powerful productive complex, built on the basis of 4-x supercomputers "Elbrus-2". Apparently, Don-2n "will also be" eyes and ears "for the prospective missile defense system a-235. In doing so, it will have to improve their performance through hardware upgrades, in particular the installation of supercomputers "Elbrus-3 m". For military purposes based on the "Elbrus-3 m" going 64-processor system with the same name.

Multichannel ABM / FFP missile system to intercept long-range missiles includes the 14TS033 firing system with command and control computing point 14P078 developed by ROC "Nudol" as part of a missile defense system A-235.

Apparently, the guidance of missiles on target will be a team, perhaps as a final step, using the GSN. While missile and radar will be involved 235-Don-2n/5N20 and ground radar "Don-2NP/5N20P with updated hardware and software part of total work guidance system interceptors of the A-235 on purpose will be similar to the existing A-135 ABM system.

The A-235 can be guided by a radio signal from the ground to within centimeters of the target. The Samolyet-M [Plane-M], developed by the design bureau "Innovator" in Yekaterinburg, performed tasks different from those of the well-known now-400 "Triumph" and advanced S-500 "Prometheus". It had more height (up to 30 km) and range (up to 100 km) defeat. In addition, the A-235 is able to intercept the fastest existing intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). But there is a drawback: if the "Triumph" is equipped with a homing (system of "fire and forget"), the Samolyet-M is managed only by radio operator.



[video=youtube;FbMQc3myHaM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbMQc3myHaM[/video]

[video=youtube;8ln2FGTQf90]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ln2FGTQf90[/video]

[video=youtube;EOvY2xcUm7M]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOvY2xcUm7M[/video]

[video=youtube;787RiCjDjBM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=787RiCjDjBM[/video]

I wonder if they'll stick with the terminal phase and not bother with midcourse

Nytrunner said:

I wonder if they'll stick with the terminal phase and not bother with midcourse

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I think their effort is hopeless unless they intend the system to be useful only against minor nuclear armed adversaries as our BMD system is. A major nuclear armed adversary could simply swamp their system with both warheads and decoys. Still, love their Sprint. Makes for cool launch videos.

One advantage of terminal interception is that the increasing atmospheric density burns up decoys or slows them down so the warhead is much easier to distinguish.

Disadvantage is you now have split seconds to kill the thing lol

Nytrunner said:

One advantage of terminal interception is that the increasing atmospheric density burns up decoys or slows them down so the warhead is much easier to distinguish.

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Yep, that's the whole point of endoatmospheric intercepts. Just need lots of them for a major adversary and 100% success. Good luck with that. That they are only now trying to move to non-nuclear intercepts amazes me since this has always been a problem with nuclear-tipped ABM intercepts:

Nuclear blackout

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_blackout

Blackout is a particular concern for anti-ballistic missile (ABM) systems. By exploding a warhead in the upper atmosphere just beyond the range of defensive missiles, an attacker can blanket a wide area of the sky beyond which additional approaching warheads cannot be seen. When those warheads emerge from the blackout area there may not be enough time for the defensive system to develop tracking information and attack them. This was a serious concern for the LIM-49 Nike Zeus program of the late 1950s, and one of the reasons it was ultimately canceled. A key discovery revealed in testing was that the effect cleared more quickly for higher frequencies. Later missile defense designs used radars operating at higher frequencies in the UHF and microwave region to mitigate the effect.

And the MIRV system can provide an abundance of incoming warheads towards a target from all kinds of different trajectories.

aerostadt said:

And the MIRV system can provide an abundance of incoming warheads towards a target from all kinds of different trajectories.

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Yeah, BMD is pretty much hopeless against an advanced adversary with lots of warheads. Once miniature/micro exoatmospheric kinetic kill vehicles with sophisticated decoy discrimination sensing are developed, that might change. Many multiples of them would be launched by each ABM. It doesn't take much mass at all at the closing velocities involved to kill a reentry vehicle.