F-22A Raptor, FB-22, F-22E, F-22N and Variants Index Page [Click for more ...] People's Liberation Army Air Power Index Page  [Click for more ...]
Military Ethics, Culture, Education and Training Index Page [Click for more ...]
Russian / Soviet Weapon Systems Index Page [Click for more ...]






Last Updated: Mon Jan 27 11:18:09 UTC 2014







Engagement and Fire Control Radars
(S-band, X-Band, Ku/K/Ka-band)


Technical Report APA-TR-2009-0102

by Dr Carlo Kopp, AFAIAA, SMIEEE, PEng
January 2009
Updated April, June, 2009
Updated February, August 2010
Updated May, August 2011
Text, Line Art © 2008 - 2012 Carlo Kopp




Agat Active Radar Seekers for SAM Upgrades



System
S/X
X
X/Ku
K
Ka
SA-2 Guideline
SNR-75 Fan Song



SA-3 Goa

SNR-125 Low Blow


SA-4 Ganef
1S32 Pat Hand




SA-5 Gammon

5N62 Square Pair



SA-6 Gainful
1S91 Straight Flush 1S91 Straight Flush


SA-8A/B Gecko
Land Roll
Land Roll

SA-10A Grumble

5N63 Flap Lid



SA-10B Grumble
5N63S Flap Lid


SA-10C Grumble
30N6 Flap Lid


SA-11 Gadfly

9S35 Fire Dome


SA-12 Gladiator/Giant

9S32 Grill Pan



SA-15 Gauntlet

Scrum Half / PESA

Scrum Half
SA-17 Grizzly

9S35M Fire Dome


SA-19 Grison




Hot Shot
SA-20 Gargoyle

30N6E1 Tomb Stone



SA-20 Gargoyle
30N6E2 Tomb Stone



SA-21

92N6E Grave Stone



SA-22

Phazotron PESA


SA-23 Gladiator/Giant
9S32M Grill Pan





References


  1. Viktor Litovkin, Unique Surface-To-Air Missile Baffles Foreign Military Diplomats In Egypt, Moscow (RIA Novosti), URL: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Unique_Surface_To_Air_Missile_Baffles_Foreign_Military_Diplomats_In_Egypt_999.html
  2. Upgrade of the S-125 "Pechora" ADMS to level of the S-125-2T "Pechora-2T" ADMS, URL: http://www.tetraedr.com/eng/production_pechora.php
    Upgrade of the S-125 "Pechora" ADMS to level of the S-125-2TM "Pechora-2TM" ADMS, URL: http://www.tetraedr.com/eng/production_pechora2tm.php
  3. S-200 / SA-5 Gammon, URL: http://www.s-200.de/
  4. 5N62V Target Illumination and Guidance Radar, Peter's ADA, URL: http://www.peters-ada.de/s_200_1.htm
  5. Upgrade of the S-200 VE "Vega" ADMS, URL: http://www.tetraedr.com/eng/production_vega.php
    Upgrade of the "OSA-AK(M)" ADMS to level of the "OSA-1T" ADMS, URL: http://www.tetraedr.com/eng/production_osa.php
  6. Yevgeny Pigin, Gennady Kaufman, BUK-M1-2 AIR DEFENSE MISSILE SYSTEM HAS NO EQUALS IN TERMS OF COMBAT EMPLOYMENT, Military Parade JSC, 1998, URL: http://milparade.udm.ru/29/066.htm
  7. «Оса», (9К33, SA-8, SA-8A, Gecko) зенитный ракетный комплекс
  8. The OSA anti-aircraft missile system, JSC "Izhevsk Electromechanical Plant "Kupol".
  9. The TOR-M1 anti-aircraft missile system, JSC "Izhevsk Electromechanical Plant "Kupol".
  10. The TOR-M2E anti-aircraft missile system, JSC "Izhevsk Electromechanical Plant "Kupol".
  11. Miroslav Gyürösi, Russian companies team to develop wheeled Tor-M2E , Jane's Missiles & Rockets, October 01, 2007.
  12. Pantsir-S1 Air Defense Missile/Gun System, KBP Instrument Design Bureau,59 Shcheglovskaya Zaseka St., 300001 Tula, Russia.
  13. Tunguska-M1 Air Defense Missile/Gun System, KBP Instrument Design Bureau,59 Shcheglovskaya Zaseka St., 300001 Tula, Russia.
  14. 30 mm 2A38M Automatic Anti-Aircraft Gun, KBP Instrument Design Bureau,59 Shcheglovskaya Zaseka St., 300001 Tula, Russia.
  15. Phazotron Shlem air defence radar system, Phazotron NIIR.
  16. Martin Rosenkranz, MAKS 2007 Spezial: Pantsir-S1 (SA-22), Russlands neuestes Flugabwehrsystem.
  17. Michal Fiszer, Name of the Roses, Microwave Journal Online,  Military Microwaves Supplement 2006, Page 30, Horizon House Publications, URL: http://www.mwjournal.com/article.asp?HH_ID=AR_867
  18. Said Aminov, Многоканальная станция наведения ракет 9С32, ЗЕНИТНАЯ РАКЕТНАЯ СИСТЕМА 9К81 С-300В (SA-12 Giant/Gladiator), Vestnik PVO, URL: http://pvo.guns.ru/s300v/s300v_4.htm
  19. Iosif Akopyan, Director General and General Designer of the Moscow Agat Research Institute JSC, Academician of the Russian Academy of Rocket, and Artillery Sciences, Dr. Sc. (Technology), Professor, AGAT: NEW GENERATION   OF ACTIVE RADAR  HOMING HEADS, Military Parade, July-August, 2003, Rosoboronexport. URL: http://www.missiles.ru/_foto/Slanec_1348/1.pdf

Engagement and Fire Control Radars


SNR-75 Fan Song A-E / S-75 Dvina/Desna/Volkhov / SA-2 Guideline

Gin Sling / HQ-1/HQ-2 Guideline (PLA)



Romanian SNR-75M3 Fan Song E (Image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).

The Fan Song is the engagement radar for the S-75/SA-2 family of SAMs. First deployed in strength during the Vietnam conflict, and later used extensively in the Middle East and Africa, the SA-2 was the first Soviet SAM to be used in anger and accounted for large numbers of Western aircraft until electronic countermeasures were developed. The system was cloned by PLA and still remains widely in use, even though Russia has replaced it with the SA-10/20 system.

The are at least six known variants, one of which is a PLA clone. Details of PLA modifications to the design are not public knowledge. There are sufficient differences in the PLA designs to regard these as unique derivatives. The antenna configuration of the PLA variants generally follow the Fan Song A arrangement.

The SNR-75 family of radars employ, by modern standards, a complex antenna arrangement which is employed to effect range and angle tracking of the intended target, and of the transponder beacon in the tail of the missile round. The proximity fused missile round is “dumb”  in the sense that it is a pure command link design, which is flown to a collision with the target using a command uplink embedded in the SNR-75 radar.



SNR-75M / Fan Song E antenna arrangement (Image © Miroslav Gyűrösi; legend by author as per http://peters-ada.de/sa2_antenne.htm).

A characteristic feature of the Fan Songs is the use of fixed trough antennas, which in “narrow beam” configuration each produce  a flapping fan shaped beam, one in the horizontal plane and one in the vertical plane, used for angle tracking. While usually described as “Lewis Scanners”, as like the Lewis Scanner they employ a rotating feed to effect beam steering, the internal design is  uniquely Russian and termed a “Metal Air Lens”. It employs a folded internal path, with the 7.5° x 1.1° degree fan shaped mainlobe steered through a 16° arc; earlier variants of the Fan Song producing a 10.0° x 1.1° degree mainlobe steered through a 20° arc. The angular velocity of the rotating feed produces a 54 millisecond sweep cycle duration.

In the late model Fan Song E, the radar used a pair of roof mounted narrow beam parabolic antennas to transmit, and the trough antennas to transmit and receive, the latter intended Scan On Receive Only (SORO) regime developed as an Electronic Counter-Counter Measure against angle jamming techniques. As the trough antennas are fixed in polarisation, separate transmit antennas were employed, with mutually orthogonal polarisations, one used for the elevation or ε-channel, and one for the azimuth or β-channel.

The complete antenna head can be steered in azimuth by rotating the cabin on the rotary mount, while the antenna head can be tilted in elevation using mountings on the roof of the cabin.

The antennas were employed in specific regimes of operation, depending on the operating mode of the Fan Song.

Search Mode is employed to acquire targets for engagements, and the Fan Song crew is cued to the target by an acquisition radar such as a P-12 Spoon Rest, usually supported by a nodding heightfinder. In search mode, the P-11 and P-12 trough antennas are locked into a “wide beam” configuration with a 7.5° x 16° mainlobe section, the intent being to maximise detection volume while accepting poor angular accuracy. Transmissions are at a low PRF of 828-1,440 Hz, and the pulse duration is extended to maximise pulse energy.

Once the target has been acquired, the Fan Song will switch into one of several tracking modes. In these modes the radar emits through the paired P-13 and P-14 parabolic antennas, each of which transmits a linearly polarised but mutually orthogonal signal. Transmissions are in a high PRF regime, typically at 1,656-2,880 Hz, with a shorter pulse duration.

In RS (Ручное Сопровождение) or Manual Track mode the operator uses either the radar scope or the external TV telescope (analogue vidicon tube) to manually track the target. This is the fallback operating mode under severe countermeasures conditions when the automatic mode cannot maintain lock.

In AS (Автоматическое Сопровождение) or Automatic Track mode the P-11 and P-12 trough antennas are configured in narrow beam mode and employed to produce the well known flapping scan beams to generate target angle track outputs in azimuth and elevation, respectively. This is a SORO mode as the jammer cannot know the scan cycle produced by the internal rotating antenna feed.

A third automatic mode, termed ASAP mode, is also employed and uses automatic track and antenna steering.

Once the command link guided missile has been launched, its position must be tracked, and steering commands must be sent to the missile. The circular polarised P-15 antenna is used to transmit the pulse modulation K1, K2, K3 and K4 uplink signals to the missile. The missile transponder beacon is tracked in range and angle using the P-11 and P-12 trough antennas.


SNR-75 Fan Song C/E Principal Specifications [A, C]
Operating Band [GHz]
5.010-5.090  / 4.910-4.990
Pulse Repetition Interval (PRI) [msec]
-
Pulse Repetition Frequency (PRF) [Hz]
Search 828-1,440 / Track  1,656-2,880
Pulse Duration [usec]
0.4-1.2
Peak Power [MegaWatt]
1.0 - 1.5 (0.6 A/B/F)
Ave Power [kiloWatt]
 -
Displayed Range [km]
75.0-150.0
Range Resolution [m]
-
Mainlobe Width [°]
1.5 x 7.5 (2.0 x 10.0 A/B/F variants)
Scan Rate [Hz]
15.5 - 17.0
Track/Engage Capability [targets]
1/1
Missile Uplink Channels [-] 2
Deploy/Stow Time [min]
~60


(Image via Peter's ADA)

Fan Song Variants
Russian Designation
NATO Designation IOC
RSNA-75 / SA-75 Dvina
Fan Song A / SA-2A Guideline Mod. 0
1956
RSNA-75M / SA-75M Dvina Fan Song B / SA-2B Guideline Mod. 1
1960
RSN-75 / S-75 Desna
Fan Song C / SA-2C Guideline Mod. 2
1959
RSN-75M / S-75M Desna Fan Song C / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3
1964
RSN-75VM / S-75MV
Fan Song D / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3
1964
RSN-75MV / S-75VM Desna
Fan Song E / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3 1960
RSN-75V / S-75V Desna
Fan Song E / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3
1973
RSN-75V1 / S-75M1 Volkhov
Fan Song E / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3
1963
RSN-75V2 / S-75D Volkhov Fan Song E / SA-2F Guideline Mod. 5
1971
SNR-75M3 / S-75M3 Volkhov Fan Song E / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3
1975
SNR-75M4 / S-75M4 Volkhov Fan Song E / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3
1978
RSNA-75M / S-75M2 Volkhov
Fan Song F / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3
Source: http://www.rzeszow.mm.pl/~jowitek/S-75.html / Vestnik PVO



RSNA-75M / Fan Song F  used with the S-75M2 Volkhov / SA-2D Guideline Mod. 3.



SNR-75M3 / Fan Song E deployed (Vestnik PVO, US DoD).





SNR-75M3 / Fan Song E deployed (Vestnik PVO).



The late 1970s SNR-75M4 was developed for S-75M4 Volkhov and employed some digital technology. While usually listed as a Fan Song E, the system deserves a unique designation. Note the relocated P-15 uplink antenna on the right, and entirely new narrow beam antenna with what appears to be a scanning feed (Russian internet image).


SNR-125 Low Blow / S-125 Neva/Pechora / SA-3 Goa




SNR-125M Low Blow B deployed, with UNV and UNK vans, and generator van (via Vestnik PVO).

The SNR-125 Low Blow is the engagement radar for the S-125/SA-3 Goa family of command link guided SAM systems. The system was widely deployed by Warsaw Pact nations and some Soviet proxies in the Middle East, as well as India. While the system is regarded to be now obsolete, like the SA-2, a number of manufacturers in former Soviet republics are offering deep technology upgrades to the Low Blow design to improve maintainability, performance and jam resistance.

Like the SNR-75, the SNR-125 uses a pair of fixed scanned trough antennas to generate flapping fan shaped beams, but the design is inherently SORO with a separate transmit antenna mounted between the characteristic chevron arrangement of trough antennas. Optical adjunct tracking using the 9Sh33A Karat 2 television telescope has been installed on  later variants, initially the SNR-125M1. The antenna at the top of the turret is used for the low power missile FMCW uplink channels.



The antenna suite on the Low Blow radar head is more sophisticated and complex than the earlier Fan Song design. The antenna functions are, respectively:

UV-10: Transmit for target and missile tracking, Transmit/Receive for rangefinding, Transmit/Receive for initial target acquisition, Receive for clutter cancelling channel. The boom mounts a cluster of feed horns, including a rotating scanning feed, each producing unique mainlobes. The scanned acquisition beam mainlobe is 1° wide and swept through a 15° arc in elevation at 25 Hz, the mainlobe for target tracking transmit and rangefinding receive is 10° wide.
UV11 F1 and F2: Receive antennas for target and missile transponder beacon tracking. These produce 1° x 15° fan shaped mainlobes which sweep through a 15° arc.
UV-12: Missile uplink antenna for the FMCW 12 Watt command link.

The Low Blow is designed to acquire targets using only bearing and range inputs from an external 2D acquisition radar, such as a P-12/18 Spoon Rest or P-15M Squat Eye. When acquiring a target, the Low Blow radar head is rotated to the target bearing and the UV-10 antenna scanning feed engaged to produce a 1° wide pencil beam swept in elevation.

Once the target is acquired the Low Blow is switched into tracking mode, using the UV-10 antenna to transmit, the UV-10 to receive for ranging, and the scanning UV-11 chevron receive antennas for angle tracking. The radar head is mechanically steered in azimuth and elevation to maintain track.

Like the Fan Song, the Low Blow provides manual tracking, automatic tracking and television angle tracking modes. The system provides five missile guidance control laws, TT (CLOS), PS, MV (LoAlt), K (surface target attack) and DKM (ballistic). Three missile uplink signals are employed, K1 and K2 for pitch/yaw steering, and K3 for fuse control.

Russian doctrine in the presence of heavy jamming was often to cease emitting and use the scanning receiver to effect angle tracking of the jammer, acquire the target with the TV telescope, and perform a range unknown missile shot against the jammer in CLOS mode.

Due to the addition of a clutter canceller and analogue MTI circuits, the Low Blow has significantly better clutter rejection performance compared to the earlier Fan Song. Cited low altitude capability is against targets as low as 20 m (~60 ft AGL).

A number of upgrades have seen the towed Low Blow rehosted on to a vehicle to provide a self propelled "shoot and scoot" capability for batteries, with the launchers also mounted on vehicles to produce proper TELs. Several upgrades are available in which most or all of the analogue electronics are replaced with digital COTS technology.


SNR-125 Low Blow Principal Specifications [B, D]
Operating Band [GHz]
~9.0
Pulse Repetition Interval (PRI) [msec]
-
Pulse Repetition Frequency (PRF) [Hz]
Search 1750-3500 / Track  3560-3585
Pulse Duration [usec]
0.2 - 5.0
Peak Power [MegaWatt]
0.270
Ave Power [kiloWatt]
 -
Displayed Range [km]
110.0
Range Resolution [m]
-
Mainlobe Width [°]
12.0 x 1.5
Scan Rate [Hz]
Search 16 / Track 25
Track/Engage Capability [targets]
1/1
Missile Uplink Channels [-] 2
Missile Uplink Power [W]
~12 CW
Deploy/Stow Time [min]
~60



Serbian Air Force SNR-125M1T Low Blow UNV radar head and UNK operator van. This system was part of the battery which killed an F-117A and F-16CG during OAF in 1999 (images  © 2009, Miroslav Gyűrösi).



SNR-125M1T Low Blow UNV radar head, above and below.





SNR-125 Low Blow operator stations. Left to right, Target Track operator station (TV upper, radar lower), Tactical Control Officer station, Missile Launch station and battery Commander station (Tetraedr).



UK62 Tactical Control station displays. The RHS display shows slant range on the LHS scale, the two horizontal dashes left of the centreline are two 5V27 missiles in flight. Both displays show a 15° wide swath (Tetraedr).


1S32 Pat Hand / 2K11 Krug / SA-4 Ganef



The Krug / SA-4 Ganef was the first fully mobile battlefield area defence SAM system deployed by the Soviet PVO-SV. It was intended for division level area defence. The principal acquisition radar was the P-40/1S12 Long Track. Missile guidance and target tracking was performed by the 1S32 Pat Hand radar. Batteries could also be integrated with the 9S44 Krab K-1 combat support system which was intended to fuse data from multiple acquisition radars to facilitate target tracking and battery control, these could be the P-10 Knife Rest, P-12/18 Spoon Rest, P-15/19 Flat Face, P-15M Squat Eye and P-40/1S12 Long Track. IOC was achieved in 1965, with the last variant deploying in 1974.

The Pat Hand combined a cluster of four antennas, the largest of which was a monopulse narrow beam target track antenna, to the left of which was the monopulse wide angle missile track antenna. Missile capture and command uplink antennas are mounted above the pair. An 9Sh33 optical tracker, identical to the 2K12 / SA-6 Gainful design, was later added. The 1S62 command datalink was used to control the 2P24 TELs, and employed a telescoping mast antenna. The 3M8 / SA-4 Ganef missile used command link guidance not unlike the S-75 / SA-2 Guideline and S-125 / SA-3 Goa, with similar control laws. Russian sources claim that the missile also used a pulsed semi-active homing seeker for terminal guidance, however documentary materials published in Germany indicate this is not correct.

Russian sources put the peak power rating at 750 kiloWatts, sensitivity at 10-13 Watts, angle track error at 0.06° and range error at 15.0 metres.



1S32 Pat Hand engagement radar (Russian MoD).




5N62 Square Pair / S-200A/V/D Angara/Vega/Dubna / SA-5 Gammon




Semi-mobile configuration of the improved K-1M cabin with 5N62 Square Pair FMCW radar on display at Kecel in Hungary. Note the Square Pair at maximum elevation angle in the background  (Image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).

The 5N62 Square Pair “Guidance and Illumination Radar” is the engagement radar for the 140 - 160 NMI range S-200 / SA-5 Gammon SAM system, the longest ranging of the Cold War era SAMs, and in 2009, still the longest ranging SAM in operational use.

Each 5N62 radar comprises two primary components, the K-1 and K-2 “cabins”, both towed to location. The  K-1/K-1V/M Transmitter/Receiver cabin is the radio-frequency component of the 5N62 radar. The K-2/K-2V/M Fire Control Centre cabin, built into an OdAZ-828 semi-trailer van, houses the operator consoles, a digital computer and supporting electronics. It also is an integral part of the 5N62 radar system. Stow and deploy times for the whole radar system are ~8 hours, as the knocked down antenna head has to be assembled from components or vice versa.

The 36 tonne gross weight K-1/K-1V/M Transmitter/Receiver cabin houses the 100.0 kiloWatt CW transmitter final stages, the 10-17 Watts sensitivity receiver, and mounts the two component 6.0 GHz  band Continuous Wave antenna head. The larger parabolic section antenna is for the transmit path, the smaller parabolic section antenna for the receive path, with the dividing blade, termed a “knife”,  employed to avoid spillover. The transmit and receive horns are mounted on the blade. The transmit beam mainlobe width cited by Russian sources is 0.7°.

An inflatable shelter is available for static installations of the complete K-1 antenna package.

Antenna steering in azimuth is effected by rotating the whole cabin and antenna head on the turntable coupling. Maximum slew rate is 20°/sec. Antenna steering in elevation is effected by tilting the complete antenna head about a rotational joint in the support frame.

The boom mounted circular polarised helical antenna on the side of the cluster is for the 5V21/5V28 missile uplink/downlink channel. The missile downlink is used to monitor missile status and health, the missile uplink is used to arm the proximity fuse, arm the warhead, and initiate the missile self destruct function. The modulations and signalling format have not been disclosed.

The FMCW design can measure target azimuth, elevation, range and radial velocity, with operator displays showing angles, range, altitude and linear velocity. Two basic waveforms are employed:
  1. ФКМ фазокодовая манипуляция phase-code manipulation - used for combined angle tracking and rangefinding, with FM “pseudo-pulses”  modulated on to the  CW carrier. These were  emitted at a very low “pseudo-PRF”, with a reliable range measurement taking up to 30 seconds due to manual resolution of  range ambiguity.
  2. МХИ монохроматическая излученияmono-chromatic emission - used to illuminate the target for the inbound missile seekers. In this mode the radar provides angle tracking and radial velocity measurement, and is credited with an effective range of 220 NMI.
The Square Pair has several operating modes for acquiring a target for tracking:
  1. Sector Search Mode: the antenna automatically sweeps in azimuth, incrementally increasing the elevation angle with each sweep.
  2. Conical Search Mode: the antenna automatically sweeps a circle, increasing the off-boresight angle with every sweep.
  3. Manual Mode: the operator uses an elevation and azimuth wheel to steer the boresight.
Once a target track is established, CW illumination of the target is initiated, the 5V21/5V28 missile rounds are tuned, acquire and lock on the target, and are then launched, typically a pair at a time. The missile flies a contant lead angle control law in the initial phase of flight, and then switches to a modified P-nav control law for terminal homing.

Operator training guide manuals translated from Russian and distributed to Warsaw Pact allies state that two primary flight regimes are employed, one for “close” and the other for “distant” targets, the transition being at slant ranges of 70 ~ 80 km (38 - 43 NMI).

If a target is designated to be “close”, and with either tflight< 60 [sec] and H ≤ 20,000 [m] (shallow trajectory) or tflight< 70 [sec] and H > 20,000 [m] (steep trajectory), then a conventional P-nav control law is employed for the whole duration of the flight.

If a target is designated to be “distant”, and with either tflight≥ 60 [sec] and H ≤ 20,000 [m] (shallow trajectory) or tflight≥ 70 [sec] and H > 20,000 [m] (steep trajectory), then the missile flies with two discrete control laws applied, one for midcourse flight, the other for terminal homing. The midcourse flight regime control law is a constant lead angle (ε=35º; β=0º or 15º) rule, with the missile switching over to the P-nav control law for terminal homing.

This strategy was adopted to maximise range against distant targets, as the P-nav algorithm can be wasteful of kinetic and potential energy.

Many later configurations permitted a two-channel capability, with two 5N62 radars supporting a single battery, both under the control of a single K-9 Battery Command Post.

In operation the 5N62 was embedded in the S-200 battery. The S-200 K-3 Launch Control Centre cabin (OdAZ-828) is used to control and sequence the individual 5P72 launchers with the 5V21/5V28 missile rounds. The K-9 Battery Command Post (i.e. Battle Management Post ) cabin (OdAZ-828) is used to integrate track data provided by the acquisition radars, such as the P-14 Tall King or P-35/37 Bar Lock, and supporting heightfinders such as the PRV-17 Side Net / Odd Pair, and an IFF interrogator such as the 1L22 Parol.



K-1V Antenna Head System - Front View
1
KA-141M transmit antenna
2
KA-152 receive antenna feed
3
KA-151M receive antenna
4
Support frame
5
KA-17M missile uplink/downlink antenna
6
Amplifier
7
Rotational drive component
8
Rotational drive component
9
KA-10V cabin
10
Antenna emulator
11
Support frame
12
KA-142MT transmit antenna feed
13
Spillover screen


K-1V Antenna Head System - Profile View
1
KA-141M transmit antenna
2
KA-152 receive antenna feed
3
KA-151M receive antenna
4
Support frame
5
KA-17M missile uplink/downlink antenna
6
Spillover screen
7
Transmittter / receiver housing
8
Antenna drive motors



Above, below: detail views of the 5N62 Square Pair KA-151M receive antenna and KA-17M helical missile uplink/downlink antenna. Note the hemispherical radome on the KA-152 receive feed horn and rotational drive employed to tilt the antenna head up to an elevation of +90°, the latter for BMD  applications. Transmitter and receiver hardware is housed in the voluminous aft box structure, which is also employed to balance the weight of the antenna on the rotational shaft. The complex latticework frame structure is employed to provide high rigidity in the reflector surfaces and thus preclude beam distortions which would present major difficulties given the operating ranges of this system (via s-200-wega.de).





5N62 Square Pair 'Illumination and Guidance Radar'. This FMCW long range target illuminator uses separate paraboloid sections each for the transmit and receive paths, with the central blade used to prevent spillover. The radiating elements from the antenna feeds are mounted on the central blade.



Much like other SA-5 battery components, the 5N62 Square Pair FMCW radar is more than often installed in a fixed concrete revetment, or as this example shows, an elevated fixed concrete platform. The system is transported using a convoy of trailers, one each for the K-1 and K-2 cabins, with three for the disassembled antenna package (via www.s-200.de).



The K-2 Fire Control Centre cabin, like many 1960s PVO systems, is built into an OdAZ-828 semi-trailer (foreground) , and K-1 trailer (background)(via www.s-200.de).



Operator stations in the 5N62 K-2 Fire Control Centre van. This system is a former DDR NVA S-200VE later shipped to the US for technical evaluation (via Peter's ADA).



Above, below: Early model S-200A Angara K-2 Fire Control Centre van interior (Almaz brochure via Free SAM Simulator).





Above, below: Early model S-200A Angara 5N62 Square Pair K-1 van interior (Almaz brochure via Free SAM Simulator).





5N62 Square Pair antenna stowed for transport (via www.s-200.de).



Inflatable shelters for the 5N62 Square pair (via www.s-200.de).



5N62 Square Pair 'Illumination and Guidance Radar' deployed on elevated terrain to maximise engagement range for the missile battery.


1S91 Straight Flush / 2K12 Kub/Kvadrat / SA-6 Gainful




Hungarian Army 1S91M1-P1 Straight Flush. An optical tracker has been retrofitted on the RHS of the illuminator antenna (Image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).

The Straight Flush radar gained instant prominence in 1973 when Arab operated 2K12 Kvadrat / SA-6 Gainful batteries inflicted a heavy toll on Israeli aircraft flying close air support and interdiction sorties.

The 1S91 fully mobile engagement radar system comprises two independently steerable radar systems. The lower 1S11 with a paraboloid section antenna and stacked feeds is used to acquire and track multiple targets in azimuth and elevation. The upper 1S31 is used for precision target tracking and illumination of targets for semi-active missile homing guidance. A 60 kW gas turbine generator is used to power the mission systems.

The 1S11 is coherent pulsed radar capable of performing 360° azimuth sweeps at 15 RPM in early variants and 20 RPM in later variants. It operates in the lower X-band and has two independent MTI channels, each capable of transmitting at 600 kiloWatt peak power on a discrete operating frequency. Cited PRF is 2.0 kHz, with a 0.5 μsec pulse width. The receiver sensitivity is 10-13 Watts. The ~1.0° mainlobe can be elevated through 20°.

Later variants use a 9Sh33 telescopic TV camera for visual angle tracking of targets. A 1S51 IFF system is integrated. A 1S61 digital datalink terminal is carried, it communicates with 1S61 terminals on the 2P25 TELs and transfers target location to cue the TELs and drive elevation and azimuth inputs for the TEL launchers.

The 1S31 is a specialised pulsed fire control radar employing monopulse angle tracking to maximise jam resistance. ECCM measures include carrier retuning and automatic PRF sweeping, with a cited nominal PRF of 2.0 kHz, with a 0.45 μsec pulse width. Two 270 kiloWatt peak power channels are used to perform fine tracking and terminal CW illumination for the 3M9/9M9 SAM seeker. The ~1.0° mainlobe can be steered independently of the 1S11. Cited max antenna slew rate is 20°/sec and elevation rate 10°/sec.

The solid propellant rocket/ramjet 3M9/9M9 Gainful missile round uses a 1SB4 monopulse semi-active homing seeker with the capability to estimate closure rate to the target by comparing the illumination carrier frequency with the carrier in the backscatter from the target. A tunable narrowband fliter is used to track the return from the target and minimise the clutter spectrum. The missile carries a beacon to enable tracking by the 1S91 during the midcourse phase. A Home-On-Jam (HOJ) capability is cited by Russian sources.

Numerous upgrades exist for the 2K12 SAM system, which are detailed separately.



2K12 ZRK Kub/Kvadrat/SA-6 Gainful SAM System Analysis


1S91M2 Straight Flush of the Slovakian Army (Image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).



Hungarian Army Straight Flush. Note the stacked feeds on the search radar (Image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).



Slovakian Army Straight Flush commander and operator consoles. The LHS digital display is part of an incremental upgrade (image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).


Land Roll / 9K33/9K33M2/M3 Osa AK/AKM / Osa T / SA-8 Gecko




Osa AKM - an upgraded SA-8B Gecko (JSC Kupol images).

The Land Roll engagement radar package in the SA-8 Gecko was designed to provide a completely autonomous acquisition and engagement capability for this point defence missile system.

The acquisition component is equipped with a mechanically steered stabilised paraboloid section antenna with three feeds, providing a 1° - 4° mainlobe in azimuth and 19° mainlobe in elevation, sweeping at 33 RPM. This radar produces a peak power of 270 kiloWatts. the 1S51 IFF interrogator antenna is mounted above the primary reflector.

The tracking and missile guidance component is mounted on the front of the turret. It has a large protected truncated paraboloid primary reflector with a ~1° mainlobe, used with a ~200 kiloWatt peak rated pulsed transmitter, and a 2*10-13 Watt receiver. This radar is used to perform precision tracking of targets using a monopulse feed network for high jam resistance, and it provides the transmit portion of the beacon channel.

To either side of the primary antenna are paired missile capture, tracking and uplink antennas, used to support the Command to Line of Sight (CLOS) guidance on the missiles. The missiles receive pitch/yaw steering commands and a fuse activation command, generated by the fire control system and its 9S456M3 computer system.

Adjunct angle optical tracking is provided by a 9Sh38/83-2 Karat optical tracker.



Land Roll engagement radar (Osa 1T updated variant) antenna suite (Image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).

In operation, the acquisition radar develops tracks of potential targets, and once a target is selected, the turret with the antenna head is slewed to point the tracking antenna at the target. The tracking antenna then searches, acquires and initiates angle and range tracking of the target. Once the target is within the LAR, the missiles can be launched. Missile power-up, gyro spinup and stabilisation on TELAR power takes ~13 sec. After the missile is launched it must be captured. the wide beam aperture achives this between 60 - 150 m from the TELAR. The system then switches into the medium beam mode, and then narrow beam mode, once the missile has been steered on to its intended trajectory.

Russian sources claim the trajectory used included a vertical bias component to fly the missile above the line of sight converging with the target at impact. German sources claim a modified TT/CLOS algorithm is used.

The complete mission package is powered by a 9I210 gas turbine APU, driving a  220V /400 Hz and 27 VDC power supply.

Numerous upgrades are on offer for the Gecko, including the Russian Osa AKM and ByeloRussian Osa 1T.

Acquisition Radar
Peak Power [kW]
 270.0
Receiver Sensitivity [W]
10-13
Pulse Duration [usec]
 0.45
Accuracy
Angular 2°  / 300 m
PRF [kHz]

2.8

IF Frequency [MHz]
30.0
Detection Range [km] 45.0
Azimuth Coverage
360°
Elevation
0-30°
Antenna Lobe 1
1.23° Azimuth / 4.0° Elevation
Antenna Lobe 2
1.23° Azimuth / 4.0° Elevation
Antenna Lobe 3
1.4° Azimuth / 18.0-22.0° Elevation
Scan Rate [RPM]
33.0


Engagement Radar

Peak Power [kW]

180.0

Sensitivity [W]

10-13

PRF [kHz]

 2.8

IF Frequency [MHz]
 30.0
Pulse Duration [usec]
0.225
Tracking Envelope

 

Target Range [km]: 0-28.0
Elevation: -12° to +78°
Azimuth: 330°
Slew Rates [°/sec] Elevation: 30.0
Azimuth: 15.0
Resolution
Angular: 00-20
Range: 55m
Accuracy

 

Range: +/-10m
Azimuth: 1.3°
Elevation: 0.9°


Missile Tracking Receivers
Search Sector  

Elevation: -12° to 78°

Azimuth +/-15°

Capture Angle
22.8°
Maximum Error
10°
Antenna Lobes

"wide beam" 14°

"medium beam" 2.2°

"narrow beam" 0.6 



Missile Uplink Transmitters
Peak Power [kW]
100.0
Pulse Duration [usec]
0.72
Antenna Lobes
"wide beam" 10-18°
"medium beam" 3°
Uplink Message K1 / K2
Pitch/Yaw
Uplink Message K3
Proximity Fuse Activate
Uplink Message K4 Reserved




Tetraedr Osa 1T legacy TELAR (Tetraedr images).



5N63/5N63S/30N6  Flap Lid A/B/C / SA-10 Grumble

30N6/30N6E/30N6E1/30N6E2 Tomb Stone / SA-20 Gargoyle

92N6E Grave Stone / SA-21


Design of the S-300P and S-300V SAM Systems [Click for more ...]
Technical Analysis of S-400/SA-21 SAM Systems [Click for more ...]



The 92N6 Grave Stone multimode engagement radar is a significant redesign of the Flap Lid / Tomb Stone series with fully digital processing and increased power-aperture performance (image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).

The diverse Flap Lid family of radars are Russian equivalents to the US MPQ-53 Patriot engagement radar. The first generation of the S-300P's 5N63 (later 30N6) Flap Lid A engagement/fire control radar was innovative, and clearly influenced by the Raytheon MPQ-53 engagement radar for the MIM-104 Patriot. The Flap Lid, like the MPQ-53, uses a transmissive passive shifter technology phased array, with a space (a.k.a. optical) feed into the rear plane of the antenna. The Flap Lid's antenna stows flat on the roof of the radar cabin, which was initially deployed on a trailer towed by a Ural-357, KrAZ-255 or KrAZ-260 6x6 tractor. The whole radar cabin is mounted on a turntable and used to slew the phased array to cover a 60 degree sector of interest.

The 5N63 was a huge generational leap in technology from the Fan Song, Low Blow and Square Pair mechanically steered and scanned engagement radars on preceding V-PVO SAMs. With electronic beam steering, very low sidelobes and a narrow pencil beam mainlobe, the 30N6 phased array is more difficult to detect and track by an aircraft's warning receiver when not directly painted by the radar, and vastly more difficult to jam. While it may have detectable backlobes, these are likely to be hard to detect from the forward sector of the radar. As most anti-radiation missiles rely on sidelobes to home in, the choice of engagement geometry is critical in attempting to kill a Flap Lid.

Unlike the Patriot's MPQ-53 engagement radar which has substantial autonomous search capability, the 5N63  is primarily an engagement radar designed to track targets and guide missiles to impact using a command link channel. The absence of dedicated directional antennas on this system indicates that the commands are transmitted via a specialised waveform emitted by the main array. The first generation of the 5V55K missile was command link guided, following the design philosophy of the S-75/SA-2 and S-125/SA-3, with a cited range of 25 nautical miles and altitude limits between 80 ft and 80,000 ft.

Growing US electronic combat and SEAD capabilities, in the EF-111A Raven and F-4G Weasel forces were clearly considered a serious threat and this spurred the further evolution of the S-300PT system. In 1982 the V-PVO introduced a fully mobile variant of the system, designated the S-300PS (P- PVO, S - Samochodnyy/Self-propelled), labelled by NATO the SA-10B. The S-300PS saw the 5N63 Flap Lid engagement radar transplanted on to the high mobility 8x8 MAZ-7910 vehicle derived from the MAZ-543. The rehosted radar became the 5N63S Flap Lid B (Samochodnyy/Self-propelled). This permitted the engagement radar and TELs to set up for firing in 5 minutes, and rapidly scoot away after a missile shot to evade US Air Force Weasels. The improved 5N63S Flap Lid B radar had the capability to concurrently engage six targets, and guide two missiles against each target. The phased array beam steering angular range was extended to permit instantaneous coverage of a 90 degree sector, comparable to the SPY-1 Aegis radar.

The next big evolutionary step in the S-300P system was the introduction of the enhanced S-300PM and its export variant the S-300PMU1/SA-10D, in 1993. The SA-10D, later redesignated SA-20 Gargoyle, was subjected to what Russian sources describe as a deep modernisation with design changes to most key components of the system. The aim was to improve its basic capabilities as a SAM, extend radar and engagement footprints, increase the level of automation in the system, and introduce an anti-ballistic missile capability against ballistic missiles with re-entry speeds of up to 2.8 km/sec. Incremental changes were made to the Flap Lid, yielding the 30N6/30N6-1 Tomb Stone variant, designated 30N6E1 for export, capable of guiding the new 48N6 missile, the manufacturer claims an ability to engage targets with an RCS as low as 0.02 square metres at an unspecified range, and an autonomous search capability. The 30N6E1 retains the capability to deploy on the 40V6M mast.

Further evolution of the S-300P design took place between 1995 and 1997, yielding the S-300PMU2/SA-10E Favorit system, later redesignated SA-20 Gargoyle, intended to compete directly against the Antey S-300V and Patriot PAC-2/3 systems as an Anti-Ballistic Missile system. The Favorit incorporates incrementally upgraded 30N6E2 Tomb Stone engagement radar. The Favorit's new command post has the capability to control S-300PMU / SA-10, S-300PMU1 / SA-20 batteries, and also S-200VE/SA-5 Gammon batteries, relaying coordinates and commands to the 5N62VE Square Pair guidance and illumination radar.

The most recent derivative of the S-300P family of systems is the S-400 Triumf or SA-21. The 30N6E2 further evolved into the more capable 92N2E Grave Stone, carried by a new 8 x 8 MZKT-7930 vehicle. The additional range required a significantly uprated transmitter tube to provide the higher power-aperture performance needed, in additional to an improved exciter and automatic frequency hopping capability.



A 2008 diagram published by Almaz-Antey showing the composition of an S-400 battery.



An excellent study of the 5N63 Flap Lid A deployed on 40V6M semi-mobile mast system by Said Aminov, produced at the Togliati Museum in Russia (© 2009, Said Aminov).




Above, below, detail of the 5N63 Flap Lid A  F1 radar head module deployed on 40V6M semi-mobile mast system, by Said Aminov, produced at the Togliati Museum in Russia. The dual plane monopulse circular polarised primary feed has been stripped and the concertina shroud has deteriorated. The operator consoles are in the F2 module, typically located on a truck. Later self-propelled 5N63S Flap Lid B variants retained the capability to deploy the F1S module on the 40V6M/MD mast, with the F2S module remaining attached to the MAZ-7910 8x8 vehicle chassis (© 2009, Said Aminov).

Above: 5N63 Flap Lid A deployed on 40V6M semi-mobile mast system by Said Aminov, produced at the Togliati Museum in Russia; below: 5N63 Flap Lid A co-deployed with a 5N66M Clam Shell, a common arrangement at static Soviet PVO sites requiring low altitude engagement capability (© 2009, Said Aminov).



Above, below: early model 5N63 Flap Lid towed variant on display at the Moscow District PVO Museum at Zarya, near Moscow. Note the exposed polarisation screen in the space feed (Images © Miroslav Gyűrösi).




5N63S Flap Lid B deployed.

30N6 Stowed

5N63S Flap Lid B stowed.



92N6 Grave Stone multimode engagement radar stowed (© 2010, Yevgeniy Yerokhin, Missiles.ru).






NIIP 9S35/9S35M Fire Dome / SA-11 Gadfly

NIIP 9S36 / SA-17 Grizzly




9S35M1 Fire Dome on 9A38M1 TELAR in Buk M1 system (Wikipedia image).



Buk M2E / SA-17 Grizzly TELAR with new NIIP 9S36 Passive ESA Engagement Radar (image Said Aminov via Vestnik PVO).

The 9S35 Fire Dome tracking and illumination radar first emerged as part of the transitional 2K12M3/M4 Kub M4 / SA-6 Gainful, carried by the semi-autonomous 2P25MZ TELAR. The intent behind the design was to permit a larger number of concurrent engagements, by putting a track/illuminate radar on to every single TEL in the SA-6 battery to support engagements using the 3M9M3/9M9M3 SAM round. With the advent of the new 9K37 Buk / SA-11 Gadfly, the 9S35 was adapted for the new 9A38 TELAR and associated 9M38 SAM rounds. The 9S35 is mounted on the front of the TELAR turret, the aft section containing the elevating launch rails for four SAM rounds.

The 9S35 Fire Dome provides a limited search and acquisition capability, a tracking capability and CW illumination for terminal guidance of the semi-active homing SAM seekers. It incorporates an IFF interrogator, optical tracker, datalink, and is powered by the TELAR's gas turbine generator. A shared antenna is employed for two X-band transmit/receive channels. These respectively provide a pulsed mode for search and track functions, with linear chirp for compression, and a CW mode for illumination. Monopulse angle tracking is employed for jam resistance. For target tracking the antenna and feed system provide a mainlobe with 2.5° width in azimuth and 1.3° in elevation. For CW illumination the antenna and feed system provide a mainlobe with 1.4° width in azimuth and 2.65° in elevation.

Operating autonomously, the 9S35 will take 4 seconds to sweep a 120° sector, with an elevation of 6° to 7°. When cued to acquire and track, with will take 2 seconds to sweep a 10° x 7° az/elev solid angle. Average power output in pulsed tracking modes varies between 0.5 and 1 kiloWatt, with CW illumination at 2 kiloWatts. The search and monopulse angle tracking receivers are both rated at a Noise Figure of NF=10 dB. The range error is cited at 175 metres, the angular error at less than 1°. The radar can switch from standby mode to combat operation in twenty seconds.

Notable exports include Finland (M1), Egypt (M1-2), Myanmar (M1-2), Serbia (M1-2), Syria, and Georgia (M1). Upgrades on offer include the Russian Agat 9B-1103M-350 active radar seeker, based on the RVV-AE / AA-12 "AMRAAMski" seeker, for the 9M38 round. The Buk MB upgrade package is offered by NPO Agat in ByeloRussia, better known for its Command Posts.

9K317 Buk M2 / SA-17 Grizzly introduced the new Tikhomirov NIIP 9S36 passive phased array engagement radar, replacing the Fire Dome. The beamsteering parameters cited by Russian sources are consistent with a tilted fixed passive phased array. ESA element count, sidelobe performance, peak power and other cardinal design parameters have not been disclosed to date. The cited detection and tracking ranges for the 9S36 are not consistent with NIIP's airborne PESA design range performance, power densities and aperture sizes, and should be therefore be treated with caution - NIIP have achieved considerably better range performance in the N-011M BARS and N-035 Irbis E airborne radars, with smaller apertures.

The most interesting component of this design is the standalone mast mounted 9S36 phased array, designed to provide extended low altitude and surface coverage, in air defence but also maritime coastal defence applications. This design uses a 21 metre telescoping and elevating mast which mounts a radar head with the 9S36.

NIIP 9S36 PESA Engagement Radar
Target Acquisition Coverage:
Azimuth
±45°
Elevation
0 -  50°
Target Tracking Coverage:
Azimuth ±60°
Elevation -5 - 85°
Range Performance (MiG-21 RCS Target):
Detect
100 km
Acquire/Track
95 km
Number of Tracked Targets
4



9S36 Passive ESA antenna (NIIP image).



9S35M1 Fire Dome on 9A38M1 TELAR in Finnish Buk M1 system (Wikipedia image by Olli-Jukka Paloneva).

Buk M1/M1-2 Specifications (Rosoboronexport)
Basic Characteristics Buk-M1 Buk-M1-2
1.  Targets to be engaged  Strategic and tactical aircraft
Helicopters, including hovering ones
Cruise missiles
Strategic and tactical aircraft
Helicopters, including hovering ones
Cruise missiles
Tactical ballistic missiles
Aircraft missiles
Precision-guided weapon components 
Waterborne targets 
Ground targets 
2.  Engagement zone limits, km: 
2.1.  Approaching  F-15 aircraft: 
 ≈ range
 ≈ altitude
3 - 35
0.015 - 22
3 - 45
0.015 - 25 
2.2.  Lance tactical  ballistic missile:
 ≈ range
 ≈ altitude
is not ensured up tp 20
2 -16
2.3.  HARM: 
 ≈ range
 ≈ altitude
is not ensured
 
up to 20
0.1-15
2.4.  ALCM: 
 ≈ range
20 - 25 30 - 35
2.5.  Destroyer-type  waterborne targets: 
 ≈ range
is not ensured 3 - 25
2.6.  Ground targets  such as parked aircraft, launchers  and large command  posts is not ensured 10 - 15
3. One-missile 
 target kill probability: 
≈ non-maneuvering 
   F-15 aircraft 
≈ Lance tactical 
    ballistic missile 
≈ HARM 
≈ ALCM
0.7-0.85 



0.4

0.9-0.95 

0.5-0.7 
0.5-0.7 
0.5-0.7

4.  Time into action, min 5 5
 


9S32 Grill Pan / S-300V / SA-12 Gladiator / Giant

9S32M Grill Screen / S-300VM / SA-23 Gladiator / Giant


9S32 Grill Pan (Image © 2009, Sergey Kuznetsov).

The engagement radar in the S-300V suite is the 9S32 Grill Pan, a PESA radar similar in concept and function to the MPQ-53 and 30N6, but larger with the antenna turret capable of slewing through +/-340 degrees. It will automatically acquire and track targets provided by the 9S457 command post, control the operation of TELAR mounted illuminators and generate midcourse guidance commands for up to 12 missiles fired at 6 targets concurrently. The S-300V system uses continuous wave illumination of targets and semi-active radar terminal homing, not unlike the US Navy RIM-66/67 series SAMs - the CW illuminators are carried on the 9A82 and 9A83 TELARs. The illuminators also act as midcourse update datalink channels.

Like the 9S19, the 9S32 is a high power-aperture, coherent, X-band phased array, but specialised for missile guidance producing a mainlobe of ~1 degree in width. The TWT based transmitter is rated at 150 kW peak and 10 to 13 kW average power, with receiver sensitivity cited at 10-17 Watts.

Cited detection ranges are about 80 nautical miles for fighter sized targets, 40 nautical miles for SRAM class missiles and up to 80 nautical miles for larger IRBMs.

The pulse Doppler radar uses monopulse angle tracking techniques, frequency hopping in all modes to provide high jam resistance, and linear FM chirped waveforms providing a high compression ratio. Three auxiliary receiver channels are used for cancelling sidelobe jamming.

Two basic operating modes are used. In the first the 9S32 is controlled by the 9S457 command post and acquires targets within a narrow 5º x 6º degree field of view, alternately it can autonomously search and acquire targets within a 60º field of view, from an elevation of 0 to 18º. A datalink antenna is mounted aft of the array.

Cited aerial target RMS errors for the 9S32 are 5-25 metres in range, 0.3 - 1.5 m/s in velocity, and 0.2 - 2 arcmin in elevation and bearing.

The S-300VM and likely S-300V4 employ the heavily redesigned 9S32M Grill Screen. This 9S32 derivative employs an space fed PESA which is clearly based on the design used in the 9S19 Imbir / High Screen series of ABM radars. Cited range performance is ~108 nautical miles, but may be as high as 135 nautical miles given revised range figures for the 9M82M missile.




9S32M/ME Engagement Radar. This design is hybrid of components from the 9S19 High Screen and 9S32 Grill Pan. It has improved range performance, due to increased power, antenna aperture, and processing (Antey).


9A83 TELAR in deployed configuration. This image shows the elevating a telescoping illuminator mast to effect. The design is intended to improve low altitude coverage, which is not a requirement for the longer ranging 9M82 missile (Author unknown). 9A83 TELAR Deployed. Additional image [Click here ...]






Scrum Half / PESA / 9K331M/M1 Tor M/M1/M2E / SA-15 Gauntlet 




Tor M1 / SA-15B Gauntlet system (Kupol JSC).

The 9K331 / SA-15 Gauntlet family of systems employs two generations of radar package, designated collectively the Scrum Half. Earlier variants were developed to defend land manoevre forces against missile firing attack helicopters and low flying close air support fighters. More recently the role of the system has been redefined to protection of high value targets against precision guided munitions and cruise missiles. The current Tor M2E has new radar package and is carried on a wheeled chassis, both optimisations for its new primary role.

First generation systems employed a mechanically steered paraboloid section antenna for the MTI acquisition radar component, which can be elevated by 32° to sweep a high altitude or low altitude volume, at 60 RPM. The mainlobe width in elevation is ~4.0°. Cite: "To increase the pulse energy, the length of the emitted pulse is increased, and the pulse is internally modulated. The radar can also operate in an active jamming environment when the entire transmitted power of the radar is accumulated in one critical portion instead of being distributed among three portions." Cite: "The accuracy of target designation is 100 m in range, 20 min in azimuth and 2 deg in elevation."

The tracking radar component of the Scrum Half is a coherent pulse Doppler design which uses an large mechanically elevated antenna on the front of the system's turret. This antenna design uses mechanical turret steering and antenna elevation for coarse tracking, and low element count phased array for precision fine tracking. The electronically steered antenna functions provides mainlobe deflection of 7° in elevation and 3° in azimuth, with time from initial detection to automatic tracking cited at 400 to 600 msec. Pulse compression is employed as well as digital signal processing. An adjunct optical tracker is included. Auxiliary antennas are provided for missile capture and beacon tracking.



The Russian Tor M2 or SA-15D Gauntlet is by far the most capable point defence SAM system deployed by Russia and its clientele. It is used to defend against low flying aircraft as well as cruise missiles and guided weapons like smart bombs. It is available on a tracked chassis, and more recently, a purpose designed semi-hardened MZKT-6922 6 x 6 all terrain vehicle. Depicted deployed configuration (Kupol JSC).

The Tor M2/M2E is a 'deep modernisation' of the baseline Tor M1 weapon system, available on the legacy tracked chassis, or the entirely new low profile wheeled MZKT-6922 6 x 6 chassis as the 9A331MK, the latter specifically developed by the ByeloRussian manufacturer for this application. The Tor M2E has an improved weapon system. The new planar array surveillance radar can track up to 48 targets concurrently, retaining the range performance of the legacy system. The revised phased array engagement radar uses new phase shifters, and is capable of tracking targets within a claimed 30° solid angle around the antenna boresight, quadrupling the angular coverage of the original radar. Paired command link antennas are mounted on both sides of the array, used to acquire the missiles post launch, while they are out of the field of view of the engagement radar array. Missiles can be launched 2 seconds apart.



Tor M2E PESA engagement radar. The design is capable of tilting to engage high elevation targets The Electro-Optical targeting system is at the left of the image. Note the hemispherical command uplink antennas for post launch missile acquisition (Kupol JSC).



Tor M2E search radar in deployed configuration. The low sidelobe planar array design replaces the cumbersome paraboloid section reflector design used with the Tor M1 series (Kupol JSC).



Apertures for the Tor M2E Electro-Optical tracking system, used to supplement the engagement radar in heavily jammed environments (Kupol JSC).


 
Tor M1 acquisition radar patterns.



1RL144 Hot Shot / SA-19 Grison




Early configuration 2S6 Tunguska system, note the Hot Shot radar system with the paraboloid section search antenna and gimballed monopulse tracking antenna.

First introduced in 1982, the Tunguska series of hybrid SPAAG/SAM systems was deployed by the PVO-SV to provide a replacement for the legacy ZSU-23-4P, which despite its success in Vietnam and the Middle East, was recognised as vulnerable to the then new A-10 Thunderbolt, and to helicopters firing anti-armour missiles, such as the Hellfire equipped AH-64A Apache. From the Soviet perspective, both of these threats would pop up briefly above the radar/visual horizon, fire at Soviet tanks or SPAAGs, and then disappear below the horizon before the ZSU-23-4P or Romb / SA-8 systems could respond with defensive weapon fire.

The Soviets needed a weapon system which could win in a 'high noon' shootout with the A-10 or a nap-of-ther-earth pop-up rotary wing threat. This became one of the defining requirements for the Tunguska, and led to the development of the high speed 9M311 SAM, intended to cross the distance between the Tunguska and the target before the latter could hide below the horizon line. This capability would be supplemented by a 30 mm gun system.

The missile requirement led to the unusual two stage 9M311 design, in which the first stage boosted the round to 900 m/s at burnout, the sustainer in the terminal stage burning to impact and maintaining a 600 m/s velocity. The missile employs command link guidance, with an automatic Command to Line Of Sight (CLOS) control loop for the terminal phase to impact, with an 18G capability. The engagement radar component of the 1RL144M Hot Shot system is claimed to operate in the millimetric band, using jam resistant monopulse angle tracking; a 1A29M optical sight is boresighted with the radar. A 1RL138 IFF system is included. Conceptually the 2S6 missile package has its closest Western equivalents in the Franco-German Roland system, and the UK Rapier Blindfire and Seawolf systems.

The most recent variants of the system displayed have included components of the radar suites developed for the 96K6 Pantsir S1 / SA-22, specifically the 2RL80 S-band phased array acquisition radar and 1RS2/1RS2-E Shlem or SSTsR (Stantsiya Slezheniya Tsel'a i Rakety - Target and Missile Tracking Station) engagement radar.



The modernised 2S6M1 Tunguska M1 employs a planar array search radar, and a distinctive radome for the engagement radar component.


Phazotron 1L36E/1RS2 / VNIIRT 1RS2-1 / 96K6 Pantsir S1 / SA-22




The most recent Pantsir S1 variant has two passive phased array radars to provide a robust capability to acquire, track and concurrently engage up to four targets, such as AGM-88 HARM/AARGM missiles, cruise missiles, JDAMs, SDBs or other PGMs. This image shows the S-band VNIIRT 2RL80 acquisition radar deployed, and the 1RS2-1 Ku-band engagement radar elevated (KBP).

Early variants of the SA-19 Grison were developed to defend land manoevre forces against missile firing attack helicopters and low flying close air support fighters. More recently, the re-engineered and modernised Pantsir S1 has seen the role of the system  redefined to protection of high value targets against precision guided munitions and cruise missiles.

The development of the Pantsir S/S1 saw the introduction, initially, of a search radar with a doubly curved parabolic surface and eliptical shape. This was supplanted in production variants with a VNIIRT developed phased array. The latter design has since appeared on 2K22M1 Tunguska M1 demonstrators, as well as tracked and wheeled 96K6 Pantsir S1 demonstrators and production systems.

The VNIIRT developed PESA technology acquisition radar on the Pantsir S1, the 2RL80/2RL80E, uses a mechanically rotated 1776 x 940 mm sized 760 kg passive S-band phased array. The design provides elevation coverage between 0° and 60°, range coverage between 1 and 50 km, and performs a circular scan in 2 or 4 seconds. The radar can initiate tracking in 2 seconds. Cited detection range performance for a 1 m2 target is 47 km, for a 0.1 m2 target is 26 km. Cited clutter rejection is 55 dB. Accuracy figures cited are 50 metres in range, 15 - 18 min of arc in azimuth, and 25 - 30 min of arc in elevation.

Elevation coverage is selectable in increments of 0° - 60°, 0° - 30°, 40° - 80° and 0 - 25°, and the radar can search a 360° circle at 15 or 30 RPM. Range coverage can be selected in several modes, at 1-30 km, 1-50 km, 1-25 km and 3-80 km.

Acquisition performance for various target types has also been cited, with notable inconsistencies:
  • 36 km for a small fighter with a 2 m2 RCS;
  • 20 km for a manoeuvring cruise missile with a 0.1 m2 RCS;
  • 16 km for a glidebomb with a 0.2 m2 RCS;
  • 12 km for an AGM-88 HARM anti-radiation missile with a 0.1 m2 RCS;
  • 32 km for an AH-64 Apache attack helicopter.
The evolution of engagement radars in the Pantsir series has seen three distinct designs.

Early Pantsir S1 demonstrators initially used an MMW band monopulse tracking antenna, with a characteristic conical radome, with the Russians claiming two discrete Phazotron designs in this configuration, the 1L36-01 Roman and later 1RS2-E Shlem.

This pulse Doppler radar is designated the 1RS2/1RS2-E Shlem or SSTsR (Stantsiya Slezheniya Tsel'a i Rakety - Target and Missile Tracking Station), initially designated the 1RS1 and 1RS1-E for export. Cited tracking range performance for a 2 m2 target is 30 km. Cited RMS angular errors for X-band operation are 0.3-0.8 milliradians, for Ku-band operation 0.2-0.4 milliradians, with a 5 metre range error.

The X-band component of the SSTsR is used for target tracking, and uplink of missile steering commands., the Ku-band component for target and missile beacon tracking. The system typically guides one or two missile rounds against a single target.

This design has since appeared on the 2K22M1 Tunguska M1 demonstrators, various repackaged Pantsir variants on smaller chassis, usually with the 2RL80E acquisition radar.

In 2004 the requirement for the PVO engagement radar changed, when it was expected that the program would be cancelled. A new requirement was issued to increase the number of concurrent targets to be tracked and engaged, and engagement range was increased. This likely reflects the success of the US GBU-31/32/35/38 JDAM and emergence of analogues globally, where more than two weapons would be released from an aircraft concurrently. With the GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bomb intended to be released eight at a time, the Roman and Shlem would be saturated in a single aircraft attack.

This resulted in the development of an entirely new PESA based radar, curiously designated the
1RS2-1 / 1RS2-1E, but also labelled by a Russian source as the 1RL123-E. VNIIRT has been credited with the development of this design. To date all imagery has excluded views of the PESA antenna without the protective radome, so the following description is based on recent public disclosures and is yet to be validated [1][2]:
  • Operating centre wavelength claimed by KBP to be “8 mm in the K-band” - antenna geometry suggests 15 mm (20 GHz) to 18 mm (16.7 GHz);
  • Beamsteering angles of up to ±45° of arc;
  • Mechanical PESA boresight steering in elevation between -5° and 82°;
  • Track while scan of nine separate targets;
  • 90% probability of initial target acquisition within 1 second of coordinate transfer from the 2RL80 with errors of ±2.5° in azimuth, ±2.5° in elevation, ±200 m in range and ±60 metres / sec in radial velocity;
  • Tracking errors of 0.2 milliradians in azimuth, 0.3 milliradians in elevation, 5 metres in range and 2 metres / sec in velocity;
  • Ability to track airborne targets at velocities between 10 to 1,100 metres / sec;
  • Ability to capture 4 missiles after launch;
  • Ability to track 3 to 4 outbound missiles at velocities between 30 to 2,100 metres / sec;
  • Detection range of 24 km against a 2.0 m2 RCS airborne target; 21 km against a 1 m2 RCS airborne target; 16 km against a 0.5 m2 RCS airborne target; 10 km against a 0.1 m2 RCS airborne target; 7 km against a 0.03 m2 RCS airborne target;
High countermeasures resistance is claimed for the 1RS2-1 and 2RL80, but not detailed beyond the standard descriptions found in brochures.

The primary antenna is used for target and missile tracking, it is supplemented by a command link antenna which is part of the APKNR (Apparatura Peredachi Komand i Naprovadzaniya Raket) subsystem for datalink control of the missiles.




The 1L36-01 Roman was the first engagement radar used on the Pantsir S demonstrators. The characteristic conical radome shape conceals a parabolic reflector antenna with a quad waveguide feed for dual plane  monpulse angle tracking, with X-band and Ku-band channels. Note the smaller upper missile command link antenna. The radar has been labelled as a 96L6-1, but more commonly as the 1L36-01 (© 2007, Yevgeniy Yerokhin, Missiles.ru).





The 1RS2-E Shlem was the second engagement radar used on the Pantsir S demonstrators, it continues to be offered with Pantsir and Tunguska variants on tracked chassis where its compact size and single target limitation do not present operational problems. The antenna has not been displayed without the radome, but is likely to be very similar to the earlier 1L36 Roman series (© 2005, Said Aminov, Vestnik PVO).





Detail of  new Pantsir S1 1RS2-1 / 1RS2-1E PESA engagement radar, which is claimed to operate in the Ku-band. The small upper antenna belongs to the APKNR (Apparatura Peredachi Komand i Naprovadzaniya Raket) subsystem for datalink control of the missiles. The design has been credited to VNIIRT (KBP).



Operator stations in an early configuration of the Pantsir S.



Crew stations in the recent Pantsir S1E hosted on the GM-352 chassis (image © Miroslav Gyűrösi).



Imagery Sources: Russian Internet, Chinese Internet, Almaz-Antey, LEMZ, VNIIRT, Author
Line Artwork:
© 2000, 2007, 2008, 2009 Carlo Kopp


Technical Report APA-TR-2009-0102




People's Liberation Army Air Power Index Page [Click for more ...]
Military Ethics, Culture, Education and Training Index Page [Click for more ...]
Russian / Soviet Weapon Systems Index Page [Click for more ...]





Artwork, graphic design, layout and text © 2004 - 2014 Carlo Kopp; Text © 2004 - 2014 Peter Goon; All rights reserved. Recommended browsers. Contact webmaster. Site navigation hints. Current hot topics.

Site Update Status: $Revision: 1.753 $ Site History: Notices and Updates / NLA Pandora Archive