What is the US THAAD missile defense system? The National Interest (USA): American missile defense system THAAD is approaching the borders of Russia Anti-missile defense system about thaad

MOSCOW, December 27 - RIA Novosti, Vadim Saranov. Rockets began to fly into Saudi Arabia frequently. Recently, the UN Security Council condemned the Yemeni Houthis strike on Riyadh. The target of the attack was the royal palace of Al-Yamama, but nothing happened. The missile was either shot down, or it deviated from the course. Against this background, Saudi Arabia intends to significantly strengthen missile defense. The main candidates for the role of "umbrella" are the American THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) system and the Russian S-400 Triumph air defense system. About the advantages and disadvantages of competitors - in the material of RIA Novosti.

S-400 hits further, THAAD - higher

Objectively, THAAD and the S-400 Triumph air defense system are conditional competitors. "Triumph" is primarily designed to destroy aerodynamic targets: aircraft, cruise missiles, unmanned vehicles. THAAD, on the other hand, is a system originally designed to combat short and medium-range ballistic missiles. "American" is capable of destroying targets at altitudes beyond the reach of conventional air defense systems - 150 kilometers, and according to some sources, even 200 kilometers. The newest anti-aircraft missile 40N6E of the Russian "Triumph" does not work above 30 kilometers. However, according to experts, the indicator of the height of the defeat, especially when it comes to the fight against operational-tactical missiles, is not critical.

"In theater missile defense, targets are destroyed on descending trajectories, not in space," Lieutenant General Aitech Bizhev, ex-deputy commander of the Air Force for the joint air defense system of the CIS member states, told RIA Novosti. "In the late 1980s, in missile defense capital, it was supposed to use two regiments of S-300V2. At the Kapustin Yar training ground, they created a model of the defense of Moscow with the same geometric dimensions and launched targets from the stratosphere. All of them were destroyed at a distance of 120 kilometers."

By the way, the main danger for Saudi Arabia today is precisely the R-17 Scud operational-tactical missiles and the Kahir and Zelzal tactical missiles, created on the basis of the Soviet Luna-M complex.

Another key difference between the American and Russian complexes lies in the principle of operation. If the Triumph hits targets with shrapnel after detonating the missile warhead near the target, then the THAAD, devoid of the warhead, hits the missile exactly with a kinetic block. Meanwhile, despite the apparent complexity of this decision, the Americans managed to achieve good results during the tests - the probability of destroying a target with one anti-missile is 0.9, if THAAD insures the complex more simply, this figure will be 0.96.

The main advantage of the Triumph in the case of its use as an anti-missile system is its higher range. For the 40N6E missile, it is up to 400 kilometers, while for THAAD it is 200 kilometers. Unlike the S-400, which can fire 360 degrees, the deployed THAAD has a field of fire of 90 degrees horizontally and 60 degrees vertically. But at the same time, the “American” has better eyesight - the detection range of its AN / TPY-2 radar is 1000 kilometers against 600 kilometers for the Triumph.

Combine incompatible

Apparently, Saudi Arabia intends to build its missile defense on two completely different systems. This approach may seem somewhat strange, because serious compatibility problems can arise during their operation. However, according to experts, this is a completely solvable issue.

“These two systems cannot be controlled in an automated mode from a single command post,” military expert Mikhail Khodarenok told RIA Novosti. “They have completely different mathematics, completely different logic. But this does not exclude the possibility of their combat use separately. They can be deployed in different places or even within the framework of the defense of one object, if for them the tasks are divided by heights and sectors. They can simply perfectly complement each other, being in the same grouping."

Saudi Arabia's desire to acquire both Russian and American systems may be dictated by other considerations. After Operation Desert Storm, during which the French anti-aircraft missile systems in service with Iraqi air defense suddenly turned out to be inoperable, potential buyers began to be more cautious about purchasing Western-made weapons.

“There may be bookmarks in American weapons,” says Mikhail Khodarenok. able to work on conventional aerodynamic targets. It is possible that this is the only reason they buy the Russian system."

The most important difference between THAAD and Triumph is the price. The cost of one THAAD battery, which consists of six launchers for eight interceptor missiles each, is about $2.3 billion. Another 574 million is the innovative AN / TPY-2 radar. The cost of the S-400 division with eight launchers of four missiles is about $500 million. The Russian complex costs almost six times less, while the benefits of THAAD, at least for now, are not obvious.

Short description

The American mobile anti-missile system (PRK) of long-range interception THAAD (Theater High Altitude Area Defense) is designed to destroy operational-tactical missiles (OTR, firing range up to 1000 km) and medium-range ballistic missiles (IRBM, up to 3500 km) at altitudes of 40 -150 km and ranges up to 200 km.

R&D for its creation has been carried out since 1992 by Lockheed Martin Missiles and Space with a group of industrial enterprises, among which Raytheon is responsible for the development of a multifunctional radar. They have one of the highest priorities in the theater missile defense program and are at the stage of confirming the technical feasibility of the chosen concept.
At the beginning of 1995, at the White Sands missile defense range (New Mexico), prototypes of the launcher, the GBR-T multifunctional radar station and the command post (CP) of this complex were deployed, and flight tests of experimental samples of its anti-missile (PR) began. .

Since 2000, the program has been in preparation for serial production of engineering and manufacturing development (EMD). In May 2004, the production of 16 interceptor missiles for flight tests began at the new Lockheed Martin plant in Pike County, Alabama (Pike County, Alabama). Preliminary comprehensive tests of the system will begin in early 2005 and will continue until 2009. It is planned that the system in 2007 will be put into small-scale production and the first phase of its deployment (initial operating capability IOC) will begin.

Anti-missile

PR THAAD - single-stage solid propellant (launching weight 900 kg, length 617 and maximum hull diameter 37 cm), consists of a head section, a transition compartment and a solid propellant rocket engine with a tail stabilizer skirt. Solid fuel engine developed by Pratt & Whitney.

The anti-missile warhead is made in the form of a detachable self-guided interception stage of kinetic action, designed to hit ballistic targets by direct hit. In its bow part, a double-leaf aerodynamic fairing, which is discharged at the final stage of the flight of the PR, is installed.

The interception stage includes: a multispectral infrared homing head (GOS), operating in the middle (3.3 -3.8 microns) and far (7 - 10 microns) sections of the IR range, a command-inertial control system, a computer, a power supply, as well as a propulsion system (DU) for maneuvering and spatial orientation.

The HP seeker has an IR transparent sapphire uncooled window. Its non-scanning matrix photodetector, located in a two-axis gimbal suspension, is a focal grating made on the basis of sensitive elements made of indium antimonide, with an angular resolution of no more than 200 μrad (until 1997, in the GSP of experimental PR samples, sensitive elements were made of platinum silicide). Since the head part of the antimissile has the shape of a cone, the photodetector has an angular displacement of the line of sight relative to the longitudinal axis of the PR. Its three-mirror optical system is placed in a Dewar vessel.

The design of the interception stage of the experimental sample of the anti-missile provides for the use of various types of propulsion systems. In particular, at the stage of demonstrating and confirming the technical feasibility of the project to create a PR, it is planned to place a maneuvering and spatial orientation system of the DACS type (Divert Attitute Control System) equipped with a liquid engine (developed by Rocketdine) in the tail section of its interception stage. This PS must be switched on in the final section of the PR flight path in order to ensure its direct hit on the ballistic target.

In the DACS liquid propulsion system, four cross-shaped reusable microengines are used to create transverse thrust, placed in a plane passing through its center of mass, and having four control nozzles. They are actuated by a solenoid type valve device. The micromotors operate on a two-component fuel (nitrogen tetroxide and monomethylhydrazine) supplied by a displacement method. A number of their elements, which are most exposed to hot gases, are made of carbon composite materials with a niobium coating. Each micromotor has a mass of 1 kg and a specific thrust impulse of 315 - 325 s. The use of niobium-coated carbon composite materials in its design made it possible to bring the temperature in the combustion chamber up to 2760 ° C without the use of forced cooling. A 60 kg nozzle provides a thrust impulse of 70 kgf.s, and its maximum value can be reached in no more than 5 ms .

The basis of the valve device is the valves for supplying fuel to the combustion chambers of microengines to ensure the mode of maneuvering the interception stage, as well as its injection into nozzles for its spatial orientation. Both types of valves are assembled on the basis of a solenoid. Its operation is carried out with the help of a power drive capable of generating a maximum current of 1.5 A. In May 1994, in the Santa Susanna laboratory (California), Rocketdipe specialists successfully conducted bench fire tests of a prototype liquid control DACS. According to the developers of the project, this made it possible to assemble and deliver a total of 20 experimental samples of the interception stage of this PR to the White Sands test site, where it was to be tested, on time.

Judging by reports in the American press, it is planned to replace such a remote control later. Thus, at the stage of full-scale development of the PR, the US Army Missile Defense and Space Command plans to equip the interception stage with a small-sized propulsion system of the Aerojet DACS type, operating on jelly-like rocket fuel. It combines the advantages of a rocket engine (high specific impulse, the ability to accurately control thrust and multiple switching) with the advantages of a solid propellant rocket engine (safety and ease of operation). The search for the composition of jelly-like fuel is carried out by introducing various polymer-based additives into the formulations of the components of existing liquid rocket fuels until a jelly-like consistency is obtained. The creation of fuel with a higher density, according to Western experts, will significantly reduce the size of the fuel tanks and the entire interception stage as a whole. To increase the specific thrust impulse of the engine, a study is being carried out on the feasibility of using metal additives in such fuel.

In the longer term, the indicated remote control is also supposed to be replaced by a solid-propellant propulsion system.

Thus, the existing version of the experimental sample of the THAAD interception stage with liquid control is considered by the developers as intermediate. It is planned to be used mainly for testing the design of an anti-missile and algorithms for its guidance to a ballistic target. The flight control of the PR in the middle section of the trajectory is carried out by changing the thrust vector of the deflected nozzle of the solid propellant rocket engine. This engine provides its acceleration to a speed of about 3 km / s. The tail skirt is a flexible, self-regulating and adaptable to flight conditions PR stabilizer. It is assembled from 16 movable aerodynamic planes - segments based on special spherical gas bags. Such a design of the skirt makes it possible to significantly enhance the stabilizing effect when lateral aerodynamic forces are applied to the antimissile.

Launcher

Launcher with ten anti-missiles and its scheme

Multifunctional radar station GBR

Scheme HEADLIGHTS radar GBR

GBR radar element diagrams: radar as a whole, hardware, mobile power supply, cooling system

Command post of the complex

Battery command post

Scheme of interaction of elements of the anti-missile complex THAAD

The launcher accommodates ten launchers in transport and launch containers. They are mounted in a single module on the chassis of a 10-ton tractor M1075 (wheel arrangement 10 x 10). The M1075 tractor was developed on the basis of a heavy off-road truck with a loading system (Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck with Load Handling System (HEMTT-LHS)) from Oshkosh Truck Corporation. The total mass of the launcher is 40 tons, the length is 12 m and the height is 3.25 m. It takes 30 minutes to reload it. The launchers of the THAAD complex are air transportable and can be redeployed on C-141 heavy cargo aircraft. Reloading the launcher takes 30 minutes. The anti-missile transport and launch container weighs 370 kg, its length is 6.6 m, and its width is 0.46 m.

Multifunctional radar station

Raytheon's GBR-T or GBR multifunctional radar (operating frequency around 10 GHz) has a range of up to 1000 km. It was created in a transportable version. The radar includes a launcher with three operator jobs on the chassis of an M998 vehicle, a hardware van with phased array (PAR) control and signal processing equipment, an antenna on a car platform, a semi-trailer for liquid cooling of the HEADLIGHTS and a mobile power source. Communication of the station control center with the equipment van and the command post (CP) of the THAAD anti-missile complex is provided via a fiber-optic cable. In this case, the distance between the radar and the command post can reach 14 km.

The PAR aperture area is about 9 m2. Its control in elevation in the range of 10 - 60 ° is carried out electromechanically. During combat work, the elevation angle is fixed in the optimal position for a particular case of firing. The lower limit of the electronic scanning of the PAR radiation pattern is 4° above the horizon line.

An autonomous power supply source was created on the basis of a three-phase electric unit with a capacity of more than 1 MW. As its options, a diesel or gas turbine engine and an electric generator were considered. Both types of engines are designed for long-term continuous operation at altitudes up to 2.4 km with a shaft power of 0.9 - 1.5 MW at a temperature of 25 ° C. For a three-phase electric generator, the output power was limited to 0.3 MW at the generated voltage 2.4-4.16 kV.

Under the terms of the contract, three samples of the GBR-T radar were manufactured: one experimental (used to provide the first four launches of the THAAD PR at the White Sands training ground in order to work out the final stage of the demonstration stage and confirm the technical feasibility of the project) and two experimental combat, designated UOES (User Operational Evaluation System) and intended to be included in the PRK in test and combat performance. This complex, if necessary, can be transferred and deployed in areas of real hostilities. Elements of the GBR radar are air transportable and can be relocated by the C-141 transport aircraft.

Command post of the complex

The command post of the complex with this radar is a THAAD combat control system. At the same time, it is a tactical control center for the combat operations of missile defense forces and means in the theater of operations and solves the tasks of combat control in the "battalion-battery" link. Along with aiming anti-missiles at ballistic targets, it can also provide the necessary information about the presence of targets for short-range interception systems of the Patriot, PAK-Z, MEADS types or the Aegis multifunctional weapon system.

The battery command post (the smallest autonomous PRK unit, consisting of a command post, a GBR-T radar and three to nine launchers) includes two pairs of combat control and missile launch control cabins (KBU and KUPR). In addition, one CUPR is deployed in each battery to ensure interaction between its PU and CP. Two more cabins of both types can be included in the battery for receiving and pre-processing information from another GBR-T radar (for example, from a neighboring battery or division).

Equipment kits for combat control and missile launch control cabins, developed by Lytton Data Systems, are placed on the chassis of a 1.25-ton all-terrain vehicle. Each of them provides, respectively, one and two automated workstations of the operator, as well as the necessary means of communication. There are three high-performance special calculators HP-735 manufactured by Hewlett-Packard in the KBU (one in the KUPR). They are a 32-bit computer running at a clock frequency of 125 MHz. To ensure the tasks of target distribution, the command post uses data from external target designation from various information and reconnaissance means of space (AES "Brilliant Eyes", "Imeyus"), air (AWACS, Hawkeye, JSTARS), sea (SES ACS) and ground (early warning radar "Beamuse" and others) basing.

At the same time, it allows you to aim up to two anti-missiles at each selected ballistic target according to the principle "fired - controlled - fired", and also, taking into account the data of the NAVSTAR space radio navigation system, transmit the necessary information about the air-target situation to control centers of short-range interception systems, in particular air defense systems "Patriot". In addition, this information, using JTIDS communication and data distribution equipment, SINCGARS-type VHF jammer-proof radio stations and the MSE (Mobile Subscriber Equipment) army corps automated mobile switched communication system, can be transmitted to other consumers through interface nodes with a fiber-optic distribution network, r including at the command post of the interacting tactical aviation forces of the US Air Force. It is also supposed to be used in the interests of issuing preliminary target designation to the forces and means of missile defense / air defense of the allies.

Flight tests

Initially, it was planned to carry out a series of flight tests of the THAAD PR - 20 launches of its experimental samples. However, taking into account the need to make changes (to ensure resistance to the damaging effects of a nuclear explosion) in the design of the main elements of the complex, for the implementation of which more than 80 million dollars were spent, this number was reduced to 14 in the interests of financial savings (the remaining six PRs are planned to be used in as backup).

As of April 1, 1998, seven launches of the THAAD PR were completed, of which four were launched in 1995 (April 21, August 1, October 13 and December 13), in 1996 - two (March 22 and July 15) and in 1997 - one (March 6). The purpose of the first flight test was to check the flight performance of the anti-missile, as well as to assess the accuracy of its launch to a given point in space. 1 minute after the launch, the PR passed the design point at an altitude of 115 km, after which it was eliminated on command from the ground.

The second flight test according to the scenario was similar to the previous one. During the flight, the PR made a special maneuver, designated TEMS (THAAD Energy Management Steering). It consists in the fact that initially the anti-missile moves along a trajectory close to horizontal, and then it is transferred to the vertical flight mode with the homing head in the target capture zone. However, due to a malfunction (short circuit) in the onboard control system, the tail skirt did not open, as a result of which the speed of the PR in the middle section of the trajectory exceeded the specified one. To prevent the anti-missile from leaving the test area, it was eliminated at the end of the first minute of the flight.

According to the original plans, during the third test of the PR, it was planned to carry out a real interception of the target missile. However, due to the malfunction identified in the previous experiment, the specialists were afraid of its possible exit from the test site, and as a result, the interception was excluded from the experiment plan. After the launch of the anti-missile, the tail skirt aerodynamic planes opened normally and, in accordance with the flight program, it only performed the planned TEMS maneuver. Its IR GOS normally worked out the algorithm for pointing at a conditional target, after which, at a given point in space, the PR self-destructed.

Thus, the main task of the third test (assessment of the functioning of the IC GOS) was successfully completed. The results obtained in the course of it served as the basis for further improvement of the software of the PR on-board computer. In addition, during the test, for the first time, elements of a regular automated command post and a multifunctional radar GBR-T complex were used. In this case, the latter was used only for searching and detecting the target. Tracking of the PR and the target was carried out by a specialized radar station of the White Sands test site.

The purpose of the subsequent experiments was to demonstrate the interception of a real ballistic missile, which was used as a two-stage target "Storm" (the first stage is the modernized engine OTR "Sergeant", and the second - the third stage of the ICBM "Minuteman-1") and "Hera" (based on the second and the third stages of the Minuteman-2 ICBM). The first of them was used in the fourth and fifth launches, and the second - in the sixth and seventh. According to Western press reports, their results were considered unsuccessful, since the PR never hit the target.

During the fourth test, the launch of the PR was carried out 5 minutes after the start of the target. The anti-missile successfully completed all the necessary maneuvers. Her GOS captured and steadily accompanied the target in a timely manner, which, however, was not hit. The subsequent analysis of the telemetry information received from the PR board showed that before the launch, an error was made when loading the initial target designation data into the inertial guidance system. As a result, a number of unplanned trajectory correction commands were issued to the anti-missile from the ground. As a result, the separation of the interception stage did not occur at the calculated point and there was not enough fuel in the engine of its maneuvering system to complete the final maneuver.

The flight control of the PR, as in the previous experiment, was carried out using a specialized range radar (the GBR-T station was used as a backup).

The difference between this experiment and the rest was that the launch of the PR was carried out for the first time with a standard launcher. In the initial and middle sections of the trajectory, the anti-missile flight occurred without deviations. However, after separation, the interception stage continued to move along the ballistic trajectory due to the failure of the electronic equipment of the seeker. In this regard, its emergency detonation was carried out at the command of the security service of the landfill.

The main goal of the sixth test of the THAAD PR (destruction of the target) was not achieved. Its interception stage flew a few meters from the target, after which it self-destructed. According to Western experts, the failure of the electronic equipment of the seeker was also the cause of the failure. The radar station and launcher functioned normally.

During the seventh test launch of the anti-missile, the target was once again not hit due to a malfunction in the PR control system, which did not perceive trajectory correction commands. The radar and launcher worked normally.

Thus, during the four flight tests of the THAAD PR, the target was never intercepted. Despite this, the US Congress raised the issue of the need to continue work on this project due to its importance for the implementation of the theater missile defense program as a whole.

In total, in 1998 - 1999, seven more launches of experimental samples of the anti-missile were carried out, two of which ended with a direct hit of the anti-missile on targets on June 10 and August 2, 1999.

The full-scale development of the PRK is expected to begin in 1999, and to be adopted by the US Army in 2006. Since 2005, pre-series production of the complex has begun with the achievement by 2007 of the production rate of 40 anti-missiles per year.

At the same time, the possibility of using the THAAD PR in a ship-based long-range interception missile defense system is being studied. To do this, according to experts from the Lockheed-Martin corporation, it is necessary:

to adapt the launcher to firing from Mk41 vertical launchers and to integrate it with the Aegis shipboard multifunctional weapon system;
to equip the PR with the launch booster Mk72 of the ship's SAM "Standard-2" mod.4;
install a pre-acceleration module with an axial thrust solid propellant rocket motor between the interception stage and the main engine;
replace the existing liquid-propellant engine of the maneuvering and spatial orientation system with a solid-fuel one in the interception stage.

In addition, the option of equipping the PR with a promising interception stage of the KKV type, developed by the Lockheed-Martin corporation for anti-missiles used in air-based anti-ship missiles based on the Global Hawk UAV, is also being considered.

Thus, according to American experts, in the 21st century, the THAAD interceptor missile as part of the eponymous missile defense system will become one of the main means of combating ballistic targets of a promising theater missile defense system.

The US military plans to purchase from 80 to 88 launchers, 18 multifunctional radars and 1422 anti-missiles. They are planned to equip two battalions, each of which will have 4 anti-missile batteries.

Information sources

Colonel V. RUDOV "AMERICAN THAAD ANTI-MISSILE COMPLEX", Foreign Military Review, No. 09, 1998

Which are designed to destroy operational-tactical and medium-range ballistic missiles.

Anti-missile system (PRK) long-range interception THAAD. Photo: Reuters

As reported on the official website of the US Pacific Command, the missile defense system is designed "exclusively to protect the Republic of Korea from the nuclear missile threat from the North (DPRK)". This happened against the backdrop of North Korea testing ballistic missiles.

The South Korean Ministry of Defense has confirmed that the THAAD system is planned to be located in Seongju County at the site of a former Lotte Corporation golf course, the agency said. In 1-2 months, the deployment of this latest missile defense system will be completed.

Story

The development of the American THAAD mobile anti-missile system was launched in 1992 by a group of industrial enterprises led by Lockheed Martin Missiles and Space. In early 1995, prototypes of the launcher were deployed at the White Sands missile defense range (New Mexico). In January 2006, a deal was concluded with Lockheed Martin for the supply of the first 2 THAAD systems with 48 anti-missiles for them. At this time, 39 test launches are known (including the interception of a training target in conditions close to combat), 31 of which were recognized as successful.

The performance characteristics of THAAD

The THAAD anti-missile is a single-stage solid propellant (launch weight 900 kg, length 617 and maximum body diameter 37 cm), consists of a head section, a transition compartment and a solid propellant rocket engine (RDTT) with a tail stabilizer skirt, developed by Pratt & Whitney.

The anti-missile warhead is made in the form of a detachable self-guided interception stage of kinetic action, designed to hit ballistic targets by direct hit. In its bow part, a double-leaf aerodynamic fairing, which is dropped at the end of the flight of the anti-missile (PR), is installed.

The interception stage includes: a multispectral infrared homing head (GOS), operating in the middle (3.3 - 3.8 microns) and far (7 - 10 microns) sections of the IR range, a command-inertial control system, as well as a propulsion system ( remote control) maneuvering and spatial orientation.

THAAD is designed to destroy operational-tactical missiles (OTR, firing range up to 1000 km) and medium-range ballistic missiles (IRBM, up to 3500 km) at altitudes of 40-150 km and ranges up to 200 km.

Launcher

The launcher accommodates ten launchers in transport and launch containers. They are mounted in a single module on the chassis of a 10-ton M1075 tractor, developed on the basis of a heavy off-road truck manufactured by Oshkosh Truck Corporation. The total weight of the launcher is 40 tons, the length is 12 m and the height is 3.25 m. It takes 30 minutes to recharge it. The launchers of the THAAD complex are air transportable and can be redeployed on C-141 heavy cargo aircraft.

Command post

The command post (CP) can be removed from the radar station (RLS) at a distance of up to 14 km. It provides signal processing, data exchange between the CP.

The THAAD complex uses the so-called "kinetic interception" concept - only the kinetic energy of the hardware unit is used to hit the target. According to the developers, due to the high kinetic energy of the hardware unit, the THAAD complex should be significantly more effective against obsolete ballistic missiles (such as R-17).

The US Foreign Office has approved a deal to sell THAAD missile defense systems to Saudi Arabia. The contract amount is $ 15 billion. Earlier, a RBC source announced the sale of Russian S-400s to Riyadh

THAAD missile defense systems (Photo: U.S. Force Korea / AP)

The US State Department approved the sale of THAAD anti-missile systems to Saudi Arabia. This is stated in a press release (.pdf) published on the website of the Pentagon agency for defense cooperation and security.

As noted in the military department, the value of the contract will be $15 billion. This amount also takes into account the cost of maintenance, supply of spare parts and equipment. The supply of weapons is planned as part of a total batch of defensive weapons worth $110 billion.

Under the contract, Saudi Arabia will receive from Washington 44 THAAD launchers, 360 anti-missile interceptor missiles, 16 THAAD mobile tactical fire control and communications groups, seven AN / TPY-2 THAAD radars, 43 tractors, generators, electrical units, trailers, communication equipment, etc. The American side also undertook to train military personnel who will subsequently maintain anti-missile installations, as well as to provide contractor services for technical and logistical personnel, construction of facilities, and research.

It is precisely this kind of military support for the authorities of Saudi Arabia, the Pentagon division emphasizes, that was previously requested from Washington.

"This deal advances U.S. foreign policy goals and national security, and supports the long-term security of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region against Iranian and other regional threats," the U.S. military said in a statement.

The Pentagon also assured that if the deal for the sale of THAAD is approved by Congress, then the deployment of THAAD complexes in Saudi Arabia "will not change the basic military balance in the region." The military also noted that the sale of installations "will not adversely affect US defense."

The announcement of the State Department's approval of the deal does not mean that the sale has already been legally completed. The next step will be the approval of the deal in the US Congress. Legislators will have 30 days to reject or approve the agreement.

After the visit of US President Donald Trump to Saudi Arabia at the end of May (it was the first foreign trip of a Republican as head of state), reports began to appear that the American side, during meetings with the Saudi government, discussed the possibility of selling American THAAD and Patriot complexes to Riyadh. . The press secretary of the White House after the trip said that in total Saudi Arabia is ready to buy weapons from Washington for almost $110 billion. In addition, the contract package includes the supply of 150 American Black Hawk helicopters.

Earlier, on September 5, Al-Arabiya TV channel, that during a visit to Moscow, the Saudi king agreed with the Russian authorities on the purchase of S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems. RBC's source in the Almaz-Antey concern, which produces these air defense systems, confirmed this information. Interlocutors of Kommersant, who are familiar with the course of negotiations, that the Saudi military can buy “at least four divisions” of S-400s from Moscow, the total amount of the transaction will be about $ 2 billion. The Kremlin reports on the deal

The THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, formerly Theater High Altitude Area Defense) mobile ground-based anti-missile system is designed for high-altitude transatmospheric interception of medium-range missiles when creating a zone missile defense system in a theater of operations (THA).

The general contractor is Lockheed Missiles & Space Co.

The plan for creating a missile defense system in a theater of operations provided for the following stages of work:

At the first stage (1993-1995), the main efforts were focused on completing the modernization and testing of the Patriot air defense system. This complex is capable of hitting ballistic missiles at ranges up to 40 km and at altitudes of about 20 km. Further improvement of the Patriot PAC-3 systems is associated with the use of Erint anti-missiles, which have high accuracy. For the defense of parts of the Marine Corps from tactical missile strikes, it was planned to complete the modernization of the Improved Hawk air defense system with the new AN / TPS-59 radar. Covering coastal waters from missile strikes is entrusted to the modernized shipborne Aegis air defense systems using Standard-2 SAMs.

In addition, the combat control system was modernized, which had limited capabilities for detecting, processing and transmitting data on the launch of ballistic missiles and calculating their flight trajectory. To this end, the tactical information processing and communications system has been upgraded so that it can use data from the space-based Imeus detection system. The information received from it makes it possible to more accurately calculate the starting point, flight trajectory, estimated points of impact of ballistic missiles and transmit the necessary information to the radar of anti-missile systems. Work was carried out to modernize the SPY-1 shipborne radar, which should ensure the detection and tracking of ballistic missiles, as well as the means that are part of the Air Force (Awaks and Jistar control systems).

At the second stage (1996-1999), the main efforts were directed to the development and testing of the THAAD missile defense system and the creation of zone defense, which will minimize damage in the event of an enemy strike with ballistic missiles equipped with nuclear, chemical or biological munitions. The THAAD mobile missile defense system is designed to destroy ballistic missiles at ranges up to 200 km and altitudes up to 150 km. With its help, the first line of zonal missile defense will be created. The characteristics of the THAAD complex allow it to sequentially fire one ballistic missile with two anti-missiles according to the "launch-evaluation-launch" principle, that is, the launch of the second anti-missile will be carried out if the first does not hit the target. In the event of a miss of the second anti-missile, the Patriot air defense system is put into action, which will receive target designations from the GBR radar about a broken ballistic missile. According to calculations by American experts, the probability of hitting a missile with such a two-tier missile defense system will be more than 0.96. Work is underway to study the possibility of deploying THAAD anti-missiles on ships to combat advanced ballistic missiles. In addition, the Brilliant Eyes space system should be deployed to detect launches and track ballistic missiles.

Compound

The THAAD anti-missile (see diagram) consists of a warhead and an engine. The only (separating) stage is a solid-propellant starting engine. The missile is equipped with a thrust vector control system and gas-dynamic spoilers in the bow. The spoilers begin to work shortly after launch and provide control during movement. Thus, the flight control of the rocket in the starting and middle sections of the trajectory is carried out using the rotary nozzle of the sustainer solid propellant engine. The characteristics of this engine provide rocket acceleration to a speed of about 2.5 km / s, making it possible to implement the concept of "repeated firing" of a ballistic target. The tail section of the rocket is a flexible self-adjusting and adaptable to flight conditions conical stabilizer, consisting of movable aerodynamic segments, which are supported by special gas bags. Such a design solution enhances the stabilizing effect when aerodynamic forces are applied to the rocket.

The intermediate compartment connecting the launch booster with the warhead contains a pyrotechnic composition, which, by exploding, separates the launch accelerator from the warhead.

The warhead of the rocket is a highly maneuverable interceptor of a direct hit Kill Vehicle (Destroying Apparatus). This part of the rocket is a technically sophisticated device that searches for, locks on and then destroys the target using only the kinetic energy of a high-speed impact. A special fairing covers the interceptor during the atmospheric phase of the flight. This is necessary to reduce aerodynamic drag and protect the window of the homing head from aerodynamic heating. One of the main features of the interceptor is a gyro-stabilized multi-spectral infrared homing head (IR-GOS) with a sapphire window, made on the basis of indium antimonide (operating range 3-5 microns). In addition to the IR-GOS, the interceptor is equipped with an inertial command and control system, a computer, a power supply, as well as a DACS (Divert Attitude Control System) maneuvering and orientation propulsion system, which ensures accurate maneuvering of the missile on the trajectory.

Each division includes:

Radar for detection and tracking of ballistic targets GBR(Ground Based Radar),

control point BM/C41,

launchers (4 pieces),

anti-missiles "THAAD" (60 pieces) .

The BM/C41 command post is mounted on a multi-purpose vehicle chassis and can function as a tactical divisional command post TOS(Tactical Operation Station) and launcher fire control point LCS(Launcher Control Station). In the LCS configuration, the control point provides for the exchange of information with other LCS and the transfer of information to the TOS. Each battery has several BM/C41 control points. Their interchangeability provides multiple redundancy of the fire control system, which increases the combat stability of the complex as a whole.

The GBR multifunctional radar solves the problems of detecting, tracking, identifying and classifying targets, as well as aiming anti-missiles at the target in the initial part of the trajectory. For the GBR radar, an active phased antenna array is used in the X band with an antenna fabric area of about 10-15 m 2 and the number of elements of about 24000.

Particular attention in the development of the THAAD missile defense system is drawn to the possibility of its rapid redeployment and deployment. To significantly reduce the weight of the equipment, advanced technology and microelectronics are used in its production. So, if the redeployment of two divisions of the Patriot air defense system to Saudi Arabia during the war in the Persian Gulf zone required 73 departures of the C-5A aircraft, 123 departures of the C-141 aircraft, 14 civilian liners and 23 ships, then for the transfer of two divisions of the THAAD air defense system, a total of 50 S-141 sorties.

Tactical and technical characteristics

Testing and operation

Testing of the complex began on April 21, 1995 at the White Sands test site and continued with varying success until 1999. Only the ninth launch - March 29, 1999, demonstrated the operability of the complex as a whole. During this flight, despite the failure of the interceptor's spatial orientation system at 23 seconds of flight and the termination of receiving telemetry information at 58 seconds, the interceptor passed in close proximity to the Hera target missile.

During the tenth test launch on June 10, 1999, for the first time, a target imitating a SCAD missile was successfully intercepted, and the technical feasibility of such an interception was confirmed.

On August 2, 1999, during the eleventh test, a target was intercepted, simulating the detachable warhead of a SKAD-type ballistic missile, in the upper atmosphere.