Combat railway missile system "Barguzin". Railway missile systems - reliable defense of Russia What is the name of a missile on a train?
At the very end of last year in Russian media mass media appeared regarding the return to an old and almost forgotten idea. According to RIA Novosti, work is already underway to create a new combat railway missile system (BZHRK) and the first missile train of the new project can be assembled by 2020. Our army already had similar systems in service, but the only ones in the BZHRK 15P961 “Molodets” were removed from duty back in 2005 and soon most the equipment from them was disposed of. Trains with missile weapons were rightfully the pride of Soviet designers, and of the entire country as a whole. Thanks to their capabilities, these complexes posed a serious threat to a potential enemy. However, the history of this type of technology cannot be called simple. First, a series of completely unpleasant events first greatly limited the potential of domestic BZHRKs, and then led to their complete disappearance.
The creation of a railway missile system was very difficult. Despite the fact that the corresponding order from the country’s leadership and the Ministry of Defense appeared back in 1969, the first full-fledged launch new rocket RT-23UTTH took place only in 1985. The development of the BZHRK was carried out at the Dnepropetrovsk design bureau "Yuzhnoye" named after. M.K. Yangel under the leadership of V.F. Utkina. Specific operating conditions new system forced to develop a lot of new solutions, from a newly designed launch car, disguised as a refrigerator, to a folding fairing for the missile head. Nevertheless, more than fifteen years of work were crowned with success. In 1987, the first “Molodtsov” regiment went on duty. Over the next four years before the collapse of the Soviet Union, three divisions were formed, armed with a total of twelve new BZHRKs.
Unfortunately, shortly after the formation of the last third division, several unpleasant things happened that had a very bad impact on the future service of the BZHRK. In 1991, during international negotiations on the future START I treaty, the Soviet leadership agreed to several unfavorable proposals from the American side. Among them was a restriction regarding the patrol routes of “missile trains”. With the light hand of USSR President M. Gorbachev and some of his associates, BZHRKs could now only move within a radius of several tens of kilometers from the bases. In addition to the obvious military-political disadvantages, such a restriction also had economic consequences. Simultaneously with the commissioning of the “Molodets” complexes, the Ministry of Railways carried out work to strengthen the tracks within a radius of several hundred kilometers from the BZHRK bases. Thus, the Soviet Union lost both the main advantage of the BZHRK and a lot of money spent on reconstructing the tracks and preparing launch positions.
Next international treaty– START-II – implied the removal from duty and disposal of all RT-23UTTH missiles. The target date for completion of this work was 2003. A cutting room was assembled at the Bryansk Missile Forces Repair Plant with the participation of the United States specifically for dismantling and disposal. technological line. Fortunately for the BZHRK, shortly before the deadline for the disposal of missiles and trains, Russia withdrew from the START II treaty. However, recycling continued over the next few years, although at a much slower rate. To this day, only a few carriages of the former BZHRK have been preserved, which are used as museum exhibits.
As we can see, the short history of the Molodets missile systems was difficult and unsuccessful. Almost immediately after entering service, trains with missiles lost their main advantage and after that no longer posed the same threat to the enemy as before. However, the complexes continued to remain in service for a decade and a half. Now there is every reason to believe that the disposal of Molodtsev occurred only when they had exhausted their service life and the available stock of missiles had come to an end. One of the most serious blows to Russian missile trains was the collapse of the Soviet Union. Because of him, the Yuzhmash plant, where the complexes and missiles for them were assembled, remained on the territory of sovereign Ukraine. This country had its own views on the future work of rocket production and therefore the trains were left without a new one.
In discussions of the news about the start of development of a new BZHRK, the advantages and disadvantages of this type of equipment are often discussed. The first, of course, includes the possibility of being on duty at a great distance from the base. Once a train with missiles enters the public railways, its detection becomes very, very difficult. difficult task. Of course, three diesel locomotives, nine refrigerator cars (three missile modules) and a tank car to some extent gave away the old BZHRKs, but to guarantee tracking of their movements required enormous efforts. In fact, it was necessary to “cover” with reconnaissance means the entire or almost the entire territory of the Soviet Union. Another advantage of the complex can be considered a successful liquid rocket RT-23UTTH. A ballistic missile with a launch mass of 104 tons could deliver ten warheads with a capacity of 430 kilotons each to a range of up to 10,100 kilometers. In light of the mobility of the missile system, such characteristics of the missile gave it simply unique capabilities.
However, it was not without its drawbacks. The main disadvantage of the BZHRK 15P961 is its weight. Due to the non-standard “load”, several original ones had to be used technical solutions, but even with their use, the launch module of three cars exerted too much pressure on the rails, almost to the limit of the latter’s capabilities. Because of this, in the late eighties, railway workers had to change and strengthen a huge number of tracks. Since then, the country's railways have again suffered wear and tear, and before the new missile system is put into service, another track renewal will most likely be needed.
BZHRKs are also regularly accused of insufficient strength and survivability, especially in comparison with silo launchers. To test survivability, appropriate tests began in the eighties. In 1988, work on the themes “Radiance” and “Thunderstorm” was successfully completed, the purpose of which was to test the performance of trains with rockets in conditions of strong electromagnetic radiation and thunderstorms, respectively. In 1991, one of the production trains took part in the Shift tests. At the 53rd research site (now the Plesetsk cosmodrome) several tens of thousands of anti-tank mines were laid with a total explosion power of about 1000 tons in TNT equivalent. At a distance of 450 meters from the ammunition, with its end facing them, they placed the train's missile module. A little further - 850 meters - they placed another launcher and command post complex. The launchers were equipped with electrical rocket launchers. During the detonation of mines, all modules of the BZHRK were slightly damaged - glass flew out and the operation of some secondary equipment modules was disrupted. The training launch using the rocket's electrical layout was successful. Thus, a kiloton explosion less than a kilometer from the train is not capable of completely disabling the BZHRK. To this should be added the more than low probability of an enemy missile warhead hitting a train while moving or near it.
In general, even the short-term operation of the Molodets BZHRK with serious restrictions on routes clearly demonstrated both the advantages and difficulties associated with this class of military equipment. Probably precisely because of the ambiguity of the very concept of the railway complex, which simultaneously promises greater mobility of rockets, but at the same time requires strengthening the tracks, not to mention the complexity of creating a train and rockets for it, design work on creating new “rocket trains” has not yet been resumed . According to the latest data, currently employees design organizations and the Ministry of Defense analyze the prospects of the BZHRK and determine the necessary features of its appearance. Therefore, it is now impossible to talk about any nuances of the new project. Moreover, due to the availability of mobile ground-based missile systems (PGRS) “Topol”, “Topol-M” and “Yars” in service, which do not require a durable railway track, the creation of a new BZHRK may be completely canceled.
Now the most different opinions about the possible appearance of the promising BZHRK. For example, it is proposed to equip it with missiles of existing projects, such as the RS-24 Yars. With a launch weight of about 50 tons, such a rocket, which is also already used on the PGRK, can be a good replacement for the old RT23UTTH. With similar dimensions and half the weight, the new missile, with certain modifications, can become the weapon of the new BZHRK. At the same time, the combat characteristics of the complex will remain approximately at the same level. Thus, the gain in range (up to 11,000 km) will be compensated by a smaller number of warheads, because only 3-4 (according to other sources, six) charges are placed in the head of the RS-24. However, the Yars missile will have been in operation for about ten years by the expected date of putting the new BZHRK into service. Thus, new missile trains will require a new ballistic missile. It is quite possible that its appearance will be shaped along with the requirements for the entire complex.
At the same time, rocket designers can use the experience gained from creating relatively small rockets like the Topol or Yars. In this case, it will be possible to create a new rocket with extensive use of developed solutions and technologies, but at the same time suitable for use in railway complexes. As the basis for a new missile for the BZHRK, the existing Topoli-M or Yarsy are suitable, partly due to the fact that they are adapted for operation on mobile systems. However, the final decision regarding the “origin” of the missile and the requirements for it does not seem to have been made yet. Given the length of time it takes to develop and test new rockets, in order to meet the 2020 deadline, rocket designers must receive requirements within the coming years or even months.
Finally, the need to build infrastructure must be taken into account. Judging by the available information about the condition of the old BZHRK bases, everything will have to be built anew. In a matter of years, old depots, control rooms, etc. were taken out of service, deprived large quantity special equipment, rendered unusable and sometimes even partially looted. It is quite clear that for effective combat operation, new railway missile systems will need appropriate structures and equipment. But restoring existing buildings or building new ones will significantly increase the cost of the entire project.
Thus, if we compare railway and ground-based missile systems, the comparison may not be in favor of the former. Hypothetical mobile ground launcher, with the same rocket as the railway one, is less demanding on the condition of the road, much easier to manufacture, and also does not require coordination of travel routes with third-party organizations, for example, with the management of the railway. An important advantage of ground-based missile systems is also the fact that all the infrastructure necessary for them is simpler and, as a result, cheaper than for railway ones. Therefore, it is not surprising that in the mid-2000s the command of the Strategic Missile Forces officially announced the abandonment of the BZHRK in favor of the PGRK. In light of this decision, the resumption of work on railway complexes looks solely like an attempt to expand opportunities nuclear forces and, if there are certain prospects, equip them with another type of equipment.
IN current situation For now, you shouldn’t wait for news regarding the start of construction of the first rocket train of the new project, because it hasn’t even been decided what it will be like or whether it will be at all. Therefore, we can only hope that the analysis of capabilities and prospects, including comparative ones (BZHRK or PGRK), will be carried out with full responsibility and its results will only bring benefits to our missile forces.
The world community is in shock: oh-oh, this and that Russia for some reason is restoring its combat railway missile systems (BZHRK). Hopeless totalitarianism and the clampdown on freedom.
Just think, NATO has only advanced a little to the East - this is only for the benefit of democracy. Just think, the United States has withdrawn from the ABM Treaty and is building “defensive sites” for anti-missiles in Poland and Romania - they are exclusively against the missiles of the North Koreans and Iranians, which pose a threat to the “Free World”. Hello, Russia, no one and nothing threatens you, stop arming yourself!
– Why is Russia arming itself when everything in the world is so good and beautiful? Isn't it better together with Western countries build a brave new world where there is no place for weapons of mass destruction?
– Russia has many nuclear submarines. Why does she also need some kind of “nuclear train”? These Russians have a desire to arm themselves to the teeth in their genes. They want war. Everything is bad for them, and that’s why they want to drag the entire West with them to the grave!
- “Atomic train”? This is inhumane! Russia does not think about its railway passengers! This means that any Russian passenger train now becomes a legal target. The Russians would have attached atomic bombs to passenger air and sea liners...
- It's a bluff. Russian economy lies in ruins. The Russians will now build “nuclear trains” with their last money, and then what will they eat? Raw uranium? Poor bastards...
– Russia is sending a signal: don’t interfere with it and its allies. Why did the West begin to destroy Ukraine? Do you want a new war like in Korea? I hope our military and politicians will understand everything correctly.
What bothered the inhabitants of the well-fed democratic pigsty so much?
There is not so much a legend, but unconfirmed information from authoritative sources that the topic of the BZHRK was brought up to the Soviet Union by the United States. Once upon a time in America, a railway complex was developed for the hidden transportation and launch of ballistic missiles, but the luminous Jedi did not pull off the project, wasting billions of money on it. In any case, there is not a single BZHRK in the US armed forces and is not expected.
However, according to weapons historians, the Americans are not pioneers in this matter. For the first time, the gloomy Teutonic geniuses of the Third Reich unsuccessfully tried to hoist and launch a V-2 ballistic missile onto a railway platform.
In the 50s in the USSR, the theme of railway launch pads for ballistic missiles was developed by such famous designers as Lavochkin, Korolev, Yangel, but their work at that time was not crowned with success.
So the “American partners” decided to give the Soviet comrades a pretty pig in a beautiful package: “America is building a “nuclear train,” but are you weak, Reds?”
Whether this is true or not, only the scientific and design thought of the USSR coped with the task thanks to the design team under the leadership of Academician Alexei Utkin. The problem was solved thanks to the advent of solid fuel rockets. R&D on the Molodets project began in the mid-60s, but the Molodets BZHRK was born and went on combat duty only in 1987. And immediately turned into a headache, a pain in the ass, a “terror that flies on the wings of the night” for the Pentagon.
Judge for yourself. Each “Molodets” received a cache of three Scalpel RT-23 UTTH ballistic missiles. Each missile had a range of 10 thousand km and carried a “gift” of 10 individually targeted multiple warheads with nuclear charge at 430 kilotons of TNT. As many as 900 Hiroshima for the adversary. In total, by the beginning of the 90s, 12 BZHRKs and an unknown number of fake “well done” ones were built.
Externally, the composition of the “nuclear train” was no different from thousands of other trains traveling up and down the developed railway network of the USSR. A typical set of “Molodets” cars looked like a cargo and passenger train: mail cars, passenger cars and refrigerators. True, the cars carrying rockets had eight instead of four wheel pairs, and the train itself was pulled by three mainline diesel locomotives, but the number of wheels cannot be seen from the satellite, and heavy-duty trains in the USSR were hauled by three-section locomotives - go and figure out which train is where passed.
And if we add here numerous rock tunnels and shelters created specifically for the BZHRK, in which no devil will find them, and an unknown number of “dummy” trains created to distract the attention of those who are too curious...
In the terms of Soviet railway workers, the BZHRK was called “train number zero.”
As the Americans themselves admitted, to track Soviet BZHRKs for their and NATO military intelligence was an impossible task. Even despite the fact that just for the sake of detecting and monitoring the “well done”, the Pentagon launched an entire satellite constellation into orbit.
At the end of the 80s, when the “well done” were scurrying around with might and main wide open spaces our country, American intelligence launched an operation to technically detect our BZHRKs. Under the guise of commercial cargo, a standard cargo container stuffed with spy equipment was delivered to Vladivostok, en route to Sweden. The cunning container was recognized in time by Soviet counterintelligence and, according to some reports, safely reached its destination. But the Pentagon didn’t get anything interesting from this “big walk.” Because it doesn't matter.
The reliability of the “Molodets” is evidenced by the “Shine” tests carried out in 1991 (an experiment on resistance to EMP) and “Shift” - an imitation of a nearby kiloton-power explosion. At the training ground in Plesetsk, 650 meters from the BZHRK, a 20-meter pyramid of 100 thousand anti-tank mines taken from the GDR was laid out and exploded. The monstrous explosion tore out a crater 80 meters in diameter in the ground, the sound pressure level in the residential compartments of the BZHRK reached the pain threshold of 150 dB. One of the three launchers showed a cancellation of readiness, but after rebooting the on-board computer, it launched the rocket in normal mode.
In 1993, under the START-2 treaty, all BZHRKs were subject to destruction. Moreover, the destruction of the “well done” and the ban on the development of similar complexes was an indispensable condition of the American side when signing the agreement. Until 2007, 10 trains were destroyed, and 2 became museum exhibits. It must be said that “our American partners” did not even hide their joy about this.
It is interesting that in the summer of 1993, at the dead end of the Kievsky railway station in Moscow, there was a train, in the coupling of which there was one “cunning” BZHRK car (possibly decommissioned), filled with Polish-made soft drinks, which an enterprising guard sold to everyone wholesale and retail.
With the rise of neocons to power in the United States, America, after the September 11 terrorist attacks, was overwhelmed by paranoia, which turned into a new expansion and arms race.
In response to the deployment by the Americans of a global missile defense system, the Russian leadership in 2013 decided to recreate the BZHRK, taking into account modern scientific and technical achievements. “Molodets” should be replaced by “Barguzin” in 2020. The restriction was lifted by the signing of the START-3 treaty with Obama, who naively believed that Russia would be unable to resurrect “Molodets.” After all, Scalpel missiles were made by Ukraine.
As the commander of the Strategic Missile Forces, Colonel General Sergei Karakaev, clarifies, the Barguzin was initially planned to be put into operation in 2019, but due to the deterioration of the financial situation, the schedule was shifted by a year. At the moment, the new BZHRK is at the technical documentation stage. In 2017, Vladimir Putin will hear a report on the topic and consider the production schedule of Barguzins by the military industry.
According to the organizational structure, each “rocket train” will be equivalent to a regiment, five trains will form a division.
If the railway part of Barguzin is at the project stage, then everything with the missile part has long been in perfect order. In all respects, “Barguzin” will surpass its older brother “Molodets”. The new BZHRK will receive not three, but six of the latest RS-24 Yars (Yars-M) ICBMs with a mortar launch and a flight range of 11 thousand km. True, the Yars warhead contains only four warheads of 250 kilotons each, but this is enough to incinerate some Rhode Island if necessary.
Judging by the incoming information, Barguzin, in addition to more missile weapons, will be equipped with the latest camouflage equipment and electronic warfare system. Considering that Yars missiles are two times lighter than scalpels, cars with missile launchers inside will no longer need eight wheel pairs. Moreover, instead of coupling three mainline diesel locomotives, Barguzin will only need one. This is what new technologies mean. We can also add here that the Barguzin can travel 2,500 km from the departure station per day, so look for winds in the field. The autonomy of the complex is 30 days, the reaction time to the General Staff command to launch missiles is 3 minutes.
Why did Russia need BZHRKs, another inquisitive reader may ask. After all, there are silo-based ICBMs, Topol-M mobile systems, nuclear submarines, and finally. The problem is that the location of the missile silos is well known to the enemy, as are the routes of the mobile missile systems. The discovery of Russian submarine missile carriers represents for them serious problem, even despite the advertised ocean system acoustic detection SOSUS, but Russia has few nuclear submarines. Much less than there were in the USSR. Therefore, BZHRKs, with their volatility and elusiveness, introduce a serious factor of unpredictability into NATO plans. And although information about the Barguzin has been coming for quite some time, the “partners” became seriously concerned after the report of a successful test of the Barguzin rocket launched from the Plesetsk cosmodrome.
And this is good. Because the factor of unpredictability makes you doubt your own abilities and, as a result, leads to sobering up and a desire to negotiate.
There was a time when unique trains ran across our country. Outwardly, they resembled familiar trains. But they differed from them in that they never stopped at stations, they preferred remote stops, and the busy stations of cities, if fate (or an order!) brought them there, tried to pass at dawn, when there were fewer people there.
Just a few years ago, secret trains ran along the Russian railway network. Outwardly, they were almost no different from the passenger trains familiar to the eye. But the dispatchers tried to schedule their movement in such a way that they would pass the busy and crowded train stations of large cities at night or at dawn. They should not have caught the eye of ordinary people. Ghost trains, or BZHRK - combat railway missile systems - kept a combat watch in the Siberian taiga, in the North and Far East with nuclear weapons. And along with nuclear-powered ships, aviation and the Missile Forces, they maintained and maintain the strategic balance in the world.
The main designers of the BZHRK were academicians brothers Vladimir and Alexey Utkin. The eldest, Vladimir Fedorovich, has already passed away. Vladimir Fedorovich’s right hand in the work on creating a rocket train was his brother Alexey.
How did the idea of creating rocket trains come about? According to one version, the Americans planted it on us. Soviet intelligence officers obtained information: the American military-industrial complex is preparing to create a train capable of launching ballistic missiles. Allegedly, his photograph even fell into the hands of the intelligence services.
It was as if the photograph had skillfully captured a small model of a rocket train that did not exist in nature. Like, the overseas “hawks” were really going to do nuclear train, but then abandoned this idea. Why? Their railway network is not so extensive, and the cost of the project was fabulous. In order to direct our scientists along a road that leads to a dead end, they made and planted a “linden tree” with the Russians. Let them rack their brains! And the political leadership fell for it and made a strong-willed decision: to “catch up and overtake” the overseas strategists.
How was it real? After the Americans deployed their Pershing missiles in Germany, it was necessary to adequately respond to new threats to the security of our state. So we returned to the idea of rocket trains. Domestic scientists thought about this project even earlier, but until now they did not take on its solution due to the high cost and labor intensity. In addition, the existing defensive potential was quite enough to adequately respond to the Americans. By the way, it was initially considered as a weapon of retaliation. What is its advantage?
In elusiveness. Unlike silo-based missiles, where the coordinates of targets are known in advance. With the BZHRK, our opponents had a lot of questions to which they could not find answers. To track them, in the early nineties, the Americans even created a constellation of military satellites. But even from space it was not so easy to detect their traces. Therefore, even the most modern technology often lost sight of them. They were elusive thanks to the well-developed railway network of the Soviet Union. Many years later, the American General Powell admitted to the academician: “Looking for your missile trains is like finding a needle in a haystack.”
The Americans even came up with a special carriage that was equipped with the latest equipment. It did not last long......
30 ministries and departments and over 130 defense enterprises worked on the creation of combat missile trains. At first glance, the simple idea proposed by the designers - to lift the mine out of the ground and put it on wheels - included a huge number of organizational and technical problems.
What was one of the main problems? Take shooting. When it is launched from a missile silo, the azimuth, altitude, and starting point are known. Determining your location is one of the most difficult problems. In addition, it is imperative to know the load on the rails in a specific location. And, as you know, soils are different. Identical conditions do not exist in nature. So, to prevent the cars from falling next to the railway, they came up with a special “mortar launch”. Without going into details, the essence of it is that the rocket is first thrown to a height, and only then takes off.
How to aim? Before doing this, you need to stop the train, launch the gyroscopes, determine north and south and where to shoot. Do not forget that you still need to accept orders and commands from above. To let in
missile at exactly the appointed time and obey your commander in any, even the most unfavorable circumstances modern combat, under conditions of use precision weapons, you need to get this command. So a rocket train is a very complex complex. And when the Americans were working on this idea, they encountered a number of technical difficulties, and therefore, most likely, abandoned the science-intensive project.
What if there are high-voltage wires located directly above your head? - A special wire outlet was invented, and in addition to this, the power supply to the substation was automatically removed. As for the axle load, it should not be more than 25 tons. And the rocket with the launch container weighs over 100 tons, plus the carriage itself, so it turns out to be about 200 tons. They came up with the idea of unloading the launch complex using other cars.
It is also necessary to take into account the fact that when moving the train is subject to strong vibration. This means that it is necessary not only to stop the train, but also to “turn off” the springs - do not wait until they calm down!
Don't forget that there are officers and soldiers on the train. They need bedrooms, toilets, a dining room, rest rooms... And supplies of food, fuel, and water are also necessary! So the complex is very complex...
- At first glance, it might seem that our country is large and full of “bear corners” where missile systems could be safely hidden.
Our potential enemies' missiles were becoming more and more accurate, and they could "cover" silos with relative ease. Therefore, it was necessary to take measures to ensure the reliability of the preventive strike. Of course, the Pershings were good missiles. Although some experts somewhat exaggerated their capabilities. They even said that they could hit a stake driven into the ground a thousand kilometers away.
The answer was the Scalpel missile. It “fit” within the framework of the agreement with the Americans. It was made in two versions: mine and for deployment on the railway. It is difficult to imagine how many Pershings would have to be fired to destroy the missile train.
This is not a one-on-one fight, as in the mine version, here the balance of forces is completely different... And therefore, such a combat complex, of course, is unique. And yet, the main idea of the development of combat missile systems is to increase the possibility of deterrence, so that no one even thinks that they can press a button with impunity!
History shows that we were not the initiators of the arms race. We were constantly forced to catch up and did it in such a way that no one had the illusion that there was an advantage. The deterrence effect has continually determined the state of affairs in our defense industry, and as long as we can remain at the proper level, there will be no nuclear war not to happen.
We were preparing four complexes at once. If problems arise with one car, a commission is created to find out the causes of the accident. The task of the general designer is to convince the customer and prove that all the necessary tests have been carried out. You need to move the “car” from its place, and then it will go on its own... And at this time, the first launch from the rocket train is in Plesetsk, and naturally, you go there. The test deputy can also go to the second or third launch, but, as a rule, he sits there almost constantly...
The first train left the factory in 1987, and the last - the twelfth - in 1991. The warranty period is ten years. But usually it was then extended, everything depended on the ideas included in the complex. They have stood the test of time.
In 1991, rocket trains were laid up. The former President of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, took the position of the Americans and came to the conclusion that in order to strengthen mutual understanding between the two countries, it is better not to release the BZHRK into the vastness of Russia. Otherwise, American taxpayers would have to shell out a tidy sum for the Pentagon to deploy an additional constellation of reconnaissance satellites. After all, each rocket train travels more than 1,000 kilometers per day, and in order to identify only one BZHRK among hundreds of trains plying throughout Russia, and then track the route of its movement, it would be necessary to increase the constellation of tracking satellites tenfold. To carry out such a project even in such a rich and technically developed country, like the United States, turned out to be beyond its power.
It is unknown with what arguments the overseas friends managed to convince Mikhail Gorbachev. Another thing is known: not so long ago, the granddaughter of the former President of the Union, Ksenia Virganskaya, showed off at the ball of the richest people on the planet in Paris in a dress from Dior, which costs 22 thousand dollars.
But the formidable missile carriers on rails cannot go beyond the technical territory of the unit. No money.
True, one missile train left the security perimeter - it was necessary to conduct renovation work in factory conditions. All other movements of the BZHRK crews have to be carried out within the boundaries of the unit’s territory. But, as it turned out, “local maneuvers” in no way reduce the overall combat readiness of the BZHRK crews.
To train officer-drivers of rolling stock, training is regularly conducted on the BZHRK routes. It is important for them to visually imagine the landscape along the railway track, to know all the turns and forks of the road, and almost every telegraph pole along the route. All this ultimately allows you to competently manage your combat personnel.
This problem can be solved thanks to the disposition towards the rocket scientists on the part of the management of the Russian railways, their state approach and understanding that this is being done in the name of the country’s defense. In principle, military personnel could use their own training train for training, simulating a BZHRK, but a lack of funds affects it. Today it is more important to spend money on maintaining in working condition those locomotives that are in constant combat readiness.
Now the BZHRK is not aimed anywhere. In the language of rocket scientists, this is called a “zero flight mission.” The difficulty is that since 1991, missile units have never fired from their systems. Tasks combat use weapons in Lately they had to practice only on simulators. True, in 1998 there was one exception. The combat crew of the BZHRK launched the standard Scalpel, removed from the train, using a launcher at the Plesetsk training ground.
Under the leadership of V.F. Utkin and with his direct participation, most of the missiles on which the country’s missile defense shield is based were created.
From 1970 to 1990, V.F. Utkin headed the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, first as chief and then general designer. During this time, four strategic missile systems were developed and put into service, and several launch vehicles were created. These include the highly efficient, environmentally friendly Zenit launch vehicle; SS-24 solid propellant missile; unparalleled, highly efficient strategic missile SS-18.
In the field of space research, various satellites for defense and scientific purposes have been implemented. In total, more than three hundred spacecraft of the Cosmos family developed by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau were launched into orbit, making up a significant part of total number satellites of this series.
The characteristic principle of V.F. Utkin’s work is the use of defense scientific and technical developments in the interests of science and the national economy. Thus, a conversion launch vehicle was created on the basis of the SS-9 combat vehicle
"Cyclone", designed to launch medium payloads into orbit. The Cosmos-1500 satellite was used to remove convoys of ships covered in ice in the East Siberian Sea. Kosmos-1500 also became the founder of the well-known Ocean series of satellites, which provide significant improvements in the safety and efficiency of navigation.
Since 1990, V.F. Utkin has been the director of the Central Research Institute of Mechanical Engineering (TSNIIMASH) of the Russian Aviation and Space Agency (Rosaviakosmos). With the direct participation of Vladimir Fedorovich, the Russian federal space program was developed.
Under his leadership as general designer, R&D was carried out to create experimental devices special purpose, provided scientific and technical “support” of key problems related to the International space station(ISS). Vladimir Fedorovich headed the coordinating scientific and technical council of Rosaviakosmos and the Russian Academy of Sciences for research and experiments on the manned station "Mir" and the Russian segment of the ISS. V.F. Utkin - author of over 200 scientific works And large number inventions, holder of 11 orders and 14 medals.
The first production train went on combat duty in 1987. He was placed on a special platform. Americans recorded from space
location of the combat unit. This was done specifically so that they could take this train into account. This procedure was spelled out in detail in the bilateral agreement. And then his trace was lost. We tested the train in Plesetsk. It had three combat modules, a “living area”, and its own command post.
The main carriages of the BZHRK are those in which the PC-22 missile system (according to the Western classification "Scalpel") and the command post of the combat crew are located. “Scalpel” weighs more than a hundred tons and “reaches” a range of 10 thousand kilometers. The missiles are solid fuel, three-stage, with ten half-megaton individually targetable nuclear units on each. The Kostroma division has several such trains, and each of them has three launchers: twelve missiles, one hundred and twenty nuclear warheads. One can imagine the destructive power of these seemingly harmless-looking echelons! In addition to Kostroma, BZHRK are deployed in two more places.
And such trains roamed the expanses of the country, which could only be seen by chance, kept a combat watch in the North and the Far East, among the taiga and in the mountains... And they were closely monitored by the ocean, sending special satellites to detect them, and hourly, every minute trying to determine where they are. But it was not always possible to do this, despite all the perfection of modern technology - rocket trains were “hidden” under ordinary ones, and try to determine where this missile complex is going, and where is the fast Novosibirsk-Moscow train.”...
Start
Two three-meter telescopic “paws” came out from under the bottom of the car and rested on special reinforced concrete pedestals, rigidly fixing the starting car. The car itself also had an aiming platform, which, when the car was fixed, rested tightly against the railway track, reading the coordinates of the module’s location. Thus, at each point of combat duty, each missile received a clear program and a given flight path to the real target of a potential enemy. When the launch car is already fixed at a certain point on the railway, at the operator’s command, hydraulic pinning jacks release its roof. Then the end hydraulic jacks operate synchronously, and the car opens like a chest, only in two halves. At the same seconds, the main hydraulic pump of the main hydraulic jack begins to work actively, and the huge “cigar” of the TPK smoothly becomes vertical and is fixed with side brackets. All! The rocket is ready for launch!
The missile carries a MIRV-type multiple warhead with 10 warheads with a yield of 500 kt each. (An atomic bomb with a yield of 10 kilotons was dropped on Hiroshima.) Flight range is 10 thousand kilometers.
Mariupol machine builders equipped these trains with very reliable TVR (temperature and humidity) systems and fire extinguishing systems. Flight tests of the rocket were carried out from February 27, 1985 to December 22, 1987. A total of 32 launches were made.
By the way, for the successful testing of the “Scalpel” in Plesetsk, a group of leading Ukrainian designers and machine builders were presented with high government awards. They were mainly awarded the medal “For Labor Valour,” but soon they were to be awarded the honorary title “Honored Worker of Transport of the USSR.” Although, according to the regulations in force at that time, the “distance” from award to award was at least three years. It took a special petition from the industry minister for the early assignment of “deserved” ones.
In 1991, the list was placed on the table of Mikhail Gorbachev, who in a week or two was to part with the presidency of the head of the superpower. What Mikhail Sergeevich thought then, only he knows. But he dealt with the candidates for “merit” in his characteristic spirit of making unpredictable decisions. Gorbachev decided: the last citizen of the Soviet Union, which was bursting at the seams, to whom he would assign this high title of “honored” would be... Alla Borisovna Pugacheva. Signed - President of the USSR...
June 16, 2005, the penultimate of the railway-based missile systems "Scalpel" was sent from the Kostroma missile force formation to a storage base for subsequent liquidation. The last of them is scheduled to be destroyed in September 2005. The official reason why "Scalpels" removal from service is called expiration of service life, although if we take into account that they were put into service in 91-94, this period should expire only by 2018, provided that regular maintenance is carried out by the manufacturer. But the plant in Pavlovgrad (Ukraine) now makes trolleybuses instead of rockets. And Ukraine, having become a nuclear-free power, under the terms of the agreement cannot have, produce or maintain nuclear weapons, especially now that the new Ukrainian authorities have set a course to the west. And the equipment for the production of missiles in service with Russia is being melted down.
In Russia, a new nuclear weapon is preparing for the final stage of testing - the Barguzin combat railway missile system (BZHRK), created on the basis of its predecessor, the Molodets BZHRK (SS-24 Scalpel), which was on combat duty from 1987 to 2005 and was withdrawn from service by agreement with the United States in 1993. What forced Russia to return to the creation of these weapons again? When in Once again In 2012, the Americans confirmed the deployment of their missile defense facilities in Europe; Russian President Vladimir Putin quite harshly formulated Russia’s response to this. He officially stated that the creation of an American missile defense system actually “nullifies our nuclear missile potential,” and announced that our answer would be “the development of strike nuclear missile systems.” One of such complexes was the Barguzin BZHRK, which the American military especially did not like , causing them serious concern, since its adoption makes the presence of a US missile defense system as such practically useless. Predecessor of "Bargruzin" "Well done" The BZHRK was already in service with the Strategic Missile Forces until 2005. Its main developer in the USSR was the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau (Ukraine). The only manufacturer of rockets is the Pavlograd Mechanical Plant. Tests of the BZHRK with the RT-23UTTKh "Molodets" missile (according to NATO classification - SS-24 Scalpel) in the railway version began in February 1985 and were completed by 1987. BZHRKs looked like ordinary railway trains made of refrigerated, mail-baggage and even passenger cars. Inside each train there were three launchers with Molodets solid propellant missiles, as well as the entire support system for them with a command post and combat crews. The first BZHRK was put on combat duty in 1987 in Kostroma. In 1988, five regiments were already deployed (a total of 15 launchers), and by 1991 - three missile divisions: near Kostroma, Perm and Krasnoyarsk - each consisted of four missile regiments (a total of 12 BZHRK trains). Each train consisted of several cars. One carriage is a command post, the other three – with an opening roof – are launchers with missiles. Moreover, the missiles could be launched both from planned stops and from any point along the route. To do this, the train was stopped, a special device was used to move the contact suspension of electrical wires to the sides, the launch container was placed in a vertical position, and the rocket was launched. 
The complexes stood at a distance of about four kilometers from each other in permanent shelters. Within a radius of 1,500 kilometers from their bases, together with railway workers, work was carried out to strengthen the track: heavier rails were laid, wooden sleepers were replaced with reinforced concrete ones, embankments were filled with denser crushed stone. power only to professionals (launch modules with a rocket had eight wheel pairs, the rest of the support cars had four pairs each). The train could cover about 1,200 kilometers in one day. Its combat patrol time was 21 days (thanks to the reserves on board, it could operate autonomously for up to 28 days). The BZHRK was given great importance, even the officers who served on these trains had ranks higher than their colleagues in similar positions in the mine complexes. 
Soviet BZHRK–
shock for Washington The rocket scientists tell either a legend or a true story that the Americans themselves allegedly pushed our designers to create the BZHRK. They say that one day our intelligence received information that the United States was working on creating a railway complex that would be able to move through underground tunnels and, if necessary, emerge from the ground at certain points in order to launch a strategic missile unexpectedly for the enemy. Photographs were even attached to the intelligence officers’ report this train. Apparently, these data made a strong impression on the Soviet leadership, since it was immediately decided to create something similar. But our engineers approached this issue more creatively. They decided: why drive trains underground? You can use them as usual railways, disguised as freight trains. It will be simpler, cheaper and more effective. Later, however, it turned out that the Americans conducted special studies that showed that in their conditions, BZHRKs would not be effective enough. They simply slipped misinformation to us in order to once again shake up the Soviet budget, forcing us, as it seemed to them then, into useless spending, and the photo was taken from a small full-scale model. 
But by the time all this became clear, it was too late for Soviet engineers to work back. They, and not only in the drawings, have already created a new nuclear weapon with an individually targeted missile, a range of ten thousand kilometers with ten warheads with a capacity of 0.43 Mt and a serious set of means to overcome missile defense. In Washington, this news caused a real shock. Still would! How do you determine which of the “freight trains” to destroy in the event of nuclear strike? If you shoot at everyone at once, there won’t be enough nuclear warheads. Therefore, in order to track the movement of these trains, which easily escaped the field of view of tracking systems, the Americans had to almost constantly keep a constellation of 18 spy satellites over Russia, which was very costly for them. Especially considering that the US intelligence services never managed to identify the BZHRK along the patrol route. Therefore, as soon as the political situation allowed in the early 90s, the US immediately tried to get rid of this headache. At first, they persuaded the Russian authorities not to allow the BZHRKs to travel around the country, but to remain laid up. This allowed them to constantly keep only three or four spy satellites over Russia instead of 16–18. And then they persuaded our politicians to completely destroy the BZHRK. They officially agreed under the pretext of the alleged “expiration of the warranty period for their operation.” 
How to cut "Scalpels" The last combat train was sent for melting down in 2005. Eyewitnesses said that when, in the twilight of the night, the wheels of the cars clattered on the rails and the nuclear “ghost train” with Scalpel missiles set off for last way, even the strongest men could not stand it: tears rolled from the eyes of both gray-haired designers and rocket officers. They said goodbye to a unique weapon, in many combat characteristics superior to everything that was available and even planned to be put into service in the near future. Everyone understood that this unique weapon in the mid-90s became hostage to the political agreements of the country's leadership with Washington. And not selfish. Apparently, therefore, each new stage of the destruction of the BZHRK strangely coincided with the next tranche of a loan from the International Monetary Fund. A number of BZHRKs were also rejected objective reasons. In particular, when Moscow and Kyiv “fled up” in 1991, this immediately hit Russian nuclear power hard. Almost all of our nuclear missiles during the Soviet era were made in Ukraine under the leadership of academicians Yangel and Utkin. Of the 20 types then in service, 12 were designed in Dnepropetrovsk, at the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, and produced there, at the Yuzhmash plant. BZHRK was also made in the Ukrainian Pavlograd. 
But each time it became more and more difficult to negotiate with the developers from Nezalezhnaya to extend their service life or modernize them. As a result of all these circumstances, our generals had to report with a sour face to the country’s leadership how “in accordance with the planned reduction of the Strategic Missile Forces, another BZHRK has been removed from combat duty.” But what to do: the politicians promised - the military was forced to fulfill it. At the same time, they understood perfectly well: if we cut and remove missiles from combat duty due to old age at the same pace as in the late 90s, then in just five years, instead of the existing 150 Voyevods, we will not have any of these heavy missiles left. And then no light Topols will make any difference - and at that time there were only about 40 of them. For the American missile defense system, this is nothing. For this reason, as soon as Yeltsin vacated the Kremlin office, a number of people from the country’s military leadership, at the request of the missilemen, began to prove to the new president the need to create nuclear complex, similar to the BZHRK. And when it became finally clear that the United States was not going to abandon its plans to create its own missile defense system under any circumstances, work on the creation of this complex really began. And now, in the very near future, the States will again receive their previous headache, now in the form of a new BZHRK generation called "Barguzin". Moreover, as the rocket scientists say, these will be ultra-modern rockets in which all the shortcomings of the Scalpel have been eliminated. 
"Barguzin"–
the main trump card against US missile defense The main disadvantage noted by opponents of the BZHRK was the accelerated wear and tear of the railway tracks along which it moved. They had to be repaired frequently, over which the military and railway workers had eternal disputes. The reason for this was the heavy missiles - weighing 105 tons. They did not fit in one car - they had to be placed in two, strengthening the wheel pairs on them. Today, when issues of profit and commerce have come to the fore, Russian Railways are certainly not ready, as it was before, to infringe on their interests for the sake of the defense of the country, and also bear the costs of repairing the roadway in the event that a decision is made that BZHRKs should again operate on their roads. It was the commercial reason, according to some experts, that today could become an obstacle to the final decision to adopt them into service. However, this problem has now been removed. The fact is that the new BZHRKs will no longer have heavy missiles. The complexes are armed with lighter RS-24 missiles, which are used in the Yars complexes, and therefore the weight of the car is comparable to the usual one, which makes it possible to achieve ideal camouflage of the combat personnel. However, the RS-24s have only four warheads, and older missiles had them ten. But here we must take into account that the Barguzin itself does not carry three missiles, as it was before, but twice as many. This, of course, is the same - 24 versus 30. But we should not forget that Yars are practically the most modern development and their probability of overcoming missile defense is much higher than that of their predecessors. The navigation system has also been updated: now there is no need to set target coordinates in advance, everything can be changed quickly. 
In a day, such a mobile complex can cover up to 1,000 kilometers, plying along any railway lines in the country, indistinguishable from a regular train with refrigerated cars. Autonomy time is a month. There is no doubt that the new group of BZHRK will be a much more effective response to the US missile defense system than even the deployment of our Iskander operational-tactical missiles near the borders of Europe, which are so feared in the West. There is also no doubt that the Americans are interested in the idea of BZHRK obviously will not like it (although theoretically their creation will not violate the latest Russian-American agreements). BZHRK at one time formed the basis of the retaliatory strike force in the Strategic Missile Forces, since they had increased survivability and were very likely to survive after the enemy delivered the first strike. The United States feared it no less than the legendary “Satan,” since the BZHRK was a real factor in inevitable retribution. Until 2020, it is planned to put into service five regiments of the Barguzin BZHRK—that’s 120 warheads, respectively. Apparently, the BZHRK will become the strongest argument, in fact, our main trump card in the dispute with the Americans regarding the advisability of deploying a global missile defense system.
After the collapse of the USSR, this unique weapon was gradually destroyed. And recently it became known that Russia is reviving rocket trains, but at a new technological level. The project was named "Barguzin", and the new BZHRKs will be armed with missiles similar in design to the missiles of the Yars complexes. It was previously reported that the new rocket train will be created before 2020.
42.TUT.BY followed short story one of the most formidable weapons of the USSR.
ATOMIC GHOSTS
Atomic trains were created as a weapon of retaliation; they were supposed to keep a potential enemy from the temptation to press the red button, and if this happened, then strike back. Outwardly, even an experienced railway worker could not distinguish these cars from ordinary ones from 50 meters, and none of the civilians managed to get closer. In a day, a BZHRK (Combat Railway Missile Complex) train could cover a distance of over 1000 km.
The rocket train passed through busy cities only at night; at the station it was met only by a few KGB officers, who also did not know where the train was heading. Externally, the rocket train cars were similar to ordinary refrigerator cars; it was very difficult for a non-specialist to distinguish them. Even if you happened to be nearby, you could easily accept rocket composition for ordinary. Therefore, such trains were called “ghosts” and became an adequate response to the US deployment of Pershing nuclear missiles in Germany.
"SCALPEL" WITH A POWER OF 900 HIROSHIMA
Each train carried three special versions of the RT-23 missile, designated 15Zh61 or RT-23 UTTH "Molodets". The dimensions of the rocket were amazing: diameter 2.4 meters, height 22.6 meters, and weight more than 100 tons. The firing range was 10,100 km, and in addition to 10 individually targetable nuclear warheads, each missile carried a complex to overcome enemy missile defenses.
The total power of one salvo was 900 times higher than that of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Not surprisingly, the missile train became the number one threat to NATO, where it received the designation SS-24 Scalpel. Although the scalpel is a precise surgical instrument, and the deviation of the “Molodets” from the target was about half a kilometer, with its power this was not so important.
Even falling 500 meters from the target, the “scalpel” warhead was capable of destroying such a protected target as a silo launcher; the rest are not worth talking about.
DANCING ROCKET FOR NUCLEAR LOCOMOTIVE
When creating the BZHRK, the designers had to face many problems. The first of which is the weight of the car with the rocket, which could easily damage the railway track. Therefore, in order to distribute the weight evenly, a special three-car coupler was created. This also helped to protect the rails from destruction during rocket launch, when the load increased sharply.
The second problem was the rocket launch itself - it was impossible to launch directly from the carriage, so a simple but effective solution was used. The rocket was launched at 20-30 m along the mortar, then, while in the air, the rocket was deflected using a powder accelerator, and only then the main engine was turned on.
The need for such complex maneuvers, which the military called a “dance,” is dictated not only by concern for the carrier car, but also the railway track: without such a launch, the rocket will easily sweep away all the rubble for a good hundred meters around.
The third problem was the need to fit the rocket into the refrigerator car. It was also solved simply by making the fairing of variable geometry. At the moment the rocket exited the transport and launch container, supercharging occurred: the metal corrugated fairing received a certain form Under the influence powder charge(it is also called a “powder pressure accumulator”).
THREE MINUTES BEFORE THE APOCALYPSE
From the moment the launch command is received until the rocket takes off, about three minutes pass. Everything is done automatically, and personnel you don't even need to leave the carriages.
It was possible to launch rockets from absolutely any point of the railway network or from three at once, and by one train! For this purpose, the train consisted of three diesel locomotives, which, if necessary, could transport three launch cars to three different points. After launch, the train could be quickly hidden in one of the tunnels. It was almost impossible to detect such a mobile and secretive train.
Control came from the command module, which had increased resistance to electromagnetic pulse. Also, special communication antennas were created specifically for the control car, which ensured stable reception of signals through the radio-transparent roofs of the cars.
DESTROY BY ANY WAY
Since the advent of the BZHRD, the Americans and their allies have been trying to find a way to ensure their destruction. If everything is simple with a silo installation: the rocket launch is detected from a satellite, then fixed target easily destroyed, then with nuclear trains everything is complicated. Such a composition, if guided by electromagnetic radiation, moves along a certain radius, covering an area of the order of 1-1.5 thousand km. To guarantee the destruction of the train, you need to cover this entire area with nuclear missiles, which is physically very difficult.
Moreover, the experiment carried out with the code name “Shift” showed the excellent resistance of the BZHRK to the effects of an air shock wave. For this purpose, several railway trains with anti-tank mines TM-57 (100,000 pcs.). After the explosion, a crater with a diameter of 80 and a depth of 10 m was formed. The nuclear train, located at some distance, was covered by a shock wave; in the habitable compartments, the level of acoustic pressure reached a pain threshold of 150 dB. However, the locomotive was not seriously damaged, and after certain measures were taken to put it on alert, a missile launch was successfully simulated.
It is clear that the Americans did not sit idly by: it was developed secret operation to identify Soviet missile trains. To do this, under the guise of commercial cargo, containers were sent from Vladivostok to one of the Scandinavian countries, one of which was stuffed with reconnaissance equipment. But nothing came of it - Soviet counterintelligence opened the container immediately after the train left Vladivostok.
However, after the collapse of the USSR, the situation changed radically and the Americans were able to put an end to the Soviet threat. Boris Yeltsin, who came to power, on instructions from Washington, banned Scalpels from going on duty, and also pledged to saw all 12 missile trains into metal.
In addition, on Yeltsin’s instructions, all work on the creation of such systems was prohibited. By the way, at the same time, most of the launch silos for the most powerful R-36M missiles at that time, which NATO received the designation SS-18 Mod.1,2,3 Satan, were eliminated - filled with concrete.
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