| Country: |
Russian Federation |
| Alternate Name: |
R-11 |
| Class: |
SRBM |
| Basing: |
Road mobile |
| Length: |
10.30 m |
| Diameter: |
0.88 m |
| Launch Weight: |
5400 kg |
| Payload: |
Single warhead, 950 kg |
| Warhead: |
Nuclear 50 kT, HE |
| Propulsion: |
Single-stage liquid |
| Range: |
190 km |
| Status: |
Operational |
| In Service: |
1955 |
Details
Russian Designation: R-17
While the names of most ballistic missiles are obscure, the ‘Scud’ has become a household name. The SS-1A ‘Scunner’ was designed a short time after the end of World War II by captured German scientists and is based upon the Nazi V-2 rocket which was used to attack London in the Second World War. In essence, the Scud is the AK-47 of the missile world: reliable, simple, and ubiquitous. The missile was produced in huge quantities and not even the Russians know exactly how many they built, let alone the number copied by foreign companies.
Although Scuds carry conventional explosives, the Scud was originally developed for the purpose of carrying a nuclear warhead. The SS-1B ‘Scud A’ entered into service in 1955 and was equipped with a 50 kT nuclear warhead as a short-range nuclear weapon to attack Western Europe. At the same time, the Soviets also developed a high explosive (HE) warhead for export to other communist nations that the Soviet Union was leery of giving nuclear strike capabilities.
Yet despite its original role as a nuclear weapon, the ‘Scud B’ is a tactical system typically used to bombard enemy positions and cities. The accuracy of the system is far too low for deployment against military units, specifically due to the lack of submunitions. The system is only useful if deployed against large targets such as manufacturing complexes, cities, or troop staging areas. In the case of the Soviets, the ‘Scud B’ was equipped with nuclear warheads to enable tactical deployment against military units in the case of an escalating conflict. The placement on a Transporter-Erector-Launcher (TEL) vehicle allows for mobility and for deployment on the battlefield.
The ‘Scud B’ is 11.25 m long, 0.88 m in diameter, and has a launch weight of 5,900 kg. It has a range of 300 km (186 miles) with accuracy of 450 m CEP. Several different warheads were developed for the ‘Scud B’ missiles including nuclear yields between 5 and 70 kT, chemical agents, and conventional high explosive. A typical ‘Scud B’ takes approximately one hour to finish a single launch sequence. It uses an inertial guidance system and a single-stage liquid propellant engine.
The SS-1C ‘Scud B’ was deployed in 1962. Though the system is obsolete and has been replaced by new designs in Russia, it is still one of the most common and widely deployed missile systems in the world. By 1965, the new ‘Scud B’ missile was operational in many European and Middle Eastern counties. In 1973, Egypt fired a small number of the ‘Scud B’ missiles against Israel. Over 600 ‘Scud B’ and North Korean ‘Scud B’ variants were fired by Iran and Iraq between 1980 and 1988. Over 2,000 ‘Scud B,’ and possibly a small number of ‘Scud C’ missiles, are thought to have been used in Afghanistan.
During the 1991 Persian Gulf War, Iraq deployed its own improved variant of the ‘Scud B,’ the Al Hussein. There were also a small number of ‘Scud’ missiles used in the 1994 civil war in Yemen and by Russia in Chechnya in 1996. A Russian report suggests that there were four ‘Scud B’ TEL and approximately 100 missiles in Afghanistan, some with the Taliban and some with Massoud’s forces, and could have been possibly passed to other various terrorist organizations. In 1998, Ukraine was reported to have three brigades with ‘Scud B’ missiles and a total of 55 missiles in service. In 1999, Libya paraded some 20 refurbished ‘Scud B’ TEL vehicles with missiles. It is thought that this was done with the assistance from North Korea.
‘Scud B’ missiles have been exported to: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Egypt, Georgia, Hungary, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, North Korea, Libya, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Syria, UAE, Ukraine, Vietnam, and Yemen. Unconfirmed reports between 1996 and 2000 have suggested that ‘Scud B’ missiles have been purchased by Armenia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ecuador, Pakistan, Peru, and the Sudan. These missiles may have been built in the former Soviet Union. It has been reported that as many as 7,000 ‘Scud’ missiles may have been built in Russia and that ‘Scud B’ missiles and improved variants have been built in Egypt, Iran, Iraq, North Korea and Syria. Consequently, it is difficult to identify the source and quantity of missile supplies.(1)
Footnotes
- Duncan Lennox, Jane’s Strategic Weapons Systems 46 (Surrey: Jane’s Information Group, January 2007), 127-130.
Iran Defiant; Will Continue to Enrich Uranium
March 10, 2004 :: Financial Times :: News
All too frequently, Americans hear that the only threat to the United States in the twenty-first century will come from terrorists. The reality, however, is that many nations continue to develop advances nuclear technologies despite UN sanctions and threats of suspended aid packages—and, in some cases, with the assistance of signatories to non-proliferation documents, such as Russia and China.
Despite U.S. protests, Iran continues to advance its uranium enrichment program that is capable of developing first-rate nuclear warheads. Officially, weapons technology is sold by Russia for use in civilian reactors but the degree of enrichment Iran has been trying to acquire is far more consistent with high yield nuclear weapons. Here, again, is yet another example that export controls and non-proliferation measures, while important and laudatory, may ultimately be insufficient in the absence of extraordinarily strong political will—and even in its presence. The former Soviet Union is a signatory of the 1968 Non-Proliferation Treaty, where it pledged “not in any way assist, encourage, or induce any non-nuclear-weapon state to manufacture or otherwise acquire nuclear weapons.” Such is the reliability of paper restrictions on proliferation.
Once completed, Iranian nuclear warheads might be deployed on the Shahab-6 ballistic missile, the longest-range missile Iran is believed to have in development, which is believed to be able to travel some 6,000km. That Iran continues to pursue long range missiles to complement its nascent nuclear warheads is clear, as illustrated by their recent announcement of their intention to extend the range of the Shahab-3. (Article, Link)
» Feb. 25, 2004: Iran upgrading range of Shahab-3
» Mar. 11, 2004: Russia opposes UN resolution against Iran
» More stories on: Iran, Proliferation
» Missile details: SS-1B 'Scud A'
