| Country: |
Russian Federation |
| Class: |
SRBM |
| Basing: |
Road mobile |
| Length: |
11.25 m |
| Diameter: |
0.88 m |
| Launch Weight: |
6400 kg |
| Payload: |
Single warhead, 600 kg |
| Warhead: |
HE |
| Propulsion: |
Single-stage liquid |
| Range: |
550 km |
| Status: |
Unknown |
Details
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.
The ‘Scud C’ is believed to be an improved version of the SS-1C ‘Scud B’. It is 11.25 m in length, 0.88 m in diameter, and has a launch weight of 6,400 kg. The missile has a range of 550 km (342 miles) with a payload of 600 kg. This payload is capable of holding a single separating high explosive warhead with an accuracy of 700 m CEP. The missile is believed to use an inertial guidance system and a single-stage liquid propellant engine.
The ‘Scud C’ is a tactical system designed for general bombardment. Without a nuclear payload, there is no way to compensate for the poor accuracy of the system. The high explosive warhead would be capable of inflicting large amounts of damage to a facility, but the only way to ensure a successful hit would be to launch en masse. Thus, the most effective use of the ‘Scud C’ is against population centers or staging areas.
There is no information relating to the development or deployment of the ‘Scud C’. However, it is believed a number were used in Afghanistan by Soviet forces.(1)
Footnotes
- Jane’s Strategic Weapons Systems, Issue 50, ed. Duncan Lennox, (Surrey: Jane’s Information Group, January 2007), 151-153.
