The Russian Strategic Missile Forces enter the new year with a new structure
Minsk Belapan 21 Jan 98
by Yury Strigelskiy
The Russian Federation has entered 1998 with a new branch of its Armed Forces--the United Strategic Missile Forces (USMF). It consists of the Strategic Missile Forces (SMF), Military Space Forces (MSF) and the Missile Space Defence Forces (MSDF). The USMF combat structure includes about 600 SMF and MSDF facilities and units of the SMF and the MSDF, including facilities of high complexity such as spacecraft launching sites at Baykonur, Plesetsk and Svobodny.
The SMF remain the main body of the Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces (RSNF). The SMF have 60 percent of the total number of carriers and payloads. They are designed to deliver 50 percent of the RSNF retaliatory strikes and at least 90 percent of the retaliatory and counter strikes. The merger ensured a 15-20 percent increase of the Missile Forces' combat effectiveness and a reduction in expenses. The USMF will require 10 percent of the total military expenditure. Along with that, one should remember that the Missile Forces today include formations, spacecraft launching sites, ranges, a research station, a research institute, 9 higher military educational institutions, lower- ranking specialist training centres, a military school for training technicians, ammunition depots, repair works, central bases. The total number of the branch's personnel was reduced by 30 percent in the previous 4 years and is to be reduced by 18 percent by the end of 1998. Military formations with overlapping functions are being liquidating. This will ensure a cut of more than 6,000 servicemen, including 2,500 commissioned officers. In the agencies of command, 6 positions to be occupied by generals and 122 by colonels will also be abolished. Annual expenditure on the maintenance of personnel will be reduced by 110-120m rubles. The reform is expected to effect a saving of 1bn rubles, although the two years of the reform will require 900m.
The basic principles of the organisation of combat alert duty, the maintenance of troops' combat readiness, troops training and control in the united structure have been worked out. As a result of the organisational and technical concentration of the top-level command posts of the SMF, the MSF and the MSDF at the Central Command Post of the SMF, the survivability of the Central Command Posts of the MSDF and the MSF increased three- or fourfold. The effectiveness of transmitting orders regarding the control of the reformed SMF increased by three- sixfold. The SMF weaponry is wearing out. Fifty percent of the missile systems have been on alert duty for 15-18 years. That is why new Topol-M missile systems together with an efficient system of command and control of troops and weapons which will be created on the basis of the existing SMF infrastructure with the use of resource saving technologies will become the kernel of the renewed Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces. Prior to the adoption of the Topol-M missile systems, some extraordinary measures have already been taken to maintain the combat readiness of operational missiles on a sufficient level and retain all intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) on alert duty. The high reliability of SMF missiles are confirmed by the results of launches. For instance, only one out of the 181 launches from Pioneer missile systems, which are to be reduced, ended in a failure. In the past three years, 9 launches of Topol missiles and 3 launches of PC-18 missiles which have been in operation for more than two guarantee periods. All the launches were a success. Space carrier rockets have the 0,96-0,98 level of reliability for Proton, Soyuz and Kosmos rockets whereas similar foreign types have 0,94- 0,96 and lower. Today missiles that are to be removed from inventory are expected to be used to launch spacecraft. It is considered unreasonable to spend resources on design and serial production of specialised carrier rockets of lighter classes. The use of reequipped combat missiles for launching spacecraft will ensure saving funds not only through a reduction in the volume of research and design but also through a reduction in the range of produced and operated items. ICBMs removed from alert now can be transformed into the following types of space light-class carrier rockets: Start-1 solid fuel 4-stage carrier rocket, Start 5-stage carrier rocket (resulting from RS-12M ICBM) and Rokot 2-stage carrier rocket with Briz accelerating bloc (resulting from RS-18 ICBM). Their first launches have already been performed. Other types of carrier rockets are also being developed at present. For instance, Strela carrier rocket is one of the products of RS-18 remaking. The military space component of the USMF is responsible for developing Soyuz medium-class space carrier rockets into Soyuz-2 (Rus) and creating Angara heavy-class space carrier rockets with unique characteristics. Proton rockets were also subject to upgrading. It is important to ensure combat readiness of the operational Missile Space Defence Forces systems with the stress on information support of the combat use of the components of the Strategic Nuclear Forces. Great importance in ensuring effectiveness of the reniewed SMF is attached to the Missile Attack Warning System (MAWS) and the Space Control System. The SMF can deliver a retaliatory blow only upon receiving information from the MAWS which have an extremely high level of reliability. One false alarm is possible within 500 years of operation. As a result of the integration of the SMF, the MSF and the SMDF, the speed of data processing increased multifold.
The MAWS will be developed with a view to increasing its potential, improving its survivability and the protection of equipment installed on spacecraft, and creatiing a closed radio detection field which excludes unexpected enemy blows delivered to the territory of Russia and other CIS countries. Today many of radio detection stations deployed in the Soviet era are out of operation, and only one third of the new stations are in use. At least two spacecraft are missing in the system of orbital missile attack warning. It currently consists of 9 satellites. The Space Control System with its unique measuring equipment is capable of scanning various types of spacecraft. During a recent Russian-US programme of tests, a Russian space control facility managed to scan a metal ball with a diameter of 5 centimetres in the space.
Among the accutest problems is equipment depreciation. The period of alert duty of 58 percent of the missiles as well as 71 percent of the technical systems of command posts exceeded their guarantee terms. Measures are being taken to improve the situation regarding the orbital system of facilities. In the last five years the number of partially functioning spacecraft increased by 20 percent. Sixty-eight percent of the MAWS satellites and 48 percent of the land-based facilities of the Missile Space Defence Forces are in operation although their guarantee periods have expired. Technical systems for spacecraft have exhausted 80 percent of their potential.
However, despite all difficulties, the reliability of combat control and the system of prevention of unsanctioned actions remains on a high level. There were no cases of losing control of any launching mounting in the whole history of the SMF.
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