Kyodo: China Testing SRBMs at Pace of 100 Per Year
October 19, 2005 :: Kyodo :: News
Japan’s Kyodo news service reports that beginning two years ago China has been testing short range ballistic missiles at a rate of about one hundred per year. The tests of missiles with ranges up to 600 km are said to take place from inland bases. The report comes in conjunction with the visit by Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld to the headquarters of the Second Artillery, which commands China’s ballistic missiles.
This news report is significant, but it leaves unclear the relation of such a number of tests to the number of missiles produced each year, and the number operationally deployed near Taiwan. The 2005 report by the Pentagon on the military capabilities of the People’s Republic of China noted that China is deploying an additional “75 to 125” short range missiles within range of Taiwan each year, and that the current number was estimated at between 650 and 730. Depending on how one interprets the relation between these reports, China could be producing some 175-225 short range missiles per year (around 100 to satisfy the testing replacement rate plus 75-125 to increase the number deployed). (Article, Link)
» Kyodo report through BBC Monitoring
» October 19, 2005: Washington Times on Rumsfeld visit
» 2005 Pentagon Report on Chinese Military Power
» More stories on: China, Taiwan, Testing - Foreign
Russia Tests Target Missile Based on S-25
October 17, 2005 :: News
Interfax reports that Russia has completed a three month period of testing for a “new” target missile called “Strizh-4,” which is said to be built on the basis of the older S-25 (SA-1 “Guild”) anti-aircraft/missile defense interceptor. The purpose for which the Strizh-4 would serve as a target was not given. Presumably, it could serve as a testing target for Russia S-300 or S-400 air and missile defense interceptors. There are apparently two versions of the missile, for both low and high altitudes.
“The tests were conducted for three months at one of the ranges. The tests fully confirmed the missile’s declared specifications, and this was noted in the act drawn up after the tests,” a source in the defence industry complex told Interfax-AVN on Monday [17 October].
Now that the state tests have been completed successfully, a series production of the target missile can be launched and it can be used to test new anti-aircraft missile systems and air-defense artillery systems, the source said.
According to the source, “four launches were made during the state tests - two launches of the target missile designed to fly at high altitudes and two launches of the low-altitude version of the target missile”.
The Strizh-4 target missile is fitted with onboard equipment which includes a radar system designed to establish the parameters of engagement with an anti-aircraft guided missile, photosensitive elements to determine ammunition activation time, and fragmentation sensors. All data is transmitted to the ground and then deciphered.
(Article, Link)
» More stories on: Russia, Russian Missile Defenses, Testing - Foreign
» Missile system details for: S-25 (SA-1 Guild)
Russia Tests RSM-50 (SS-N-18) SLBM; Second Test in Four Days
September 30, 2005 :: Itar-Tass :: News
Russia today conducted a test launch of a submarine-launched ballistic missile from the St. George the Victorious nuclear submarine. The missile was launched from the Sea of Okhotsk and the warheads traveled to their targets at the Chizh range near the White Sea.
The Sea of Ohtotsk is in the Pacific Ocean, near the far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula. The targets are said to have traveled to cape Kanin Nos, on the island of Kanin. The White Sea is in the far north, almost directly due north of Moscow.
“The RSM-50 submarine-based missile was launched from submerged position from a depth of about 30 meters,” a Defense Ministry source is quoted by Itar Tass as saying, adding that “This is the first launch of an inter-continental ballistic missile by Russia’s Pacific Fleet this year. The previous missile launch from the same submarine was carried out on November 2, 2004.”
The St. George is identified by the Moscow News as a Delta-III-class submarine equipped to carry 16 R-29R nuclear-tipped missiles. The missile fired today, however, was identified as an RS-50, both of which designations refer to versions of the SS-N-18 SLBM.
The test follows upon the September 27 test of Russia’s new submarine-launched SS-NX-30, or Bulava, missile. (Article, Link)
» Sep. 30, 2005: Moscow News on SLBM launch
» Itar Tass on missile test
» More stories on: Russia, Testing - Foreign
» Missile details: SS-N-20, SS-N-23, SS-NX-30
Russia Tests Bulava SS-NX-30 SLBM For First Time
September 27, 2005 :: RIA-Novosti :: News
Russia today conducted the much anticipated first flight test of its new Bulava SS-NX-30 intercontinental ballistic missile. The missile was successfully launched from the Dmitry Donskoy Typhoon-class submarine of the Northern Fleet from the White Sea, and it traveled to its designated target at the Kura testing range on the Kamchatka peninsula.
The Bulava had undergone surface and underwater “pop-up” tests in September 2004 to test the submarine release mechanism, but it did not involve the firing of any missile engines.
The test comes a day after President Putin affirmed that Russia continues to develop hypersonic maneuverable warheads for its new missile systems which are capable of evading the sort of midcourse missile defenses being deployed by the United States. The Bulava is the sea-based variant of the Topol-M missile, said to carry such warheads.
Russian Navy spokesman Igor Dygalo told Itar Tass that the Borey-class nuclear submarines will be equipped with the Bulava missiles; two such submarines are being constructed at the Sevmash plant in Severodvinsk in the Arkhangelsk region. The first submarine, the Yury Dolgoruky, will be commissioned in 2006 and the second, the Alexander Nevsky, in 2007. (Article, Link)
» September 26: Putin reaffirms development of maneuverable hypersonic vehicles
» September 23, 2004: Russia conducts “pop-up” test of Bulava
» Sep. 27: Itar Tass on Bulava launch
» More stories on: Russia, Testing - Foreign
» Missile details: SS-26
Possible Tochka-U Missile Test
September 15, 2005 :: Interfax :: News
The Interfax-Military News Agency reported on September 14 that a test of the SS-21 Tochka-U ballistic missile was expected as the conclusion of a Russian military exercise at the Luzhskiy artillery firing range in the Leningrad Region. Interfax quoted Major-General Mikhail Akulov, commander of the Leningrad Military District’s missile and artillery forces, as saying that the launch was soon expected.
“The brigade headed by Col Aleksandr Fateyev is taking up marches in columns, changes of firing positions and some other training missions in the course of the exercise, which is going to end with the launch of a Tochka-U tactical missile. Representatives of a state-owned firing range present will assess the readiness of the brigade,” he said.
He pointed out that the brigade had already launched the same type of missile during the tactical exercise at the state-owned firing range in the Volga region. …
The SV 9K79-1 Tochka-U missile system is designed to effectively kill critical targets in enemy’s tactical depth. The solid-propellant single-stage missile with cluster or high-explosive/fragmentation warhead weighs 2,010 kg, and has a range of 120 km.
Update: September 20, 2005:If the tests of the Tochka-U missiles took place, they seem to have not been reported in any publicly available media. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Russia, Testing - Foreign
» Missile details: SS-24, SS-25
Russia Tests SS-N-23
August 17, 2005 :: Interfax :: News
Russia successfully test launched an SS-N-23 (Skiff, RSM-54) intercontinental ballistic missile from the northern Barents Sea. The Yekaterinburg submarine launched the missile from a submerged position, and the missile then traveled some 8,000 km toward its target at the Kura test range on the eastern Kamchatka peninsula. Vladimir Putin observed the firing of the missile and the Northern Fleet’s other military exercises from another ship, Pyotr Veliky (Peter the Great).
The Novomoskovsk nuclear submarine failed to fire an SS-N-23 missile after two attempts in 2004, notes Xinhua. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Russia, Testing - Foreign
» Missile details: SS-X-14
Pakistan Tests “Babur” Cruise Missile
August 11, 2005 :: News
Pakistan tested its first nuclear-capable, ground-launched cruise missile today, and did so without informing India in advance. The cruise missile is called the Hatf VII “Babur,” and is said to have a range of 500 km (310 miles), according to spokesman Major General Shaukat Sultan.
The prior notification agreement reached last week applied only to ballistic missiles: “We don’t have to inform neighboring countries in this case. It is not a ballistic missile and it doesn’t fall under the agreement,” said Sultan. (“Hatf” is, however, used to designate a number of Pakistani ballistic missiles.)
The Babur was described by the military as terrain-hugging, capable of avoiding radar detection, “pinpoint accuracy,” and is said capable of being launched from ships, submarines, and aircraft. “By conducting the successful test, Pakistan has joined a select group of countries which have the capability to design and develop cruise missiles,” the military said in a statement. President Musharraf called the launch a “major milestone.” “It is a gift of the scientists on the birthday of President Musharraf and the Independence Day,” state media quoted Information Minister Sheikh Rashid as saying about the test. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Cruise Missiles, Pakistan, Testing - Foreign
Russia Tests Missile for Sale to China
July 1, 2005 :: News
Russia is testing a new anti-ship missile for export to China, according to a report by The Epoch Times. The report states that flight testing is currently underway on a variant of the Raduga Kh-59M (NATO AS-18 Kazoo) anti-ship missile, which is well suited for attacks against U.S. carriers. Russia began testing the Kh-59M in 2004 using a SU-30MK2 aircraft, a model that is already exported to Beijing. Smith notes that the modified Kh-59M has been fitted with an active radar seeker, advanced guidance systems, and a special computer interface allowing it to use targeting data from the Su-30MK2 fighter. The Kh-59M is said to have a range of 288 km (186 miles). (Article, Link)
» More stories on: China, Russia, Testing - Foreign
China Quiet on SLBM Test Details
June 30, 2005 :: News
China is keeping quiet on its recent ship-launched ballistic missile test, reports the Press Trust of India. According to reports, the People’s Liberation Army Navy successfully test-fired its new JL-2 SLBM from a nuclear submarine in the Pacific Ocean on June 16. When asked to confirm the reports of the test, however, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao refused to comment, stating only that “China has made some efforts in the field of stepping up its national defense.” (Article, Link)
» June 22, 2005: The Washington Times: Bill Gertz on JL-2 launch
» More stories on: China, Testing - Foreign
» Missile details: CSS-NX-5/CSS-NX-4 (JL-2)
China Tests JL-2 SLBM
June 20, 2005 :: News
China on Thursday, June 16, test-fired a new long-range ballistic missile from a nuclear submarine in the Pacific Ocean according to a report by The Daily Yomiuri. The missile traveled from a submarine located near the city of Qingdao which is located in the Shandong Peninsula, some several thousand miles toward a western Chinese desert. Japanese government sources were quoted as saying that the missile tested was the Ju Lang 2 (JL-2), a sea-launched modified version of the Dong Feng-31 ICBM with a range of roughly 8,000 kilometers. China tested another sea launched ballistic missile in 2001.
The Washington Times quotes “a U.S. official familiar with reports of the test” as calling China’s test “a significant milestone in their effort to develop strategic weapons.” The Air Force’s National Air Intelligence Center is also quoted as reporting that the JL-2 missile “will, for the first time, allow Chinese [missile submarines] to target portions of the United States from operating areas located near the Chinese coast.” (Article, Link)
» June 22, 2005: The Washington Times: Bill Gertz on JL-2 launch
» More stories on: China, Testing - Foreign
» Missile details: CSS-NX-5/CSS-NX-4 (JL-2)
