"Will be interesting to see how Shahid Mahdavi will operate alongside its sister ship Shahid Bagheri, which has been more extensively modified with an angled flight deck for fixed-wing UAVs. Maybe the UAVs could provide targeting info for a more heavily armed Shahid Mahdavi..."
Amir / @AmirIGM, Mar 9, 2023
Shahid Soleimani Class
The IRGCN Shahid Soleimani class consisted as of 2024 of a pair of converted containers ships, which could oerate in tandem to attack a US aircraft carrier. The IRGCN C110-4 Shahid Bahman Bagheri drone carrier would launch swarms of small drones to find and localize the target, while the IRGCN 110-4 Shahid Mahdavi would launch a barrage of medium range anti-shipping ballistic missile to overwhlem the carriers defencse and detroy the target. This is not to be confused with the Iranian Corvette "Shahid Solaimani" unveiled in September 2022. This completly unrelated vessel is the first of 12 in this class of warships,
According to Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri, Commander of the Revolutionary Guards Navy, 11 April 2023 , "In the near future, we will add Shahid Soleimani 2 under the name of Shahid Bahman Bagheri, which was designed and produced locally by our youth, to the IRGC Navy's combat organization in the IRGC's 2nd maritime District [in the Gulf]." According to the commander, these warships "are invisible to radars" and can withstand challenging circumstances as "their resilience is very high." Furthermore, Tangsiri noted that the missiles, which the vessel will utilize, "are also being manufactured locally inside the country."
There is no universal sysem for designating a multipliciy of warships as constituting a single class. In general, a class of warships is a group of ships built to a common design, intended for specific roles, sharing similar systems and capabilities, and typically named after the lead ship in the series. A class consists of multiple ships built to the same or very similar specifications. There may be minor variations or upgrades in subsequent vessels, but they retain the fundamental characteristics of the class. A class of warships is often designed with a specific mission or set of missions in mind, such as anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-air warfare (AAW), or amphibious assault. Strategic Purpose: They serve a specific strategic purpose within a navy’s fleet, such as patrolling, escorting, or power projection. Ships within the same class share a common hull design and structural features. This includes dimensions, shape, and layout. They are equipped with similar propulsion systsystems and other key systems. This ensures a level of standardization in capabilities and maintenance.
The Reconnaissance Strike Complex (RSC) is a concept and system primarily associated with military operations, particularly within the context of the Soviet and later Russian military doctrine, as well as being applicable in modern warfare strategies globally. It involves the integration of reconnaissance and strike capabilities to create a highly responsive and effective combat system. In the Soviet context, this automated weapon system was designed to fire strikes (missiles, aircraft) against the most important enemy ground and surface targets immediately as they are detected. The RUK [Razvedyvatel no Udarnyi Kompleks] includes the following means: reconnaissance and guidance, destruction (high-precision weapons), electronic suppression, navigation and timing support, control.
In the Soviet systems of the 1960s, intended to defeat NATO naval forces, information and technical connections between submarines and long-range anti-ship missile systems were combined with a reconnaissance aircraft with radar detection and target designation equipment. Subsequent generations of this type combine carriers of weapons (surface and submarines) with a naval space reconnaissance and target designation system, which constantly conducts reconnaissance of the surface situation in the waters of the World Ocean.
This stand-alone complex was supposed to combine means of reconnaissance, destruction (based on precision-guided ammunition), automation. fire control and shooting support. In connection with highly specialized purpose, which allowed solving only limited number of fire missions (destruction of tank columns, artillery fire, radio-emitting weapons, etc.), practice did not receive implementation of the ROC. As it improves and accumulated experience, it was highly effective. fire and support means, it is possible to transition to a common multi-level (from battalion to front) combined arms reconnaissance and fire missile system. troops and artillery.
In the USA, the PLSS was created (1986) to destroy radar targets in a zone up to 500 km wide and deep. It consisted of: 10 reconnaissance and relay aircraft (duty shift - 3 aircraft); ground control center; 12 points of terrestrial radio navigation network; up to 100 sets of on-board equipment for attack aircraft and up to 500 for air-to-ground and ground-to-ground guided weapons.
Surveillance Systems, such as drones (UAVs), provide real-time or near-real-time data on enemy positions, movements, and other relevant battlefield information. Data Processing systems process the data from reconnaissance assets to provide actionable intelligence. Command centers use this processed information to make rapid decisions on target prioritization and engagement. Precision-Guided Missiles are equipped with advanced targeting technology to ensure high accuracy. The ballistic and cruise missiles capable of striking targets at great distances with minimal delay.
The seamless integration of reconnaissance and strike elements ensures a cohesive and unified approach to combat operations. This involves the fusion of data from various sources to create a comprehensive situational awareness. Rapid processing and dissemination of information, coupled with quick decision-making and execution of strikes, minimize the time between target detection and engagement. This concept is often referred to as the "sensor-to-shooter" loop.
Use of high-precision weapons and targeting systems to maximize the effectiveness of strikes against high-value or time-sensitive targets. Ability to adapt to changing battlefield conditions and threats. The system should be capable of re-tasking assets and redirecting strikes based on real-time intelligence. The concept of RSC has evolved with advancements in technology. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) technologies enhance data analysis, pattern recognition, and predictive analytics, further improving the speed and accuracy of decision-making. Emphasis on robust communication networks that link all elements of the RSC allows for real-time coordination and information sharing.
The RSC provides a significant advantage over adversaries with less integrated or slower reconnaissance and strike capabilities. It enhances the overall effectiveness of military operations, enabling smaller or less equipped forces to achieve significant tactical and strategic outcomes. The Reconnaissance Strike Complex represents a highly sophisticated and integrated approach to modern warfare, combining advanced reconnaissance, data processing, and precision strike capabilities to achieve decisive military outcomes.
The reconnaissance strike complex (“RUK” in the original Cyrillic) does not exist in US doctrine, nor does there seem to be a direct Persian language counterpat to this concept. In Soviet (later Russian), as well as British doctrine, the “reconnaissance strike complex” is one-half of the twin concept that comprises the “reconnaissance fire system.” The second half is the “reconnaissance fire complex.” While forces execute the reconnaissance fire complex at tactical echelons employing tactical artillery, the reconnaissance strike complex resides at operational and strategic echelons employing coordinated targeting of real-time intelligence prosecuted by high-precision, long-range weapons. The Soviet Union developed, then matured, this system now employed by Russia, to detect and destroy high-value targets in near-real time.
In 1984, the head of the Soviet General Staff, Marshal Nikolai Ogarkov, famously stated “reconnaissance strike complexes” could make it possible to achieve destructive effects on soviet tactical formations similar to low yield nuclear weapons. While continuing to expand their theater nuclear capabilities, the Soviet General Staff, led by Marshal Ogarkov, seems to have concluded in the late 1970s that their most effective option against NATO would be conventional but extremely rapid deep operations conducted, after massive aerial surprise attacks, by operational maneuver groups. A tactical nuclear exchange could only slow this offensive down, as well as carrying the obvious risk of total nuclear war.
The reconnaissance and strike complex is a constant composition, technically integrated (organized in some cases) into a single complex, a set of fire weapons, means of operational additional reconnaissance (reconnaissance) and a subsystem for generating target designation data, ensuring the effective use of strike missile weapons at the full firing range in at any point in time. In the past, strike missile weapons were provided with target designation data from several non-specialized reconnaissance means.
China’s activities centered on developing the reconnaissance-strike complex necessary for missiles to successfully strike a moving target at sea. As ASBMs require accurate “over-the-horizon” targeting support, this Chinese complex likely involves a combination of satellites and ground-based radar, possibly including micro-satellites and even unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for temporary augmentation. Dr. Andrew Erickson, professor of strategy at the U.S. Naval War College, testified to the US-China Commission in 2017 that “the missiles themselves work,” but “the ability of China’s reconnaissance-strike complex to provide accurate targeting for its ASBMs remains unclear.” To successfully strike a moving target at sea, China would need to master an extremely complex process. Put simply, the ship must be located, current location data must be uploaded to the reentry vehicle’s sensors before firing, the vehicle must conduct a mid-course maneuver upon reentry to identify the target’s signature, and then the vehicle must conduct a terminal maneuver to strike the ship before the ship has moved beyond the pre-programmed “box” within which it was originally detected to be operating. This presents several obstacles (notwithstanding any potential U.S. countermeasures).
However, this approach had significant limitations in terms of efficiency. The legacy method was possible under the condition of confrontation with an enemy who was either not capable at all or was capable with low efficiency of destroying the structural elements of the information support system (command posts, reconnaissance equipment, coastal communication facilities etc.). But in the event of dominance or domination of a potential enemy in the air, deployment of anti-space defense weapons on the coast, sea and in space with leadership in these directions, ensuring continuous control of the surface situation within the combat area of interest, it will be impossible to use anti-ship missile weapons with maximum efficiency. If its system-forming elements, such as communications and reconnaissance combat control centers, are destroyed, it will lose its combat effectiveness, since peripheral structures will be deprived of control and information.
Large numbers of small drones are one solution. The basis of the air segment of the complex is made up of non-airfield-based aircraft-type UAVs, equipped with reconnaissance, fire attack and relay equipment. The onboard equipment of the UAV includes systems for receiving/transmitting information and navigation. The main components of the ground segment are a remote control point (RCC), individual radio communication modules and navigation modules for military personnel of reconnaissance units. The air segment, built on the basis of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), provides reconnaissance, target designation, target illumination and control of their fire destruction on the front line and the tactical depth of the enemy’s defense. In modern Russian variants, small aircraft-type UAVs “Eleron-3”, “Orlan-10”, “Forpost” are used in the complex.
Depending on the planned combat mission, the complex's platforms are made in the form of an aircraft-type UAV, non-airfield-based, the complex contains a UAV equipped with a repeater of transmitted information, individual radio communication modules and individual navigation modules for all categories of military personnel of reconnaissance units, UAV units and a remote control point, automated workstations for commanders and specialists of a remote control point, UAV ground radio control stations for operators of UAV units.
A special feature of the Iranian system is the use of precision guided missiles capable of hitting targets with the first shot without zeroing, as well as integration with a ground-based automated fire control system. The advantage of both complexes is the elimination, through the use of UAVs, of the discrepancy between the firing range of missiles (hundreds of km) and the reconnaissance and target designation capabilities of ship-based artillery reconnaissance assets (5-7 km).
The on-board reconnaissance equipment of reconnaissance UAVs, form a single integrated air-ground reconnaissance system that supplies comprehensive (in different frequency ranges, from different angles) information about enemy targets. The UAV with reconnaissance means allows, using the radio modem of the commander of the reconnaissance unit, to quickly, without intermediate links, deliver reliable intelligence data about the target directly to the automated workstations of specialists at the remote control point, who perform final processing of information and prepare final data for commanders and senior commanders making decisions. The aircraft-type UAVs provide a wide range of the complex, measured in hundreds of kilometers, and also increases the survivability and reliability of the complex.
The specified installation of means on large surface platforms, vulnerable to enemy weapons at sea, leads to low survivability of the installed means and, as a consequence, a decrease in the reliability of the complex as a whole.
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