A launch of a missile of S-300 anti-aircraft missile complex at the joint CIS military exercise
Photo: ITAR-TASS
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Missiles in Exchange for Wheels
// Moscow shares S-300 system with Belarus
Fraternity of Arms
State-run Russian Rosoboronexport and Belarusian Beltekhexport sealed in Minsk on Saturday an agreement on the Russian supplies to Belarus of a regimental set of S-300PS anti-aircraft missile system. The set will be taken from the Russian Defense Ministry, the system is now adopted by the Air Force. Belarus will pay only 150 million rubles for the pre-sale preparation of the systems.
S-300PS (5Zh15S) self-propelled complex designed at Almaz science and development center by its chief designer, Alexander Limansky was added to the country’s arsenal in 1982. The time of the deployment of the complex is five minutes. The system is equipped with 5V55V (R-500R) and 5V55KD (R-500KD) missiles with 90-km range. The missiles were developed at Fakel design bureau in Khimki, Moscow Region, and were produced at the Leningrad Northern Plant. They are no longer output now.
Moscow will supply to Minsk a S-300PS regimental set consisting of a command post and two divisions with 12 launchers, according to the information Kommersant obtained. Under the contract, Belarus will pay only for the pre-sale preparation of the systems (to be held at enterprises of Almaz-Antery concern of air defense) which will cost it 150 million rubles. In exchange for S-300PSs, Belarus will supply M3KT-79221 eight-axle undercarriages for RS-12M1 Topol-M moving ground missile complexes. The first three launchers are to be put into operation as early as next year when army exercises of the moving Topol-M will begin. Afterwards, a number of the yearly supplies of these complexes will grow to six-nine, the commander of the missile troops of the strategic purpose Col. Gen. Nikolay Solovtsov reported. The Belarusian undercarriages for launchers of Topol-Ms will get additional equipping at the Barrikady plant in Volgograd, and the missile will be produced at the machine works in Votkinsk (Udmurtiya).
Complexes of the S-300PS systems are currently the bulk of the Belarusian anti-aircraft system. The country’s arsenals contain a great number of missiles that are no longer output in Russia. The contract with Belarus has come for Russia as a stage of the “address sale” Moscow has undertaken trying to start the rearmament of its anti-aircraft missile system for the new S-400 Triumph air defense complex. By the end of the year, the first regiment equipped with the system will take over the duty at the commandment of the special purposes (in charge of the anti-aircraft defense system of Russia’s European part), Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy commander-in-chief of the Russian Air Force said.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Sep. 12, 2005
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