Russian missiles "Granit" - a mortal danger to the US Navy. "basalt" and "malachite" pressed into "granite" Rocket launch granite
Damn, I love this car! Supersonic winged ship with a predatory, elongated fuselage and sharp triangles of planes. Inside, in the cramped cockpit, the eye is lost among dozens of dials, toggle switches and switches. Here is the aircraft control stick, comfortable, made of ribbed plastic. It has built-in weapon control buttons.
The left palm compresses the engine control stick, directly below it is the flap control panel. Ahead is a glass screen, the image of the sight and the readings of the devices are projected onto it - perhaps it once reflected the silhouettes of the Phantoms, but now the device is turned off and therefore completely transparent ...
It's time to leave the pilot's seat - at the bottom, at the stairs, other people who want to get into the cockpit crowded. I take one last look at the blue instrument panel and descend from a three-meter height to the ground.
Already saying goodbye to the MiG, I suddenly imagined how 24 of the same aircraft were moving somewhere under the surface of the Atlantic, waiting in the wings in the launch silos of a nuclear submarine. Such ammunition for anti-ship missiles is on board the Russian "aircraft carrier killers" - Project 949A Antey nuclear-powered submarines. Comparison of the MiG with a cruise missile is not an exaggeration: the weight and size characteristics of the missile of the P-700 Granit complex are approaching those of the MiG-21.
Granite hardness
The length of the gigantic rocket is 10 meters (in some sources it is 8.84 meters excluding CPC), the wingspan of the Granite is 2.6 meters. The MiG-21F-13 fighter (later on we will consider this well-known modification) with a fuselage length of 13.5 meters has a wingspan of 7 meters. It would seem that the differences are significant - the aircraft is larger than the anti-ship missiles, but the last argument should convince the reader of the correctness of our reasoning.
The launch weight of the Granit anti-ship missiles is 7.36 tons, at the same time, the normal takeoff weight of the MiG-21F-13 was ... 7 tons. The same MiG that fought the Phantoms in Vietnam and shot down the Mirages in the hot sky over Sinai turned out to be lighter than the Soviet anti-ship missile!
Anti-ship missile P-700 "Granit"
The dry weight of the MiG-21 structure was 4.8 tons, another 2 tons were for fuel. During the evolution of the MiG, the take-off weight increased and, for the most advanced member of the MiG-21bis family, it reached 8.7 tons. At the same time, the mass of the structure grew by 600 kg, and the fuel supply increased by 490 kg (which did not affect the range of the MiG-21bis in any way - the more powerful engine "gobbled up" all the reserves).
The fuselage of the MiG-21, like the body of the Granit rocket, is a cigar-shaped body with cut front and rear ends. The nose of both designs is made in the form of an air intake with an inlet section adjustable by means of a cone. Like on a fighter, the radar antenna is located in the Granite cone. But, despite the external similarity, there are many differences in the design of the Granit anti-ship missiles.
Declassified photo. This is how the combat unit of the Granit anti-ship missiles looks like.
The layout of the "Granite" is much denser, the rocket body has greater strength, because. "Granite" was calculated for an underwater launch (at nuclear weapons, outboard water is pumped into missile silos before launch). Inside the rocket is a huge warhead weighing 750 kg. We are talking about quite obvious things, but comparing a rocket with a fighter will unexpectedly lead us to an unusual conclusion.
Flight to the limit
Would you believe a dreamer who claims that the MiG-21 is capable of flying a distance of 1000 km at an extremely low altitude (20-30 meters above the Earth's surface), at a speed one and a half times the speed of sound? At the same time, carrying in your womb a huge ammunition weighing 750 kilograms? Of course, the reader will shake his head in disbelief - there are no miracles, the MiG-21 in cruising mode at an altitude of 10,000 m could overcome 1200-1300 km. In addition, the MiG-21, due to its design, could show its excellent speed qualities only in a rarefied atmosphere at high altitudes; at the surface of the earth, the speed of the fighter was limited to 1.2 speeds of sound.
Speed, afterburner, flight range ... For the R-13-300 engine, fuel consumption in cruising mode is 0.931 kg / kgf * h., At afterburner - reaches 2.093 kg / kgf * h. Even an increase in speed will not be able to compensate for the sharply increased fuel consumption, in addition, in this mode, no one flies for more than 10 minutes.
According to V. Markovsky's book "The Hot Sky of Afghanistan", which describes in detail the combat service of aviation of the 40th Army and the Turkestan Military District, MiG-21 fighters were regularly involved in strikes against ground targets. In each episode, the combat load of the MiGs consisted of two 250 kg bombs, and during difficult sorties, it was generally reduced to two “hundreds”. With the suspension of larger ammunition, the flight range was rapidly reduced, the MiG became clumsy and dangerous in piloting. It must be taken into account that we are talking about the most advanced modifications of the "twenty-first" used in Afghanistan - the MiG-21bis, MiG-21SM, MiG-21PFM, etc.
The combat load of the MiG-21F-13 consisted of one built-in HP-30 cannon with an ammunition load of 30 rounds (weight 100 kg) and two R-3S air-to-air missiles (weight 2 x 75 kg). I dare to suggest that the maximum flight range of 1300 km was achieved without external suspensions at all.
Silhouette F-16 and anti-ship missiles "Granit". The Soviet missile looks solid even against the background of the large F-16 (take-off weight 15 tons).
The anti-ship "Granit" is more "optimized" for low-altitude flight, the area of \u200b\u200bthe frontal projection of the missile is smaller than that of a fighter. The Granite lacks a retractable undercarriage and drag chute. And yet, there is less fuel on board the anti-ship missile - the space inside the hull takes up 750 kg of the warhead, it was necessary to abandon the fuel tanks in the wing consoles (the MiG-21 has two of them: in the bow and middle root of the wing).
Considering that the Granit will have to break through to the target at extremely low altitude (LMA), through the dense layers of the atmosphere, it becomes clear why the actual flight range of the P-700 is much less than the declared one of 550, 600 and even 700 km. At WWI in supersonic range, the flight range of a heavy anti-ship missile is 150 ... 200 km (depending on the type of warhead). The obtained value completely coincides with the tactical and technical task of the military-industrial complex under the Council of Ministers of the USSR of 1968 for the development of a heavy anti-ship missile (the future "Granite"): 200 km on a low-altitude trajectory.
This leads to another conclusion - the beautiful legend about the "leader rocket" remains just a legend: a low-flying "flock" will not be able to follow the "leader rocket" flying at high altitude.
The impressive figure of 600 km, which often appears in the media, is only valid for a high-altitude flight path, when the missile follows the target in the stratosphere, at an altitude of 14 to 20 km. This nuance affects the combat effectiveness of the missile system, an object flying at high altitude can be easily detected and intercepted - Mr. Powers is a witness.
Legend of 22 missiles
A few years ago, a respected admiral published his memoirs about the service of the 5th OPESK (Operational Squadron) of the USSR Navy in the Mediterranean Sea. It turns out that back in the 80s, Soviet sailors accurately calculated the number of missiles to destroy aircraft carrier formations of the US Sixth Fleet. According to their calculations, the AUG air defense is capable of repelling a simultaneous strike of no more than 22 supersonic anti-ship missiles. The twenty-third missile is guaranteed to hit an aircraft carrier, and then the hellish lottery begins: the 24th missile can be intercepted by air defense, the 25th and 26th will again break through the defenses and hit the ships ...
The former sailor told the truth: a simultaneous strike of 22 missiles is the limit for the air defense of an aircraft carrier strike group. This is easy to verify by independently calculating the capabilities of the Ticonderoga-class Aegis cruiser to repel missile attacks.
USS Lake Champlain (CG-57) Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser
So, the nuclear submarine of project 949A "Antey" reached a launch distance of 600 km, the problem with target designation was successfully solved.
Volley! - 8 "Granites" (the maximum number of missiles in a salvo) break through the water column and, having shot up a fiery whirlwind to a height of 14 km, fall on a combat course ...
According to the fundamental laws of nature, an outside observer will be able to see the "Granites" at a distance of 490 km - it is at this distance that a missile flock flying at an altitude of 14 km rises above the horizon.
According to official data, the AN / SPY-1 phased array radar is capable of detecting an air target at a distance of 200 US miles (320 km). The effective dispersion area of the MiG-21 fighter is estimated at 3...5 square meters. meters is quite a lot. The missile's EPR is smaller - within 2 square meters. meters. Roughly speaking, the radar of the Aegis cruiser will detect a threat at a distance of 250 km.
Group target, distance ... bearing ... The confused consciousness of the command center operators, exacerbated by impulses of fear, sees 8 terrible “flares” on the radar screen. Anti-aircraft weapons for battle!
It took the cruiser team half a minute to prepare for missile firing, the covers of the Mark-41 UVP flew back with a clang, the first Standard-2ER (extended range - “long range”) got out of the launch container, and, fluffing its fiery tail, disappeared behind the clouds ... behind it one more... and another...
During this time, "Granites" at a speed of 2.5 M (800 m / s) approached 25 kilometers.
According to official data, the Mark-41 launcher can provide a missile launch rate of 1 missile per second. The Ticonderoga has two launchers: bow and stern. Purely theoretically, we assume that the real rate of fire in combat conditions is 4 times less, i.e. The Aegis cruiser fires 30 anti-aircraft missiles per minute.
Standard-2ER, like all modern long-range missiles, is a missile with a semi-active guidance system. On the marching section of the trajectory, the Standard flies in the direction of the target, driven by a remotely reprogrammable autopilot. A few seconds before the interception point, the missile's homing head turns on: the radar on board the cruiser "illuminates" the air target and the missile seeker catches the signal reflected from the target, calculating its reference trajectory.
Note. Realizing this lack of anti-aircraft missile systems, the Americans rejoiced. Attack aircraft can attack sea targets with impunity, dropping "Harpoons" from hardpoints and immediately "wash away", diving to an extremely low altitude. The reflected beam is gone - the anti-aircraft missile is helpless.
The sweet life of pilots will end with the advent of anti-aircraft missiles with active guidance, when the SAM will independently illuminate the target. Alas, neither the promising American "Standard-6" nor the "long-range" missile of the S-400 complex with active guidance can still be successfully tested - the designers still have to solve many technical issues.
The main problem remains: the radio horizon. Attack aircraft do not even have to “shine” on the radar - it is enough to launch homing missiles, remaining unnoticed below the radio horizon. The exact direction and coordinates of the target will be "prompted" to them by an AWACS aircraft flying 400 km behind the strike group. However, even here you can find justice for insolent aviators - it is not in vain that a long-range missile was created for the S-400 air defense system.
On the superstructure of the Aegis cruiser, two AN / SPY-1 radar headlights and two AN / SPG-62 target illumination radars on the roof of the superstructure are clearly visible.
We return to the confrontation between the 8 anti-ship missiles "Granit" and "Ticonderoga". Despite the fact that the Aegis system is capable of simultaneously firing at 18 targets, there are only 4 AN / SPG-62 illumination radars on board the cruiser. One of the advantages of Aegis is that in addition to monitoring the target, the CICS automatically controls the number of missiles fired, calculating the firing so that at any given time there are no more than 4 of them on the final section of the trajectory.
Tragedy finale
Opponents quickly approach each other. "Granites" fly at a speed of 800 m / s. The speed of anti-aircraft "Standard-2" 1000 m / s. Initial distance 250 km. It took 30 seconds to decide on counteraction, during which time the distance was reduced to 225 km. By simple calculations, it was found that the first "Standard" will meet with the "Granites" in 125 seconds, at which point the distance to the cruiser will be 125 km.
In fact, the situation of the Americans is much worse: somewhere at a distance of 50 km from the cruiser, the Granites' homing heads will spot the Ticonderoga and heavy missiles will begin to dive at the target, disappearing from the cruiser's visibility for a while. They will reappear at a distance of 30 km, when it will be too late to do anything. Anti-aircraft guns "Phalanx" will not be able to stop the gang of Russian monsters.
The launch of the Standard-2ER SAM from the destroyers Arleigh Burke.
The US Navy has only 90 seconds left - it is during this time that the Granites will overcome the remaining 125-50 = 75 kilometers and dive to a low altitude. These one and a half minutes "Granites" will fly under continuous fire: "Ticonderoga" will have time to launch 30 x 1.5 = 45 anti-aircraft missiles.
The probability of hitting an aircraft with anti-aircraft missiles is usually given in the range of 0.6 ... 0.9. But the tabular data is not entirely true: in Vietnam, anti-aircraft gunners spent 4-5 missiles per downed Phantom. The high-tech Aegis should be more effective than the radio command S-75 Dvina air defense system, however, the incident with the downing of an Iranian passenger Boeing (1988) does not provide clear evidence of an increase in efficiency.
Without further ado, let's take the probability of hitting the target as 0.2. Not every bird will fly to the middle of the Dnieper. Only every fifth "Standard" will hit the target. The warhead contains 61 kg of powerful explosive - after meeting with an anti-aircraft missile, "Granit" has no chance of reaching the target.
As a result: 45 x 0.2 = 9 targets destroyed. The cruiser repulsed the missile attack.
Silent scene.
Consequences and conclusions
The Aegis cruiser is probably capable of single-handedly repulsing an eight-missile salvo of the nuclear submarine missile carrier Project 949A Antey, while using up about 40 anti-aircraft missiles. It will also beat off the second salvo - for this he has enough ammunition (80 "Standards" are placed in 122 UVP cells). After the third salvo, the cruiser will die a heroic death.
Of course, there is more than one Aegis cruiser in the AUG ... On the other hand, in the event of a direct military clash, the aircraft carrier group was to be attacked by the heterogeneous forces of the Soviet aviation and navy. It remains to thank fate that we did not see this nightmare.
What conclusions can be drawn from all these events? But none! All of the above was true only for the mighty Soviet Union. Soviet sailors, like their counterparts from NATO countries, have long known that an anti-ship missile becomes a formidable force only at extremely low altitude. At high altitudes, there is no escape from SAM fire (Mr. Powers is a witness!) - the air target becomes easily detectable and vulnerable. On the other hand, a launch distance of 150…200 km was quite enough to "nail down" aircraft carrier groups. Soviet "pikes" more than once scratched the bottom of US Navy aircraft carriers with periscopes.
Of course, there is no place for "hat-captive" moods here - the American fleet was also strong and dangerous. “Tu-95 flights over the deck of an aircraft carrier” in peacetime, in a dense ring of Tomcat interceptors, cannot serve as reliable evidence of the high vulnerability of the AUG - it was necessary to get close to the aircraft carrier unnoticed, and this already required certain skills. Soviet submariners admitted that secretly approaching an aircraft carrier group was not an easy task; this required high professionalism, knowledge of the tactics of a “probable enemy” and His Majesty Chance.
In our time, American AUGs do not pose a threat to purely continental Russia. No one will use aircraft carriers in the "marquise puddle" of the Black Sea - in this region there is a large air base "Inzhirlik" in Turkey. And in the event of a global nuclear war, aircraft carriers will be far from being primary targets.
As for the Granit anti-ship complex, the very fact of the appearance of such a weapon was a feat of Soviet scientists and engineers. Only a super-civilization was able to create such masterpieces, combining the most advanced achievements of electronics, rocket and space technology.
Table values and coefficients - www.airwar.ru
Solving the problem of combating aircraft carriers, which has been one of the main problems for our Navy for the past 50 years, the leaders of the Soviet and Russian fleets have placed their main stake on anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCs). Such combat is planned and practiced in the form of special maritime operations or fleet operations in the Northern and Pacific Fleets.MAIN ENEMY
US admirals call their attack carriers the "backbone" of the US Navy. These ships can stay away from their bases for many months, move to every region of the World Ocean except for the Central Arctic at high speed, participate in armed forces operations against any sea, air and land enemy, remaining inaccessible to him. These qualities were successfully demonstrated in 1991 in the Persian Gulf and in 1999 in the Mediterranean in the aggression against Yugoslavia.
Carrier strike groups (AUG) include, in addition to an aircraft carrier, 8-10 guard ships (1-2 cruisers, up to three destroyers, the same number of frigates, 1-2 nuclear submarines). The aircraft carrier strike formations (AUS) include 2-3 aircraft carriers, up to 25-30 escort ships, carrying out their anti-submarine, anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense. AUG and AUS can carry from 100 to 300 aircraft, half of which are F / A-18 Hornet fighter-bombers capable of using modern high-precision and nuclear weapons.
The AUS ships are armed with from 500 to 1,500 high-precision sea-based Tomahawk cruise missiles with a firing range of 1,500 km in conventional equipment and 2,500 km with a nuclear warhead. This allows us to consider them as a reserve of US strategic nuclear forces.
Aircraft carriers use their weapons from a distance of up to 1000-1500 km from the enemy's coast. Through the AUG (AUS), the United States, even in peacetime, carries out one of the main strategic tasks of the country's national security - the projection of force into key regions of the world.
FIGHT TACTICS
Fire destruction of aircraft carriers and guard ships in operations to destroy the AUG (AUS) is carried out by strike groups of submarines with anti-ship missiles in cooperation with naval missile-carrying aviation (MRA) and Long-Range Aviation (DA) formations of the Air Force. The main problems in operations of this kind were:
Timely deployment to the ocean of the required number of nuclear submarines (NPS) to create a full-fledged strike group before the AUG approaches the strike line (or the mass rise of carrier-based aircraft) and building them into battle formation;
Organization of interaction of strike groups of submarines with MPA and DA;
Reconnaissance and issuance of target designation to all command posts and strike forces.
To disable an aircraft carrier, it is necessary to hit it with 8-10 anti-ship missiles with conventional equipment, with the destruction of up to half of the guard ships along the way. This, in turn, requires the use of up to 70-100 anti-ship missiles from all types of carriers in one strike.
AT A SMALL DISTANCE
The first anti-aircraft forces became part of the USSR Navy in the 60s. These were 29 Project 675 nuclear submarines with eight P-6 anti-ship missiles and 16 Project 651 diesel submarines with four similar missiles. Their firing range was 380 km, which was comparable to the radius of the long-range anti-submarine defense of the AUG - 370 km. For the launch and guidance of anti-ship missiles, the submarines of the first generation had to be on the surface for a long time. No more than four missiles could be used in one salvo. There were significant difficulties in obtaining target designation from reconnaissance aircraft of the "Success" system located in the zone of reach of the AUG air defense. Due to these shortcomings, high combat stability and effectiveness of anti-aircraft forces with anti-ship missiles were not ensured.
P-6. In addition, in the 60s. aircraft - carriers of anti-ship missiles, Tu-16, had a tactical range comparable to the range of carrier-based aircraft AUG.
Thus, the probability of incapacitation, and even more so the destruction of an aircraft carrier, was very low at that time.
UNDERWATER START
To maintain the main tactical advantage of nuclear submarines - secrecy - it was necessary to provide an underwater launch of anti-ship missiles. This became possible due to the creation in the second half of the 60s. Anti-ship missiles "Amethyst", installed on nuclear submarines of project 670. However, domestic technologies were able to provide a firing range from under water of only 80 km.
On the other hand, the Amethysts were fired according to the data of their own target designation means - the Kerch hydroacoustic complex. The minimum flight time of anti-ship missiles (about 3 minutes) and the low altitude of their flight made it possible to reach the target for almost all missiles fired. However, the short firing range and the low - no more than 25 knots - speed of the Project 670 submarines did not provide long-term tracking of the AUGs moving at a speed of 28-30 knots in order to further destroy them.
This situation did not change and the creation in the same years of a more advanced anti-ship missile "Malachite" with a range of 120 km. For these reasons, the carriers of these anti-ship missiles were built in a limited series: 11 submarines of project 670 and 6 of project 670M. Now all of them have been withdrawn from the combat strength of the Navy after the expiration of the established service life (25 years).
LONG ARM
In the mid 70s. The Research and Production Association (NPO) of Mechanical Engineering created the Bazalt complex with P-500 anti-ship missiles. The rocket had a mass of about 6 tons, a firing range of 550 km, a conventional (500 kg) or nuclear warhead, a complex flight path and a speed twice the speed of sound.
The "Basalt" complex had an improved target distribution system between eight missiles of one salvo and an optimized algorithm for selecting the main target in the AUG warrant. For the first time, an electronic countermeasures system was installed on the P-500 anti-ship missiles, which provides protection against AUG air defense systems. The target designation of "Basalt" was provided by the system of marine space reconnaissance and target designation "Legend" created by that time. However, the launch of the anti-ship missiles of the Bazalt complex was still carried out from the surface position of the nuclear submarine, which still left the boats vulnerable. Therefore, in the mid-70s. nine nuclear submarines of project 675 (675MK) were re-equipped for the "Basalt" complex. The complex of the same type was installed on four heavy aircraft-carrying cruisers (TAVKR) of project 1143 (Kyiv type) and three missile cruisers of project 1164 (Slava type, now Moskva). The cruisers of the first type carried from 16 to 12, the second - 16 P-500 anti-ship missiles.
"GRANITE" HARDER than "BASALT"
A qualitative leap occurred only in 1981-1983, when NPO Mashinostroeniya, using the experience gained in the development of the Bazalt and Malachite complexes, transferred the new Granit, a new third-generation universal missile system, to the Navy. Its missiles had both underwater and surface launch, a firing range of 550 km, a mass of 7 tons, a conventional (750 kg) or nuclear warhead, several flexible adaptive trajectories (depending on the operational and tactical situation in the sea and airspace of the operation area) , the flight speed is 2.5 times the speed of sound.
The complex provided salvo fire with all ammunition with a rational spatial arrangement of missiles and an anti-jamming autonomous selective control system. When creating "Granite", for the first time, an approach was used, the basis of which is the mutual coordination of elements of a complex system (target designation means - carrier - anti-ship missiles). As a result, the created complex for the first time acquired the ability to solve any task of a sea battle with a detachment of fire weapons from one carrier. According to the experience of combat and operational training of the Navy, it is almost impossible to shoot down such a missile.
The Granit missile system is armed with 12 nuclear submarines of project 949A, 24 anti-ship missiles each, with an underwater speed of more than 30 knots, four heavy nuclear missile cruisers of project 1144 (of the Peter the Great type) - 20 missiles each and TAVKR " Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov "- 12 anti-ship missiles.
Each submarine costs ten times less than the US Navy's Nimitz-class aircraft carrier. This is our asymmetric and economical response to the carrier threat. There are virtually no other forces in the Russian Armed Forces capable of actually countering this threat. Taking into account the ongoing upgrades of the carriers themselves, the missile system and the Granit anti-ship missiles, the created group is able to operate effectively until 2020. Naturally, at the same time it is necessary to develop and maintain combat-ready systems for command and control of forces, reconnaissance and target designation. In addition to combating AUGs, the combat units of the group are capable of operating not only against formations of ships of all classes during armed conflicts of any intensity, but also effectively hit targets on the enemy coast with missiles with a conventional warhead. If necessary, ships with the Granit complex can serve as a reserve for solving the tasks of the Naval Strategic Nuclear Forces.
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I decided to consider such a long-standing and large-scale issue discussed on the network as a confrontation between Soviet anti-ship missiles and American naval air defense systems. Usually they are compared on the example of the P-700 "Granit" and the AEGIS system. Unfortunately, discussions of this kind are usually held on forums, have the character of a discussion, and isolating the actual information is a clear problem.
Therefore, I decided to conduct an analytical review (within the framework of the information available, of course) and compile the conclusions:
Means of attack, in this case - P-700 "Granite". The missile is indeed impressive - it is almost the crowning achievement of the development of the Soviet line of heavy supersonic ship-based anti-ship missiles. Its length is 10 meters, the wingspan is 2.6 meters, i.e. in terms of dimensions, the rocket approaches light aircraft.
The maximum speed of the rocket is almost 2.5 Mach (about 763 meters per second) when flying at high altitude. Over water, the speed of the rocket is approximately 1.5 Mach (about 458 meters per second). Remember these numbers, they matter.
The defense rests on the AEGIS system: a combat information system that coordinates the actions of AN / SPY-1 general detection radars, AN / SPG-62 targeting radars, and SM-2 missiles.
Defense of AEGIS on the outer line
This part discusses the counteraction to flying "Granites" by AEGIS at a long distance. To be even more precise - at the distance at which the "Granite" is kept on the high-altitude section of the trajectory.
Attention, this is important! Although in all sources the range of "Granite" is indicated simply as 550 km, this is the maximum radius for combined trajectories. Those. along a trajectory in which the missile flies high above the water most of the way - where there is less air resistance and fuel costs for the flight are significantly reduced - and then, when approaching the target, it dives down and passes the rest of the distance at a low altitude.
A: The flight altitude of the P-700 "Granit" on the high-altitude section of the trajectory is about 14,000 meters. A number of sources indicate even more, but they are doubtful. The later "Onyx", in any case, climbs to a height of about 14,000 meters in the high-altitude section of the trajectory, so I think that taking 14,000 meters we will not be mistaken.
Taking into account the altitude of the AN / SPY-1 radar at 20 meters above sea level, and the altitude of the rocket at 14,000 km, we get a distance to the radio horizon of about 438 km. The detection radius of the AN / SPY-1 radar (table) is approximately 360 km. Those. you can be sure that AEGIS will be able to track the approaching "Granites" from a distance of more than 250 km.
P.S. It should be noted that, other things being equal, most likely, a missile salvo will be detected by an AWACS aircraft at a greater distance. Those. the figure of 250 km is not the detection radius, but the tracking radius, the distance from which AEGIS itself monitors the approaching anti-ship missiles.
B: Now we know that the rocket will be taken for AEGIS tracking somewhere at a distance of 200-250 km. Move on.
The radar of the Granit missile has a cruiser-sized target detection radius of about 70 km under normal conditions. Given that the cruiser does not want to be detected at all, and actively uses electronic warfare, let's take a real capture radius of 55 km.
At this distance - 55-70 km - the Granit missile will capture the ship and make a "dive" from a height of 14,000 meters to low altitudes to approach the target. Those. we get that 200-55=145 km. This is the interval at which the Granit flying at high altitude will be confidently followed by the cruiser's radar. And, accordingly, it can be attacked by missiles controlled by AEGIS.
This is the finest hour for carriers of SM-2ER "Standard" (ER - extendent range, large radius). The range of these missiles is about 150-180 km. Consequently, missile attacks on flying anti-ship missiles can begin from the moment the missiles enter a 150-kilometer radius.
How long will "Granit" remain under cruiser missile fire? The distance is 150-55=105 km, the speed of "Granite" is 0.763 km/s, i.е. under fire, the missile will remain for about 125 seconds. A little over 2 minutes.
During this time, a ship equipped with the AEGIS system will be able to fire from 50 rocket shots (for 2 double-girder Mk-26 launchers with a reload cycle of 10 seconds, which were on the first 4 Ticonderoga-class cruisers) to 65 rocket shots (for Mk-41 with a firing cycle of 1 rocket in 2 seconds, standing on the late Ticonderoga and Arleigh Burks). Although the ships carry a limited number of AN / SPG-62 radars used for target designation, this is not a limiting parameter in this case, because the design of the "Standard" quite allows it to "wait" for a queue, flying on inertial guidance to the target area.
What is the probability of shooting down one "Granite" with one "Standard"? The 62-kilogram fragmentation-fragmentation SM-2ER has quite enough power to destroy or severely damage the Granit (which at this stage of the flight is tantamount to shooting down - a heavily damaged missile will not reach the target). Therefore, the problem is only in the hit.
How to estimate the probability of hitting a rocket? From the experience of Vietnam, we know that the probability of hitting a fighter in the conditions of the active use of electronic warfare systems with one missile was about 20%. But the SM-2ER is still somewhat smarter than the radio command air defense systems used in Vietnam, and the electronic warfare equipment of an unmanned missile is much weaker. For simplicity, let's take a probability of 40% as the probability of shooting down one P-700 with one "Standard"
Taking this figure, we get that about 15-22 missiles can be shot down on the outer line. Already some result.
AEGIS Defense on the Inner Line
At a distance of 55 km, the P-500 missile will make a sharp dive down and exit the vulnerability mode. It will go beyond the radio horizon and out of range of AEGIS radars. Moving at a height of about 20 meters, it flies to the target in low-altitude mode, at a speed of about 1.5 Mach.
How soon will the P-700 reappear because of the AEGIS radio horizon? This distance is approximately 30 km. At a speed of 1.5 Mach or 458 meters per second, the P-700 will fly this distance in 65 seconds, i.e. about a minute.
At this distance, the missile will be fired upon by SM-2MR salvos (MR - Medium Radius). Since in this case the missile is NOT VISIBLE until it leaves the radio horizon, AEGIS cannot open fire in advance by launching missiles with inertial guidance in its direction, and "meet" the approaching P-700 at the maximum radius of the missile defense system.
Assuming that the system is completely ready to fire, we get that AEGIS will open fire at the same moment when it notices P-700s that have come out from behind the radio horizon. Considering that the SM-2MR has a speed of the order of Mach 3,5 (about 1000 m / s), the first salvo of missiles will meet the enemy somewhere in the 20th second of the P-700 flight from the radio horizon, and then the anti-ship missiles will be fired continuously for 25 seconds (until they get within 5 km, out of reach of the SM-2MR)
How many volleys will AEGIS have time to fire? Ships with Mk-26 installations will have time to fire two full salvos (i.e., release 8 anti-ship missiles), ships with Mk-41 will have time to launch 12 anti-ship missiles.
Of course, the probability of hitting will be much lower - for a low-flying target - and, according to calculations, will be somewhere around 25%.
Thus, we get that about 2-3 P-700 anti-ship missiles can be shot down in a low-altitude section.
Close defense
Defense options in this phase are limited. For ships with the Mk-26 at this stage, the only adequate means of self-defense is the universal 127-mm autocannon (2 on the Ticonderoga). The probability of a missile being shot down is estimated to be approximately 0.8 per autocannon. Ships with the Mk-41 can add RIM-7VL "Sea Sparrow" short-range missiles to their autocannons. CIWS "Volcano" should be recognized as a whole, of little use in this case. 
Although formally these air defense systems have a radius of up to 25 km, it did not make much sense to shoot them earlier, because this would only take away the guidance channels from the more effective SM-2MR. At point-blank range, however, they are much more effective. Considering that the number of guided "Sea Sparrows", just like the SM-2MR, is limited by guidance channels - i.e. 4 - for the remaining time, the cruiser manages to release about 8 missiles. The probability of hitting should be recognized as similar - 0.25.
Thus, using autocannons and missiles, the Ticonderoga class can stop up to 4 P-700 class missiles at the inner line.
EW facilities:
It is difficult to assess the effectiveness of the actions of electronic warfare. Typically, Ticonderoga-class ships are equipped with an electronic warfare system. AN / SLQ-32, integrated with jamming systems Mark 36 SRBOC. The effectiveness of the system is difficult to assess. But in general, it can be assumed that against such anti-ship missiles as the P-700, the probability of successfully evading a missile on a false target will be no more than 50%.
CONCLUSION:
The capabilities of the AEGIS system to counter the P-700 Granit anti-ship missiles are quite high. On 3 lines of defense, the cruiser can effectively repel an attack of 19-25 missiles. The presence of effective electronic warfare equipment makes it possible to sharply increase this parameter, since there is a high probability of the missile being led to interference.
In general, the theoretical calculationconfirms the Soviet conclusion that the effectiveness of the ship's air defense AUG with the advent of AEGIS has increased significantly. A full broadside salvo of a Project 949A submarine (24 P-700 missiles) DOES NOT GUARANTEE a breakthrough in AUG air defense even at the level of having only one Ticonderoga in it and the absence of successful intercepts of anti-ship missiles by patrolling fighters.
A person who is not experienced in matters of aerodynamics is quite surprised by the appearance of modern cruise missiles. The "cruise missile" turns out to be a narrow cigar-shaped projectile with a pair of tiny "petals" sticking out in different directions. It is hard to believe that these miniature "wings" are able to keep a multi-ton rocket in the air and help it cover a distance of many hundreds and thousands of kilometers.
The secret of cruise missiles (CR) is explained simply: the lift force of the wing is in quadratic dependence on the speed of the aircraft. The speed has doubled - the lifting force has increased 4 times, i.e. now the aircraft needs a wing that is four times smaller in area!
Unlike manned aircraft, the KR is a single-mode aircraft, always flying at the same, very high speed (from 250 m/s for the Tomahawk to 700 m/s for the Granit anti-ship missile)! The creators of the cruise missile do not have to worry about the takeoff and landing mode of flight - on takeoff, the cruise missile, accelerated by a powerful accelerator, behaves like a ballistic projectile, and the "landing speed" of a cruise missile is equal to its maximum allowable speed - and the stronger the cruise missile "smashes" into the target, the it is better.
For a long time, the phrase "cruise missile" was synonymous with naval anti-ship missiles - until the creation of the tactical Tomahawk, the main use of the cruise missile was the destruction of enemy ships. The trend in this matter was set by Soviet scientists, who by the mid-50s launched a series of unique projects that changed the laws of naval combat - the monstrous anti-ship missiles "Kometa" and KSShch. Soon another "superhero" appeared - the P-15 "Termite", which drowned the "Eilat" and staged a pogrom in the Pakistani port of Karachi (Indian missile boats smashed literally everything there, including the coastal oil storage). In total, in the second half of the twentieth century, the Soviet military-industrial complex "pleased" the world with twenty models of unique anti-ship missiles - different in size, guidance principles and basing options. From the relatively primitive P-5 to the fantastic P-700 "Granit" systems.
"Granite" ... a legendary kamikaze robot capable of hitting targets at a distance of 600 km, flying at high and extremely low altitudes, independently choosing targets and destroying aircraft carrier groups of a "probable enemy" with its half-megaton warhead. A fantastic strike complex, a fusion of the most modern technologies of the Cold War era, combining the best developments in rocket and space technology, electronics and shipbuilding.
"X-ray" RCC P-700
The Internet is full of discussions in the format of "Granit missile vs aircraft carrier strike force", but we will not once again be drawn into a deliberately fruitless dispute. Today we will try to find an answer to a no less curious question: Were there any foreign analogues of the P-700 Granit naval strike complex?
It would seem that the answer is obvious - not a single anti-ship missile was created abroad, equal in size and combat capabilities with the 7-ton "Granite"! The only American anti-ship missile "Harpoon" has 10 times less launch weight - only about 700 kg, and as a result - 3 times less warhead, 2 times less speed and 5 times less range. The French "Exoset" had even more modest characteristics. Perhaps someone will remember the Israeli Gabriel anti-ship missile or the Chinese S-802 missile - they are all subsonic missiles with rather weak warheads in terms of power and a launch weight in the range of 600-700 kg. Even the well-known "Tomahawk", one of the variants of which was intended for use as a long-range anti-ship missile (BGM-109B TASM), could not be compared in performance with the "Granite" - the "Ax" was too slow and "dumb", moreover but had a shorter flight range and a significantly smaller warhead mass.
Indeed, there were no direct analogues of "Granite" abroad. But one has only to look at the situation from a different angle, as a number of interesting coincidences appear, which can literally be identified as analogues of the P-700 Granit anti-ship complex.
The first case is the sea-based strategic supersonic cruise missile SSM-N-9 Regulus II. Like any aviation equipment created at the turn of the 50s and 60s, Regulus II had exorbitant speed and altitude characteristics. Two speeds of sound in the stratosphere, a flight range of 1900 km - this was quite enough to break through the air defense of any country.
SSM-N-9 "Regulus II"
In addition, Regulus II suffered from pronounced gigantism - the weight and size characteristics of the American rocket surpassed even those of the huge Granite. The length of "Regul II" reached 17.5 meters, and the launch weight - about 10 tons!
In total, it was planned to equip 4 missile cruisers and 25 submarines of the US Navy with the Regul II strategic missile system.
Of course, it is not entirely correct to directly compare Regul II with Granite - it was a specific nuclear carrier with a rather primitive inertial guidance system: gyroscopes and a stopwatch ... tick-tic-tic, the time is up - Regulus II dived down and turned into blinding flash of light. Finally, by the time of its appearance, Regulus II was already obsolete and completely lost according to the test results to the Polaris ballistic missile.
And, nevertheless, "Regul II" had a number of obvious similarities with "Granite" - a large and heavy supersonic ship-based and submarine-based missile, designed to destroy over-the-horizon targets at long range.
Our second guest is the steel guardian of heaven, the incredible RIM-8 Talos anti-aircraft missile system. It would seem ... However, I will ask the reader to be patient and let me explain how Talos can be considered a close relative of Granita.
It took the Americans 15 years to create the Talos, from 1944 (when the realistic dream of an ultra-long-range air defense system appeared) until 1959 (the installation of the first serial air defense system on a warship). The idea was simple - to learn how to shoot down planes at a distance of 100 kilometers or more. The problem with long-range guidance accuracy on the first modifications of the air defense system was solved quite simply - the Talos fired anti-aircraft missiles with a nuclear warhead. An explosion with a capacity of 2 kilotons of TNT could instantly incinerate any aircraft at a distance of 500 m from the point of detonation - it was supposed to use these "shells" to repel attacks by Soviet naval missile carriers (Tu-16 or promising T-4), which broke through to aircraft carrier groups through fighter barriers .
Simultaneously with the "special" ones, there were "ordinary" high-explosive fragmentation warheads weighing 136 kg, as well as several specific missiles, which will be discussed below.
As a result, a huge anti-aircraft missile was born, 12 meters long and weighing 3.5 tons (of which 2 tons accounted for the launch accelerator, which burns out in 3-5 seconds).
One of the main differences from the "Granite" - the RIM-8 anti-aircraft missile was equipped with a ramjet engine
In addition to the cyclopean size and similar layout with an axisymmetric air intake, the Talos has one more, no less important circumstance in common with the Granite: all modifications of the Talos air defense system had the ability to hit surface targets (i.e., they could perform the tasks of anti-ship missile systems ), and could also be used for attacks on ground targets (including a special modification of the missile to destroy enemy radars). A true demon of the three elements!
Of course, 130…160 kg warhead could not be considered as a serious anti-ship weapon, however, it was enough to destroy any enemy corvette or missile boat. The “special” W30 warhead looked much more solid, whose explosion at close range could disable any large ship. Plans were seriously discussed to use nuclear Talos to "bomb" enemy positions in the amphibious landing zone. In addition, the anti-aircraft missile system had a shorter reaction time, a high rate of fire and a significant ammunition load, which further expanded its strike capabilities.
The result of a direct hit by a RIM-8 missile. Target destroyer almost cut in two
By the way, Soviet sailors also drew attention to this positive feature of anti-aircraft missile systems - I can confidently assume that in the event of an armed conflict, it would not be the P-35 and P-500 that would be the first to fly at the enemy, but the anti-aircraft missiles of the Volna and Storm complexes . A similar situation was observed in 2008 off the coast of Abkhazia - the first salvo of the Russian Mirage missile ship at Georgian boats was fired from the Osa-M air defense system.
Returning to the Talos, in 1965 a new modification of the RIM-8G anti-aircraft missile with a range of 100 miles (185 kilometers) was adopted, which made the Talos the longest-range naval air defense system of the twentieth century.
In addition, Bendix engineers have done significant work by creating a whole line of missiles for their long-range air defense systems that aim at enemy radar radiation sources. A special modification of the missile, designated RIM-8H Talos-ARM, could be used for ultra-long-range firing at enemy ships with radars turned on - in other words, the Talos air defense system turned into the first American long-range anti-ship missile system.
In total, during its existence, the RIM-8 Talos long-range air defense system was installed on 7 US Navy missile cruisers, of which only the Long Beach nuclear-powered cruiser could fully realize the capabilities of the unique complex (unlike other missile cruisers rebuilt from artillery ships of the Second World War, "Long Beach" was specially created for the new air defense systems and was equipped with a powerful SCANFAR radar with a phased antenna array).
"Struggle for design instead of styles
Calculation of severe nuts and steel"
The nuclear missile cruiser "Long Beach" had an awkward "box-shaped" appearance, which, however, was determined by the cruiser's unique weapon system.
On the technical side, the air defense system was a rotary two-beam launcher, an armored cellar for storing missiles and preparing them for firing, as well as a fire control post and a dozen SPW-2 and SPG-49 radars for guiding missiles on the march and for highlighting targets.
The moment of glory for Talos was the Vietnam War - cruisers with Talos on board were regularly involved as radar patrol ships and air defense patrols cruising the coastal regions of the South China Sea. The long-range naval air defense system has become a chilling legend among the pilots of North Vietnam. MiGs tried to stay as far away from the coastline as possible, otherwise, there was a great risk of falling under a sudden blow - cruisers going near the coast “shone through” the sky for a good hundred kilometers deep into the territory of Vietnam.
The dimensions of the two-stage RIM-8 missiles are comparable to the dimensions of the Granit anti-ship missiles. Anti-aircraft missile speed - 2.5M. Range - up to 185 km, height of destruction - 24 km
In total, the Talos claim four confirmed air victories, all at record air combat ranges - two MiGs were shot down by Long Beach (for example, one of the cases took place on May 23, 1968, the interception range was 112 km), one more on account cruisers Chicago and Oklahoma City. In addition, Oklahoma City has another victory on its account - in 1971, while off the coast of Vietnam, the cruiser detected the radiation of a mobile coastal radar and destroyed the object with a RIM-8H anti-radar missile.
The Talos had good capabilities for combating high-flying targets, but by the beginning of the 1970s, due to the change in the general paradigm of military aviation and the transition to low-altitude flight modes, the unique naval air defense system began to rapidly become obsolete - in 1976, the fleet officially expressed its intention to remove Talos was out of service, the last launch of the RIM-8 missile took place in 1979, and a year later the last cruiser with this type of air defense system was expelled from the Navy. However, history
Special warhead of the RIM-8 anti-aircraft missile
Missile launch from the cruiser Little Rock
Introduction
The heroine of today's material is the P-700 Granit missile, which has proven itself well during various tests. In the field of anti-ship missiles, the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation, as the successor, occupied traditionally strong positions. Recall only the first combat use of a missile of this type, when an Israeli missile boat was sunk with the help of the P-15 Termit missile. And the geopolitical significance of our country in those years was difficult to overestimate.
American aircraft carriers plowed the length and breadth of the world's oceans, powerful countermeasures were needed, primarily in the form of missile weapons.
Along with missile weapons, delivery vehicles were also needed. Were new types of cruisers, both surface and submarine, have been created. For the USSR, these are Project 949 Granit submarines and Project 1144 heavy nuclear missile cruisers (Kirov, Admiral Lazarev, Admiral Nakhimov, Peter the Great)
History of creation
The development of the Granit missile system started in 1969. The main doctrine of the application was the versatility of the complex, capable of operating from both submarine cruisers and surface cruisers. The main contractor for the creation of a universal rocket was NPO Mashinostroenie Chelomey. This association was famous for its ability to create universal carriers.
The control system was created at the Granit Research Institute. According to the terms of reference, the rocket had to be independent and without additional guidance search and destroy targets in enemy ship formation.
Fact! High responsibilities were assigned to the new rocket - it must be completely autonomous and must itself choose a target during the flight.
The first tests were carried out in ground conditions in 1975. It was decided to send the rocket for testing on a national scale in 1979. A total of 20 missiles were launched. All tests were quite successful and showed the overall effectiveness of the complex. In the eightieth year, joint tests started with the intended carriers.
In total, 45 missiles left the missile silos, which with filigree accuracy hit the set targets. The results shown showed the overall effectiveness of the missile system. By decision of the state commission in 1983, the Granit supersonic missile was adopted by the naval forces.
Peculiarities
The priority attacked targets are enemy surface ships, it is also possible to shoot at ground targets, but only from a great height, the onboard equipment is not intended for flights over uneven ground. And at high altitudes, the rocket could become a "tidbit" of enemy air defense systems.
The missile homing head is also not designed to attack ground targets. Flights over the ground are carried out exclusively thanks to the inertial coordinate guidance system. The firing range for ground targets is much higher than for sea targets.. This happens solely because of the high flight altitude, where air resistance is less. Cruise flight takes place at an altitude of about 15 kilometers.
On a note! For the Granit missile, the task was to attack surface targets, however, in some cases it can also hit ground targets.
The rocket may appear and in the form of a "lone wolf" and in the form of a pack, where one missile is designed for one ship, and a group of missiles can be a full-fledged team, where each missile performs its function: the leading missile-cover group.
Device
Rocket "Granite" has a spindle-shaped, folding set of wings with a large degree of sweep.
The rocket comes into motion thanks to solid-fuel boosters, then a turbojet engine comes into play, capable of accelerating the projectile to supersonic speed.
In anticipation of the shot, the launch container is filled with sea water for exclusion of the possibility of destruction of the container hot stream of gases flowing from the engine, the principle of operation of the accelerator is also designed so that it turns on during a “wet” start. After running out of fuel in the booster, it is dropped and the "sea hawk" spreads its wings and rushes to meet its target.
The missile is equipped with an on-board computer system capable of laying the missile route, the ability to select the image of an anti-jamming target, the Quartz station actively jams in the form of reflectors and electronic decoys. The presence of a computer system makes the missile "smart": the missile itself can find the target, identify interference, put its own and successfully destroy the target.
Start! The launch of a rocket consists of 2 stages: first, solid-fuel boosters work, and a turbojet engine takes the rocket to supersonic speed
Target hit
A missile can reach its target in different ways.: being at low altitude and making a large slide, where most of the flight takes place in a rarefied atmosphere at high altitude. The pros and cons of flight patterns are obvious. With a low-altitude profile, the flight range drops; when moving at high altitude, the missile is vulnerable to enemy anti-aircraft missiles.
Anti-ship missiles P-700 of the Granit missile weapon system. SSGN project 949A "Antey".
During a group flight of missiles, data can be exchanged between them, they independently find priority and secondary targets, and distribute among themselves the “hit list” of enemy ships.
Right on target! The group artificial intelligence of several missiles works according to a certain algorithm, which appoints one of the missiles as the main one in the "flock", the task of the "leader" now becomes to hit the most dangerous target.
When flying over long distances, additional target designation is carried out with the help of aircraft TU-95 "RTs" and K-25 "RTs" helicopters, since the capabilities of carrier radars are limited, in simple terms they are rather "myopic". Target designation is also possible with the help of satellites of the Legend system, but its functioning is currently in question.
Unfortunately or fortunately, the combat capabilities of the P-700 did not happen to be tested in the real conditions of the war. But the dry numbers and test results say that the missile system, which is quite respectable in age, is still competitive and being within the radius of its use, the enemy will not be able to feel calm.
Video
The P-700 anti-ship missile of the Granit missile weapon system is a long-range cruise anti-ship missile (anti-ship missile) designed to combat powerful ship groups, including aircraft carriers.