| Country: |
Iran |
| Associated Country: |
Russia, Syria |
| Alternate Name: |
Shahab 1 |
| Class: |
SRBM |
| Basing: |
Road Mobile |
| Length: |
10.94 m |
| Diameter: |
0.88 m |
| Launch Weight: |
5860 kg |
| Payload: |
Single warhead, 985 kg |
| Propulsion: |
Single-stage liquid |
| Range: |
300 km km |
| Status: |
Operational |
| In Service: |
1987 |
Details
While the names of most ballistic missiles are obscure, the ‘Scud’ has become almost a household name. The SS-1A ‘Scud’ 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 attacked 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.
While most ‘Scuds’ carry conventional explosives, the ‘Scud’ was originally developed to carry a 50 kT nuclear warhead. The SS-1B ‘Scud A’ (Russian designation R-11) entered into service in 1955 as a short range nuclear weapon to attack western Europe and was intended to carry a nuclear 50 kT yield warhead. The high explosive (HE) warhead was developed for export to other communist countries in the Cold War whom the Soviet Union was leery of giving nuclear strike capabilities.
The 'Scud A' is 10.3 m long, 0.88 m in diameter, has a launch weight of 5,400 kg with a range of 190 km (118 miles), and an accuracy of 3,000 m CEP. Many of the missiles remaining in service today have substantially increased accuracy, but they are still not counter-force grade by any means.
The ‘Scud A’ was soon replaced with the SS-1C ‘Scud B’. The new missile had the advantage of being compatible with a transporter-erector-launcher (TEL) and could thus be deployed quickly and covertly. It has built-in test equipment and is able to aim and fire the missile autonomously, though a separate command and control vehicle typically controls the targeting and firing.
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. The ‘Scud’ missiles used by Iraq during the Gulf War in 1991 were largely the Iraqis’ own improved variant of the ‘Scud B,’ the Al Hussein. There was 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. Libya paraded in 1999 with 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.
In addition to the very high production level of the Scud missiles, a myriad of variations and additions exist for the Scud platform. Several different warheads were developed for the ‘Scud B’ missiles including nuclear yields between 5 and 70 kT, chemical agents, and conventional high explosives. The Iranian ‘Scud B’ is 10.94 m long, 0.88 m in diameter and has a launch weight of 5860 kg, with a range of 300 km (186 miles) with accuracy of 450 m CEP. A typical ‘Scud B’ takes approximately one hour to finish a single launch sequence.
It is suggested that the SS-1D ‘Scud C’ missile is the same size as the ‘Scud B’ but with a range increase of 550 km (342 miles) and an accuracy of 700 m CEP. The ‘Scud C’ is thought only to launch HE warheads. It is also suggested that there is a ‘Scud D’ design with the same range and weight as the ‘Scud C,’ but with an improved accuracy of 50 m CEP. This missile presumably launches HE, chemical and nuclear warheads.
The Iranian involvement with the ‘Scud’ missile is significant. The Iranian government is reported to have made its first test launch of a ballistic missile in 1988, which was believed to be a ‘Scud B’ variant with a range of 320 km (199 miles) and a payload of 985 kg, developed with the assistance of either North Korea or the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Iran is reported to have purchased a number of Syrian and 120 North Korean ‘Scud B’ missiles. Unconfirmed reports suggest that Iran exported ‘Scud B’ missiles to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan, and that Iran and Syria supported a missile manufacturing capability in Sudan. Further reports indicate that Iran has the ability to manufacture North Korean ‘Scud C’ variants with a range of 550 km (342 miles) and a payload of 500 kg, as well as shared this capability with Iran. The ‘Scud B’ variant is possibly designated the Shahab 1, though this title might refer instead to the Iranian M-11 variant.(1)
Footnote
- Duncan Lennox, ed., Jane’s Strategic Weapons Systems 46 (Surrey: Jane’s Information Group, January 2007), 70.
