Zircon hypersonic missile: how a new Russian weapon forced America to rewrite military doctrine. Russia has successfully tested a new Zircon hypersonic missile, which has no analogues in the world New Russian Zircon hypersonic missile

The range of the first modification of the "Zircon" was about 500 km at a speed of 2.5 km / s . In other words, the speed of the rocket is almost eight times the speed of sound. And this means only one thing: no means of air defense can bring it down. For example, the reaction time of the US Aegis air defense missile system is about 8-10 seconds. "Zircon" at a speed of 2.5 km / s during this time will fly 20-25 km. Ground-based interceptor missiles simply will not have time to catch up with him.

There is already information that the first ships to be armed with the ZK22 will be the Admiral Nakhimov heavy nuclear missile cruiser and the Peter the Great nuclear cruiser. Each of them has 20 Granit anti-ship missile launchers, each installation can accommodate three Zircons. That is, 60 newest missiles instead of 20.

As military expert Konstantin Sivkov noted, the adoption of the Zircon will lead to the fact that the role of the US aircraft carrier forces will be greatly weakened in favor of Russian nuclear cruisers.

US Congressman Trend Franks commented on the Russian military novelty: “The hypersonic era is approaching. Enemy developments are fundamentally changing the fundamental laws of war." Congressman is right. The appearance of "Zircon" with nuclear warheads makes any missile defense system meaningless for the next thirty years. America has already begun to rewrite its main militaristic document - the military doctrine, since the techniques and scenarios indicated in the current version have lost their relevance. In particular, the West will have to radically upgrade its defensive weapons. How to do it, they have not yet figured out, but it will cost the US taxpayers a pretty penny.

The presentation of the latest Russian cruise missile 3M22 Zircon on March 17, 2016, despite the silence of most media, did not go unnoticed by the expert community and the military. Assumptions immediately appeared regarding the tactical and technical characteristics of the new brainchild of Rosoboronprom. Preliminary test data gave reason to believe that a completely new and powerful weapon could soon enter service with the Russian Navy and naval aviation. These missiles are supposed to re-equip the Orlan-type TARKR project 1144, to equip the Leader project cruisers and Husky-type submarines under construction.

The history of the creation of the latest rocket

The data obtained during the tests indicate that the Russian defense industry has managed to create a combat cruise missile that has reached hypersonic speed (5-6 times higher than the speed of sound). The 3M22 Zircon hypersonic cruise missile turns modern air defense systems into a pile of unnecessary rubbish.

The appearance of the newest superweapon has its own background, consisting of a chain of important facts. Work on the creation of a rocket capable of flying at hypersonic speeds was carried out in the USSR in the mid-70s. Back in the 1970s, the Dubna design bureau "Rainbow" developed the X-90 cruise missile, capable of reaching speeds of up to 3-4 M in flight. However, with the collapse of the Union, due to lack of funding, work was curtailed. Only 20 years later they returned to this topic again, but on the basis of new technologies.

The first information about the development of a new anti-ship complex equipped with cruise tactical missiles appeared at the end of 2011.

The development of a prototype hypersonic missile was carried out by the Central Institute of Aviation Motors (CIAM) in the city of Lytkarino, Moscow Region.

The model of anti-ship missiles presented at the exhibition stands was strikingly different in its shape from the usual cigar-shaped cruise missiles. It was a box-shaped body with a flattened spade fairing. At the air show, the name of the unusual missile system, Zircon, was also announced for the first time.

In parallel, the latest radio altimeter and automatic radio compass were developed. The research and production enterprise "Granit-Electron" was actively engaged in the creation of navigation equipment and autopilot systems.

The parent company Strela, which manufactures Onyx strike anti-ship systems, announced the start of preparing a production base for the production of the latest cruise missile. According to many sources, the latest weapons system will be able to radically change the situation at sea. However, after the MAKS air show, almost all information about the progress on the Zircon topic disappeared from public information resources.

The meager information leaking to the media was clearly insufficient. And only by the scale of involvement in the Zircon project of the largest specialized enterprises could one judge the properties of this project.

What surprised the world

After the first tests, it became clear that the new missile is capable of flying twice as fast as the latest British sea-launched cruise missile "Sea Ceptor". The anti-missiles currently in service with NATO fleets are capable of successfully combating the Granit anti-ship missiles and similar aircraft, the speed of which reaches 2000-2500 km/h. Western anti-missiles are powerless against the latest Russian development. The flight range of the Russian anti-ship missiles will be approximately 300-400 km, which is quite enough for the effective destruction of ships outside the radio contact zone.

As it later became known, the Zircon missiles became a modernized version of the Indian Bramos sea-launched cruise missile, which was created jointly by the two countries. The basis for the development of the latest weapons was the anti-ship complex P-800 "Onyx". The emphasis in the development of the rocket was on its high speed. According to experts, a new generation of high-speed anti-ship missiles pose a big problem for air defense systems. There is very little time to detect a projectile flying towards the target in order not only to qualify the type of threat, but also to take adequate countermeasures.

Russian Project 1144 nuclear cruisers, re-equipped with the latest cruise missiles, will again become a real threat to the dominance of the American fleet on the seas. Initially, it is planned to equip the upgraded Admiral Nakhimov TARKR with new missile systems. Later, the flagship of the Northern Fleet TARKR "Peter the Great" awaits the same fate. The plans include the construction of nuclear attack submarines of the Husky type, armed with hypersonic cruise missiles, which will radically shift the balance of world naval forces towards the Russian fleet.

The main technical subtleties and nuances in the creation of a new generation rocket

The need for a new anti-ship missile did not arise immediately. The missile systems P-600 "Granit" and P-800 "Onyx", which were in service with the fleet, continue to be a formidable force today. However, the developers of state-of-the-art shipborne air defense systems are not wasting their time either. According to experts in the field of operational-tactical weapons, in a couple of years the combat capabilities of sea-based cruise missiles will be exhausted due to the effectiveness of the missile defense of ships.

In this regard, the idea of ​​a significant modernization of the Russian Navy with new types of weapons arose. One of the directions of the process was the development of a new anti-ship complex with high-speed cruise missiles. The presence of such weapons on large and small ships of the fleet will become an effective deterrent at sea. The new 3M22 missile has unique performance characteristics, but there is no exact data on them yet. Even preliminary data say that the new weapon is a serious step towards the emergence of new types and types of weapons.

Why is the new Russian missile called hypersonic? The fact is that today strike missiles have an average flight speed of 2-2.5 MAX. The new development must fly at a speed of at least 4500 km / h, exceeding the sound barrier by 5-6 times. To create such a swift projectile is not an easy task. Even at the project stage, difficulties arose with how to achieve the necessary acceleration of the rocket. The use of traditional rocket engines for these purposes should have no effect.

Vehicles flying at supersonic speeds are fundamentally different from vehicles flying at hypersonic speeds. A conventional turbojet engine, after exceeding the speed of sound three times, loses thrust - the main indicator of the efficiency of an aircraft engine. Neither a liquid nor a solid-propellant jet engine is suitable for such a type of weapon as cruise missiles. The rocket performs certain evolutions during the flight, which cannot be ensured by the operating sustainer rocket engines and turbojet engines with constant thrust.

The result of scientific and technical research was a ramjet engine capable of operating in conditions of supersonic combustion. For these purposes, even a new type of rocket fuel "Decilin-M" with increased energy intensity was developed.

During the flight of a rocket in airspace at an altitude of 50-200 meters, the body of the projectile is heated to high temperatures, so new heat-resistant alloys were used in the manufacture of the product.

For reference: The first American hypersonic aircraft "Valkyrie" developed a speed of up to 3200 km/h. The airframe of the aircraft was made of titanium. It was impractical and expensive to use such an expensive metal for mass production of missiles.

It was no less difficult to solve the problem of homing missiles at high speeds. Unlike well-known aeroballistic combat systems capable of flying at hypersonic speeds and at altitudes up to 100 km, a cruise missile has a different scope. The main flight of the rocket takes place in the dense layers of the atmosphere. Unlike ballistic missiles, the KR has a flat flight path and a shorter range. All these requirements pose new challenges for weapons developers.

In flight at hypersonic speed, due to the appearance of a plasma cloud around the flying projectile, a natural distortion of the target designation parameters appears. It was decided to install advanced electronic equipment on the new missile, capable of leading the projectile to the target at high speed, despite the opposition of powerful electromagnetic fields.

Plans of the Supreme Naval Leadership regarding the combat capabilities of the new missile

The rocket was first launched at a flight test site in Aktobe in 2012. The launch was carried out from the Tu-22M3 strategic missile carrier. Further launches were carried out from ground launchers. The complex of basic tests is already coming to an end. There are still shortcomings in the operation of the propulsion system and guidance system, but this, according to the creators of the rocket, can be eliminated in the near future. Preparations are underway for the launch of new weapons in a series.

The high naval command believes that one TARKR "Peter the Great", armed with hypersonic anti-ship missiles "Zirkon", will be able to single-handedly withstand a whole combat formation of ships of a potential enemy. In coastal maritime theaters, Russian small and medium-sized warships equipped with the latest missile will be able to control the entire water area. In terms of range and speed, the Russian missile has no analogues either in the Turkish Navy or in the fleets of the countries of the Baltic basin.

The situation is similar with the re-equipment of the ships of the Pacific Fleet. The new weapons will significantly enhance the operational and tactical capabilities of Pacific Fleet ships in the Pacific Ocean. In some way, this will create a reliable springboard for strengthening the defense capability of the Far Eastern borders in the face of a real threat.

Finally

The latest developments of Russian designers have baffled the defense departments of the United States, Great Britain and China, which assess the emergence of the latest hypersonic missile as a potential threat to their navies. Today, the technical equipment of the Russian fleet with operational-tactical weapons is in a satisfactory state, however, constant technological progress leads to the rapid obsolescence of the combat potential of the modern fleet. Even yesterday, the powerful Granit cruise missiles frightened American admirals, but today the missile armament of Russian ships already needs to be improved.

The Zircon hypersonic cruise missile is far ahead of its time in terms of its parameters. The technologies that formed the design of the industrial design are years ahead of the technological level of armament and equipment of the fleet. The new submarines being designed at the Malakhit Design Bureau are being developed as combat platforms for a new generation of weapons.

One should not discount the fact that the new frigates and corvettes, which today represent the backbone of the Russian Navy, will be armed with hypersonic missiles in the future.

In China, such developments are also moving at a rapid pace. The latest Chinese anti-ship missile DF-21 with a range of up to 3,000 km can enter service with the PLA Navy within 2-3 years. The Americans are trying to keep up with Russia and China, working on the X-51A X-51 Wave Rider project. This hypersonic missile should not be inferior to Russian and Chinese development.

Before the real flight of the American offspring, it did not come. China only plans to complete the work by 2020. At the operational-tactical level, the Russian hypersonic missile already has real outlines in metal, has been tested and is being prepared for serial production. What will be the fate of the latest weapons, time will tell. Nevertheless, the modernization of the Russian fleet and the rearmament of ships will begin in the near future.

If you have any questions - leave them in the comments below the article. We or our visitors will be happy to answer them.

Hypersonic missiles, designed to break through defensive systems, are a novelty in a long-standing arms race. The Russian Zircon missile may be put into service as early as 2018. Despite numerous headlines, not much is yet known about this missile to be able to say with certainty whether it poses an insurmountable threat to ships at sea.

Sputnik, a Russian state-owned news agency, touts the missile's capabilities and notes that "British carrier strike groups will be forced out of range of the Zircon missile, and carrier-based aircraft will not have enough fuel to cover the required distance." .

A missile that threatens aircraft carriers is a cheap means of countering a deadly threat, but the threat is well known. For years, military planners have been introducing other ships into carrier strike groups, equipped with missile defense systems and using their own radar and interceptor missiles to protect massive aircraft carriers from currently known rockets. It's not just speed that makes hypersonic cruise missiles a serious threat.

Speed ​​is only a means, not an end in itself. What makes missiles difficult to intercept is what they can do at their speed. “In my opinion, the question regarding the Zircon missile is its characteristics - whether it can be detected at a long distance and at what speed it is able to maneuver in the final phase. These are more interesting issues than just speed,” said James Acton, co-director of the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Context

Russian missiles cannot be stopped

"Sarmat" - the killer of American missile defense?

The new Russian missile is important

“This is actually a high speed for a cruise missile, but it is not particularly high when you think about ballistic missiles,” said David Wright of the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Missile defense systems designed to intercept intercontinental ballistic missiles are only beginning to show some success against training targets. Smaller ballistic missiles are used against Patriot systems and are in service with many NATO member countries, including the United States. The missiles of the Patriot complex have a speed of approximately Mach 4. This is more than enough to hit existing cruise missiles and aircraft. In addition, Patriot missiles have shown some success in the fight against ballistic missiles flying along a predictable trajectory.

Interception is carried out at the expense of speed and detection.

The highest speed of the Minuteman III ICBM is Mach 20. This is three or four times faster than the estimated speed of the Zircon missile. However, ballistic missiles fly on a fairly clear trajectory - first up, then down, and all this in the open sky, where radars and satellites can easily follow their entire flight.

“Another way to get around the radar - at least to a certain extent - is for the missile to be able to fly low. The flight profile is very important in order to complicate detection, Acton emphasized. “Even if a missile is spotted, it is unlikely to be intercepted if it is capable of evasive maneuvers.” Missiles literally dodge anti-missiles that try to intercept them.

How exactly the Zircon rocket will fly will ultimately tell much more about its capabilities than just data on its speed. If this missile can move along a low trajectory, and then, after a sudden and unexpected maneuver, hit a ship at the very end of its flight, then it will be just as deadly as everyone is trumpeting. If it is not capable of such a maneuver, then perhaps the existing missile defense systems will be able to intercept it. Although it is unlikely that the designers and military planners did not endow her with such capabilities. However, this kind of information is currently not available, and therefore, in any case, it is still too early to say for sure whether the Zircon missile will provide Russia with a huge advantage in naval battles.

“I take very seriously what they say about the Zircon missile, as well as the fact that it can pose a threat to American ships,” Acton said. “However, speed alone is not the only important factor. According to the media, her speed is Mach 6, which is allegedly why she cannot be stopped. It's actually a rather illiterate assumption."

The materials of InoSMI contain only assessments of foreign media and do not reflect the position of the editors of InoSMI.

Flights of “three-wing” aircraft were accompanied by a frantic heating of the structure. The temperature of the edges of the air intakes and the leading edge of the wing reached 580-605 K, and the rest of the skin 470-500 K. The consequences of such heating are evidenced by the fact that even at a temperature of 370 K, the organic glass used in cockpit glazing softens and the fuel begins to boil. At 400 K, the strength of duralumin decreases, at 500 K, the chemical decomposition of the working fluid in the hydraulic system and the destruction of the seals occur. At 800 K, titanium alloys lose the necessary mechanical properties. At temperatures above 900 K, aluminum and magnesium melt, heat-resistant steel loses its properties.

The flights were carried out in the stratosphere at an altitude of 20,000 meters in very rarefied air. Achieving a speed of 3M at lower altitudes was not possible: the skin temperature would have reached four-digit values.

Over the next half century, a number of measures were proposed to combat the scalding fury of atmospheric heating. Beryllium alloys and new ablative materials, composites based on boron and carbon fibers, plasma spraying of refractory coatings...

Despite the successes achieved, the thermal barrier still remains a serious obstacle to hypersound. Obstacle mandatory, but not the only one.

Supersonic flight is extremely costly in terms of required thrust and fuel consumption. And the level of complexity of this problem is rapidly increasing with a decrease in flight altitude.

To date, none of the existing types of aircraft and cruise missiles has been able to develop a speed = 3M at sea level.

The record holder among manned aircraft was the MiG-23. Due to its relatively small size, variable sweep wing and powerful R-29-300 engine, it was able to develop 1700 km/h close to the ground. More than anyone in the world!

Cruise missiles showed a slightly better result, but also failed to reach the Mach 3 bar.

Among the variety of anti-ship missiles in the world, only four anti-ship missiles can fly twice as fast as the speed of sound at sea level. Among them:

ZM80 “Mosquito”(starting weight 4 tons, maximum speed at an altitude of 14 kilometers - 2.8M, at sea level - 2M).

ZM55 “Onyx”(starting weight 3 tons, maximum speed at an altitude of 14 km - 2.6M).

ZM54 "Caliber".

And finally, Russian-Indian BrahMos(launch weight 3 tons, design speed at low altitude 2M).

The promising “Caliber” has crept closest to the cherished 3M. Thanks to the multi-stage layout, its detachable warhead (which itself is the third stage) is capable of reaching a speed of Mach 2.9 at the finish line. However, not for long: the separation and dispersal of warheads is carried out in the immediate vicinity of the target. On the marching section, the ZM54 flies at subsonic.

It is worth noting that there is no information on testing and practical development of the ZM54 separation algorithm. Despite the common name, the ZM54 missile has little in common with those Calibers that set off an unforgettable fireworks display in the sky over the Caspian Sea last fall (subsonic missile launcher for strikes against land targets, ZM14 index).

It can be stated that a rocket that develops a speed of > 2M at low altitude is, in the literal sense, still only tomorrow.

You have already noticed that each of the three anti-ship missiles capable of developing 2M on the cruising leg of the flight (Moskit, Onyx, Brahmos) is distinguished by exceptional weight and size characteristics. The length is 8-10 meters, the launch weight is 7-8 times higher than the performance of subsonic anti-ship missiles. At the same time, their warheads are relatively small, they account for about 8% of the launch mass of the rocket. And the flight range at low altitude barely reaches 100 km.

The possibility of aircraft basing these missiles remains in question. Due to their length, the Mosquito and Brahmos cannot fit into the UVP, they require separate launchers on the decks of ships. As a result, the number of carriers of supersonic anti-ship missiles can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

At this point, it is worth turning to the title topic of this article.

ZM22 "Zircon" - a hypersonic sword of the Russian Navy. Myth or reality?

A rocket about which so many people talk, but no one even saw its outlines. What will this superweapon look like? What are its possibilities? And the main question: how realistic are the plans to create such anti-ship missiles at the modern technological level?

After reading a long introduction about the torments of the creators of supersonic aircraft and cruise missiles, many of the readers, for sure, gained doubts about the realism of the existence of Zircon.

A fire arrow flying on the border of supersonic and hypersonic, capable of hitting sea targets at ranges of 500 kilometers or more. Whose overall dimensions do not exceed the established restrictions when placed in UKKS cells.

Promising superweapon or another unfulfilled promise? Doubts are in vain.

The appearance of a supersonic anti-ship missile capable of reaching a speed of Mach 4.5 in flight is the next logical step in the improvement of missile weapons. It is curious that missiles similar in characteristics have been in service with the leading fleets of the world for 30 years already. One index is enough to understand what is at stake.

Anti-aircraft missile 48N6E2 as part of the S-300FM Fort naval anti-aircraft system

The length and diameter of the hull are standard for all missiles of the S-300 family.
Length \u003d 7.5 m, diameter of the rocket with folded wings \u003d 0.519 m. Launch weight 1.9 tons.

Warhead - high-explosive fragmentation weighing 180 kg.

The estimated range of destruction of the CC is up to 200 km.

Speed ​​- up to 2100 m/s (SIX speeds of sound).

SAM 48N6E2 as part of the S-300PMU2 Favorit land complex

How justified is the comparison of anti-aircraft missiles with anti-ship missiles?

There are not so many conceptual differences. The anti-aircraft 48N6E2 and the promising Zircon are guided missiles with all the ensuing consequences.

Sailors are well aware of the hidden capabilities of shipboard air defense systems. Half a century ago, during the first firing of anti-aircraft missiles, an obvious discovery was made: at a line-of-sight range, missiles will be the first to launch. They have a smaller mass of the warhead, but their reaction time is 5-10 times less compared to anti-ship missiles! This tactic was widely used in "skirmishes" at sea. The Yankees damaged the Iranian frigate with the “Standard” (1988). Russian sailors with the help of "Wasp" dealt with the Georgian boats.

The bottom line is that if a conventional missile defense system with a disabled proximity fuse can be used against ships, then why not create a special tool for hitting surface targets on its basis?

The advantage will be high flight speed, at the turn of hypersound. The main disadvantage is the high-altitude flight profile, which makes the missile vulnerable to breaking through enemy air defenses.

What are the main design differences between missiles and anti-ship missiles?

Guidance system.

To detect targets beyond the horizon, anti-ship missiles need an active radar seeker.

It is worth noting that anti-aircraft missiles with ARGSN have long been used in the world. The first of them (the European "Aster") was put into service over ten years ago. A similar missile was created by the Americans (Standard-6). The domestic analogue is 9M96E and E2 - anti-aircraft missiles of the ship's air defense system "Redut".

At the same time, detecting a 100-meter ship should be easier than aiming at an actively maneuvering point-sized object (aircraft or KR).

Engine.

Most anti-aircraft missiles are equipped with a solid propellant rocket engine, whose operating time is limited to seconds. The operating time of the 48N6E2 rocket propulsion engine is only 12 s, after which the rocket flies by inertia, controlled by aerodynamic rudders. As a rule, the flight range of missiles along a quasi-ballistic trajectory, with a marching section high in the stratosphere, does not exceed 200 kilometers (the most “long-range”), which is quite enough to fulfill the tasks assigned to them.

Anti-ship weapons, on the contrary, are equipped with turbojet engines - for long-term, for tens of minutes, flight in dense layers of the atmosphere. At a much lower speed than is customary with anti-aircraft missiles.

The creators of the 4-machine "Zircon" will obviously have to abandon any turbojet and ramjet engines, using the proven technique with a powder turbojet engine.

The task of increasing the flight range is solved by a multi-stage layout. For example: the American Standard-3 interceptor missile has a range of 700 km, and the intercept altitude is limited to low Earth orbit.

The Standard-3 is a four-stage rocket (launch booster Mk.72, two sustainer stages and a detachable kinetic interceptor with its own engines for trajectory correction). After the separation of the third stage, the speed of the warhead reaches Mach 10!

It is noteworthy that the Standard-3 is a relatively light compact weapon, with a starting weight of ~ 1600 kg. The anti-missile is placed in a standard VHP cell aboard any American destroyer.

The anti-missile does not have a warhead. The main and only striking element is its fourth stage (an infrared sensor, a computer and a set of engines), crashing at full speed into the enemy.

Returning to the Zircon, the author sees no fundamental obstacles to an anti-aircraft missile, which has a lower speed and a flatter trajectory than the standard-3, after passing through the apogee, could safely return to the dense layers of the atmosphere. After that, detect and attack the target, falling like a star onto the deck of the ship.

The development and creation of hypersonic anti-ship missiles based on existing anti-aircraft missiles is the most optimal solution in terms of minimizing technical risks and financial costs.

A) Shooting at moving sea targets at a distance of over 500 km. Due to the high flight speed of the Zircon, its flight time will be reduced to 10-15 minutes. Which will automatically solve the problem of data obsolescence.
Previously, as now, anti-ship missiles are launched in the direction of the likely location of the target. By the time of arrival in the specified square, the target may already go beyond its limits, making it impossible to detect the missile's seeker.

B) From the previous paragraph follows the possibility of effective firing at ultra-long distances, which will make the rocket the “long arm” of the fleet. The ability to deliver operational strikes at a huge range. The reaction time of such a system is ten times less than that of an aircraft carrier wing.

C) Launching an attack from the side of the zenith, along with the unexpectedly high speed of the missile (after braking in dense layers of the atmosphere, it will be about 2M), will make most of the existing short-range defense systems ineffective ("Daggers", "Goalkeepers", RIM-116 etc.)

At the same time, the negative points will be:

1. Altitude flight path. Already a second after the launch, the enemy will notice the launch of the missile and begin to prepare to repel the attack.

Speed ​​\u003d 4.5M is not a panacea here. The characteristics of the domestic S-400 make it possible to intercept air targets flying at speeds up to 10M.

The new American SAM "Standard-6" has a maximum height of destruction of 30 km. Last year, with its help, the most distant interception of the military center in the naval (140+ kilometers) was carried out in practice. And the powerful radar and computing capabilities of Aegis allow destroyers to hit targets in near-Earth orbits.

The second problem is a weak warhead. Someone will say that at such speeds you can do without it. But it's not.

Anti-aircraft missile "Talos" without a warhead almost cut the target in half (exercises off the coast of California, 1968).

The Talos main stage weighed one and a half tons (more than any of the existing rockets) and was equipped with a ramjet engine. Upon hitting the target, an unused supply of kerosene detonated. Speed ​​at the moment of impact = 2M. The target was a WWII escort destroyer (1100 tons), whose dimensions corresponded to modern RTOs.

The hit of Talos in a cruiser or destroyer (5000-10000 tons), logically, could not lead to serious consequences. There are many cases in maritime history when ships, having received numerous through holes from armor-piercing shells, remained in service. So, the American aircraft carrier "Kalinin Bay" in the battle near about. Samar was pierced through 12 times.

The Zircon anti-ship missile needs a warhead. However, due to the need to ensure a speed of 4.5 M and limited weight and dimensions when placed in the UVP, the mass of the warhead will not exceed 200 kg (the estimate is given based on examples of existing missiles).

There is a slight panic in the Pentagon. Russian military and engineers have successfully tested a new Zircon anti-ship hypersonic cruise missile. What is a hypersonic missile? We all know what a supersonic aircraft is. Such an aircraft flies faster than the speed of sound. Faster than about 1200 kilometers per hour. A hypersonic missile flies five, eight, fifteen times faster than the speed of sound. Imagine that you need to hit an enemy ship hundreds of kilometers away. Such a missile will overcome the distance from the start to the target in a few minutes. And no means of defense simply have time to do anything.

Movement at such speeds is fundamentally different from movement at subsonic speeds - these are ordinary aircraft on which we fly, and even supersonic ones. There are many complex scientific problems to be solved. And our scientists solve them. We fundamentally overtook the Americans in this race. And the hypersonic race is the most advanced edge in the development of new weapons. By the way, the third participant is China. And he also has success. China has long been a manufacturer of cheap fakes.

In the future - the development of orbital hypersonic aircraft and orbital platforms. The American missile defense system, which they have been developing for decades, will not be able to withstand this weapon. The challenges facing the Russian military-industrial complex were discussed this week at meetings with President Putin.

In recent years, the Russian army has been increasingly upsetting its, as they say, probable enemy. Either suddenly Russia will have Caliber cruise missiles in service, capable of hitting targets in the Middle East even from the Caspian Sea, or it will turn out that NATO tanks have become outdated in an instant and for a long time, as soon as the technical characteristics of our new Armata tank became known. Or our powerful military group with the latest weapons will appear in the Arctic. Etc. In a word, the Western military attaches at the recent parade in Moscow had plenty of reasons to think. The program of rearmament of our army and navy, calculated until 2020, is bearing fruit.

"The planned activities will not only equip the army and navy with modern weapons and equipment, they will provide an opportunity to form a scientific and technical reserve for the development of fundamentally new types of weapons," the Russian president noted.

Vladimir Putin spoke about this in Sochi at a meeting on defense. Meanwhile, new equipment continued to enter the troops. Take at least aviation. This year alone, the Russian Aerospace Forces and fleet will receive about 160 new helicopters and aircraft, including the modernized Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter. He successfully combines the capabilities of a fighter, attack aircraft and bomber, can control the actions of aviation and work over the sea, lead 16 targets and attack four of them simultaneously. Its maneuverability is legendary. That's what those who, by profession, must squeeze everything out of this aircraft that it is capable of, say about the car.

“The first time I saw how the Su-30SM maneuvers in the air, my first thought was immediately: the plane cannot fly like that in principle. But again, the experience of operating the machine shows that it can. Despite the fact that it is heavier than the Su-27, it is much easier to control,” says Vladimir Kochetov, flight commander of the Russian Knights aerobatics group.

Meanwhile, completely new Su-35 air vehicles and a fundamentally new fifth-generation multirole fighter T-50 are on the way. In the nine years since the start of the army and navy rearmament program, Russia has already acquired fundamentally new Armed Forces. For comparison, the data is only for two years, from 2015 to 2017. During this time, the share of new equipment in the Ground Forces has grown from 32% to 42%, the Airborne Forces - from 40% to 58%. In HQS - from 33% to 68%. In the navy from 50% to 55% of new equipment. In the Strategic Missile Forces - from 50% to 72%.

“It should be kept in mind that there is much more to be done. I mean the development of the domestic electronic component base, first of all, the implementation of contracts for the full life cycle of military products, as well as the synchronization of the preparation of the necessary infrastructure with the supply of new weapons,” Vladimir Putin said.

Russian military designers recently shocked the Western military by announcing the successful test of the Zirkon anti-ship cruise missile. This is a secret project, so its image and technical data are based only on the assumptions of experts.

During testing, this hypersonic missile broke all speed records of its kind - it reached eight speeds of sound, or more simply, it flew faster than 2.5 kilometers per second. It's faster than a bullet. If it reaches an estimated range of 1,000 kilometers, it will call into question the entire US doctrine of global transmission of power through carrier strike groups. The range of US carrier-based aircraft is about 800 kilometers.

“To put it simply, with the advent of Zircon hypersonic missiles on our cruisers, frigates and even corvettes, it turns out that even a corvette with an eight-missile salvo is capable of inflicting serious damage on an American aircraft carrier formation. And the frigate, even in a single form, if it came up, in a single quantity. If it comes within range of a Zircon volley, then it is capable of destroying an aircraft carrier multipurpose group of the United States of America,” explains Konstantin Sivkov, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Missile and Artillery Sciences, Doctor of Military Sciences.

The American edition of the National Interest admitted that today no fleet has any means of protection against the Zircon.

Such weapons, combined with high-ocean target detection, could turn aircraft carriers into billion-dollar graves for thousands of American sailors.

The upper stage puts the Zircon into the desired orbit, after which it accelerates to its maximum speed and moves towards the target at an altitude of 30-40 kilometers, where the air density is minimal. Radars at such a speed simply do not see it, anti-aircraft missile systems are useless. But, according to experts, the overload is gigantic, the rocket moves in a cloud of plasma. We need super-strong materials, electronics resistant to overloads.

“Russia, including relying on the scientific and technical reserve that was created in the Soviet era, has already solved these problems in principle. This is the level of science, technology, materials science, and control systems that no one else in the world has reached yet, do you understand?” - says the editor-in-chief of the Arsenal of the Fatherland magazine, military expert, reserve colonel Viktor Murakhovsky.

Several countries are engaged in similar developments, but, according to experts, even American designers will need a dozen years to even come close to the characteristics of Zircon. There is no protection from him, not only because of the enormous speed, but also because in flight he maneuvers along an arbitrary trajectory, and when he hits, he destroys the target almost guaranteed. Here is what experts in the British Daily Mail say about this: “There is so little time to react that even if detected, existing protective measures may be completely useless. Even if the missile is smashed or blown up by close weapons, the fragments will have so much kinetic energy that the ship will still be badly damaged.”

A whole meeting, which took place in Sochi on Friday, May 19, was devoted to breakthrough technologies and promising developments in the field of defense.

“I emphasize that the intellectual potential of the entire scientific community must be fully involved in ensuring the defense capability of the state. I mean, first of all, scientists, designers, engineers working on the creation of the latest complexes and systems. Those who will provide the Armed Forces with the opportunity to adequately respond to existing and possible future challenges and risks to Russia's military security,” the President said in his speech.

Naturally, the breakthrough in the field of hypersonic weapons has also affected the prospects for our nuclear missile forces. A few months ago, Russia successfully tested a strategic missile codenamed Yu-71. According to experts, this secret weapon is based on the same principles as the Zircon missile - it moves at hypersonic speed, and the detached warhead constantly maneuvers. With only one difference - the Yu-71 product started from the Dombrovsky training ground near Orenburg and hit the target at the Kura training ground six thousand kilometers away. Experts believe that the rocket covered this distance in just 20 minutes. It is assumed that in the future such developments will replace the current Russian strategic nuclear missiles. In a word, the long-standing dream of the West to speak with Russia "from a position of strength" is still not coming true and is not coming true. And although no one has refused such fantasies, today Russia clearly demonstrates that it is not even worth trying.