BZHRK "Molodets" / Photo: my.mail.ru

The last missile train was sawed into nails almost ten years ago, but, to the horror of overseas military strategists, it is returning.

Recently, the 4th Central Research Institute of the head "skeet" to the Ministry of Defense successfully reported on the topic "Well done", carried out, as they say, "in the interests of creating promising mobile (railway) based missile systems."

It's time to remember the dramatic fate of “Well done”...

How it was destroyed

“You must destroy the missile trains” - this was the categorical condition of the Americans when signing the START-2 Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty. And in 1993, Yeltsin did this to the indescribable joy of the Pentagon: the Yankees hastily allocated money to destroy the hated missiles and even provided a new cutting line for this. Along the way, consoling us: they say that the railway “Molodets” will be replaced by the automobile “Topol”.

But the first one carries ten warheads, and the second one...

The mistake was realized, but it was too late: the treaty prohibited the development of new missile systems of this type. The restrictions were lifted only after the signing of START-3: Obama’s advisers decided that it was no longer possible for Russia to rise from the ashes, because the Soviet BZHRK (combat railway missile systems) were made in Ukraine.

One can imagine the state of overseas strategists when they learned about the return of “Molodets”...

It looks like an ordinary train, pulled by three diesel locomotives. Regular mail and luggage and refrigerated carriages. But in seven of them there is a command section of a missile regiment (a control center, a communications center, a diesel power plant, dormitories for officers and soldiers, a canteen, and a hardware workshop). And at nine - launch modules with “well done”. Each module consists of three cars: a command post, a launcher with a missile, and technological equipment. Well, and a tank car with fuel...

Thousands of similar trains with mail and frozen fish ran across one sixth of the land. And only a very observant eye could notice that the “ref” cars with rockets did not have four-wheeled bogies, as usual, but eight-wheeled bogies. The weight is quite considerable - almost 150 tons, although the inscription “for light loads” is written on the sides. And three diesel locomotives - so that, if necessary, they can take the launch modules to different parts of the vast country...

Rocket trains ran along the tracks only at night and bypassed large stations. During the day they stood in specially equipped positions - you can still see them here and there: abandoned, incomprehensible branches to nowhere, and on the pillars there are coordinate determination sensors, similar to barrels. Without which a quick launch of a rocket is impossible...

The train stopped, special devices diverted the contact wire to the side, the roof of the car was folded back - and a “well done” weighing 104.5 tons flew out of the belly of the “refrigerator”. Not immediately, only at a 50-meter altitude, the propulsion engine of the first rocket stage was started - so that the fiery jet would not hit the launch complex and burn the rails. This train is on fire...

Everything took less than two minutes.

The three-stage solid-propellant missile RT-23UTTH threw 10 warheads with a capacity of 430 thousand tons each to a range of 10,100 km. And with an average deviation from the target of 150 meters. She had increased resistance to the effects of a nuclear explosion and was able to independently restore information in her electronic “brain” after it...

But this was not what irritated the Americans most. And the vastness of our land.

How he won

There were twelve such trains. 36 missiles and, accordingly, 360 warheads near Kostroma, Perm and in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. “Molodtsy” formed the basis of the retaliatory strike group, constantly moving within a radius of 1,500 km from the base point. And since they did not differ from ordinary trains, when they left the railway line, they simply disappeared for enemy reconnaissance.

But in a day such a train could cover up to 1000 kilometers!

This is what infuriated the Americans. Modeling has shown that even a strike from two hundred Minuteman or MX missiles (a total of 2000 warheads) can disable only 10% of the “well done”. To keep the remaining 90% under control, it was necessary to attract an additional 18 reconnaissance satellites. And the maintenance of such a group ultimately exceeded the cost of “Molodtsy”...

How can you not be upset here?

The Americans tried to create something similar. But they suffered a technical failure. But they unconditionally beat the Soviet peace-loving policy: in July 1991, Gorbachev unexpectedly helped them by agreeing to sign the START-1 treaty. And our “Well done” stopped combat duty on the country’s highways. And soon we set off on our final journey to the nearest open-hearths...

According to experts, the appearance of the new “Molodets” can be expected as early as 2019, the Zvezda TV and Radio Company reported.

Technical reference

Combat railway missile system(abbreviated as BZHRK) - type strategic missiles of mobile railway-based complexes. It is a specially designed train, in the carriages of which strategic missiles (usually intercontinental class) are placed, as well as command posts, technological and technical systems, security equipment, personnel ensuring the operation of the complex and its life support systems.

Name " Combat railway missile system", also used as a proper name for a Soviet missile system 15P961 “Well done”(RT-23 UTTH), the only BZHRK brought to the stage of adoption and serial production. 15P961 “Molodets” was on combat duty in the Strategic Missile Forces of the Armed Forces of the USSR and Russia in the period from 1987 to 1994 in the amount of 12 units. Then (by 2007) all complexes were dismantled and destroyed, with the exception of two, which were transferred to museums.

On the railways of the USSR and Russia it had the symbol "train number zero".

The first studies on the use of trains as a carrier of strategic missiles appeared in the 1960s. Work in this direction was carried out both in the USSR and in the USA.

The order “On the creation of a mobile combat railway missile system (BZHRK) with the RT-23 missile” was signed on January 13, 1969. The Yuzhnoye design bureau was appointed as the lead developer. The main designers of the BZHRK were academicians brothers Vladimir and Alexey Utkin. V.F. Utkin, a solid fuel specialist, designed the launch vehicle. A.F. Utkin designed the launch complex, as well as cars for the rocket-carrying train.

According to the developers, the BZHRK was supposed to form the basis of the retaliatory strike group, since it had increased survivability and could most likely survive after the enemy delivered the first strike. The only place in the USSR for the production of missiles for BZHRK is the Pavlograd Mechanical Plant (PO Yuzhmash).

Flight tests of the RT-23UTTH (15Zh61) rocket were carried out in 1985-1987 at the Plesetsk cosmodrome (NIIP-53), a total of 32 launches were made. 18 BZHRK exits were carried out railways countries (over 400,000 kilometers covered). Tests were carried out in various climatic zones countries (from tundra to deserts).

Each composition of the BZHRK received a missile regiment. The train, which went on combat duty, carried more than 70 military personnel, including several dozen officers. In the cabins of the locomotives, in the seats of the drivers and their assistants, there were only military officers and warrant officers.

The first missile regiment with the RT-23UTTH missile went on combat duty in October 1987, and by mid-1988 five regiments were deployed (a total of 15 launchers, 4 in the Kostroma region and 1 in the Perm region). The trains were located at a distance of about four kilometers from each other in stationary structures, and when they went on combat duty, the trains were dispersed.

By 1991, three missile divisions armed with BZHRKs with RT-23UTTH ICBMs had been deployed:

• 10th Missile Division in Kostroma region;
• 52nd Missile Division, stationed in the Zvezdny closed city ( Perm region);
• 36th Missile Division, Kedrovy Closed Territory (Krasnoyarsk Territory).

Each division had four missile regiments (a total of 12 BZHRK trains, three launchers each). Within a radius of 1,500 km from the BZHRK bases, joint measures were carried out with the Russian Ministry of Railways to replace worn-out railway tracks: heavier rails were laid, wooden sleepers were replaced with reinforced concrete ones, embankments were strengthened with denser crushed stone.

Since 1991, after a meeting between the leaders of the USSR and Great Britain, restrictions were introduced on the patrol routes of the BZHRK; they carried out combat duty at a point of permanent deployment, without traveling to the country’s railway network. In February-March 1994, one of the BZHRK of the Kostroma division traveled to the country's railway network (the BZHRK reached at least Syzran).

According to the START-2 treaty (1993), Russia was supposed to remove all RT-23UTTH missiles from service by 2003. At the time of decommissioning, Russia had 3 divisions (Kostroma, Perm and Krasnoyarsk), a total of 12 trains with 36 launchers.

To dispose of “rocket trains”, a special “cutting” line was installed at the Bryansk repair plant of the Strategic Missile Forces. Despite Russia's withdrawal from the START-2 treaty in 2002, during 2003-2007 all trains and launchers were scrapped, except for two demilitarized ones and installed as exhibits in the museum of railway equipment at the Warsaw station in St. Petersburg and in the AvtoVAZ Technical Museum .

At the beginning of May 2005, as officially announced by the commander of the Strategic Missile Forces, Colonel General Nikolai Solovtsov, the BZHRK was removed from combat duty in the Strategic Missile Forces. The commander said that in place of the BZHRK, starting from 2006, the troops will begin to receive the Topol-M mobile missile system.

On September 5, 2009, Deputy Commander of the Strategic Missile Forces, Lieutenant General Vladimir Gagarin, stated that the Strategic Missile Forces do not exclude the possibility of resuming the use of combat railway missile systems.

In December 2011, the commander of the Strategic Missile Forces, Lieutenant General Sergei Karakaev, announced the possible revival of BZHRK complexes in the Russian army.

On April 23, 2013, Deputy Minister of Defense Yuri Borisov announced that the Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering (developer of the Bulava, Topol and Yars missiles) had resumed development work on the creation of a new generation of railway missile systems.

The BZHRK includes: three diesel locomotives DM62, a command post consisting of 7 cars, a tank car with reserves of fuel and lubricants and three launchers (PU) with missiles. The rolling stock for the BZHRK was produced at the Kalinin Freight Car Building Plant.

The BZHRK looks like an ordinary train consisting of refrigerated, mail, luggage and passenger cars. Fourteen cars have eight wheel pairs, and three have four. Three cars are disguised as passenger fleet cars, the rest, eight-axle, are “refrigerated” cars. Thanks to the available supplies on board, the complex could operate autonomously for up to 28 days.

The launch car is equipped with an opening roof and a device for discharging the contact network. The weight of the rocket was about 104 tons, with a launch container of 126 tons. The firing range was 10,100 km, the length of the rocket was 23.0 m, the length of the launch container was 21 m, the maximum diameter of the rocket body was 2.4 m. To solve the problem of overloading the launch car, special unloading devices were used to redistribute some of the weight on neighboring cars.

The rocket has an original folding fairing of the head section. This solution was used to reduce the length of the rocket and place it in the carriage. The length of the rocket is 22.6 meters.

The missiles could be launched from any point along the route. The launch algorithm is as follows: the train stops, a special device moves to the side and short-circuits the contact network to the ground, the launch container assumes a vertical position.

After this, a mortar launch of the rocket can be carried out. Already in the air, the rocket is deflected with the help of a powder accelerator and only after that the main engine is started. Deflecting the rocket made it possible to divert the propulsion engine jet away from the launch complex and the railway track, avoiding their damage. The time for all these operations, from receiving a command from the General Staff to launching the rocket, was up to three minutes.

Each of the three launchers included in the BZHRK can launch both as part of a train and independently.

The cost of one RT-23 UTTH “Molodets” missile in 1985 prices was about 22 million rubles. In total, about 100 products were produced at the Pavlograd Mechanical Plant.

The official reasons for removing the BZHRK from service were the outdated design, the high cost of recreating the production of the complexes in Russia, and the preference for mobile units based on tractors.

The BZHRK also had the following disadvantages:

1. The impossibility of completely camouflaging the train due to the unusual configuration (in particular, three diesel locomotives), which made it possible to determine the location of the complex using modern means satellite reconnaissance. For a long time the Americans could not detect the complex with satellites, and there were cases when experienced railway workers from 50 meters could not distinguish a train covered with a simple camouflage net.
2. Lower security of the complex (unlike, for example, mines), which can be overturned or destroyed by a nuclear explosion in the surrounding area. To assess the impact of the air shock wave of a nuclear explosion, a large-scale experiment “Shift” was planned for the second half of 1990 - simulating a close nuclear explosion by detonating 1000 tons of TNT (several train echelons of TM-57 anti-tank mines (100,000 pcs.), removed from warehouses Central Group of Forces in East Germany, laid out in the form truncated pyramid 20 meters high). The “Shift” experiment was carried out at 53 NIIP MO (Plesetsk) on February 27, 1991, when as a result of the explosion a crater with a diameter of 80 and a depth of 10 m was formed, the level of acoustic pressure in the habitable compartments of the BZHRK reached the pain threshold of 150 dB, and the BZHRK launcher was removed from readiness, however, after carrying out regimes to bring it to the required degree of readiness, the launcher was able to conduct a “dry launch” (imitation of a launch using a rocket’s electrical layout). That is, the command post, launcher and missile equipment remained operational.
3. Wear and tear of the railway tracks along which he moved heavy complex RT-23UTTH.

Supporters of the use of BZHRK, including the engineer of the launch team at the first tests of the BZHRK, the head of the group of military representatives of the USSR Ministry of Defense at the Yuzhmash Production Association Sergei Ganusov, note the unique combat characteristics products that confidently crossed the zones missile defense. The launch platform, as confirmed by flight tests, delivered warheads with a solid or total mass of 4 tons to a distance of 11,000 km.

One product containing 10 warheads with a yield of about 500 kilotons was enough to hit an entire European state. The press also noted the high mobility of trains capable of moving along the country's railway network (which made it possible to quickly change the location of the starting position over 1000 kilometers per day), in contrast to tractors operating in a relatively small radius around the base (tens of km).

Calculations carried out by American specialists in relation to the railway version of basing the MX ICBM for the US railway network show that with the dispersal of 25 trains (twice the number that Russia had in service) on railway sections with a total length of 120,000 km (which is much longer the main route of Russian railways), the probability of hitting a train is only 10% when using 150 Voevoda-type ICBMs for an attack.

Tactico specifications BZHRK

Recreation

In December 2013, information appeared in the press about the revival of BZHRK complexes in Russia on a new technological basis as a response to the “Instantaneous” program. global impact USA". The Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering (MIT) will complete work on the preliminary design of the BZHRK at the beginning of 2014.

The new BZHRK complex, equipped with an ICBM with a multiple warhead, created on the basis of the Yars, will be disguised as a standard refrigerator car, the length of which is 24 meters with a missile length of 22.5 meters. A warhead carrying a non-nuclear weapon will be capable of hitting any target on the planet within an hour of receiving the command.

The combat railway missile system (BZHRK) being developed in Russia can be equated in its effectiveness to a division of the Strategic Missile Forces (Strategic Missile Forces), equipped with stationary silo complexes, Colonel-General Sergei Karakaev, commander of the Strategic Missile Forces, told reporters on Wednesday.

Previously, he reported that in the first half of 2014, the development of the preliminary design of the BZHRK will be completed. This development is being carried out, among other things, as a response to the US instant global strike program, which assumes the ability to hit objects anywhere on Earth within an hour from the moment the decision is made.

“The power of this composition (BZHRK), taking into account the multiple warhead of the missile, can be equated to a division with stationary silo complexes. We, having previously calculated the effectiveness of this development, say that both in a retaliatory strike, and especially in a possible retaliatory strike, the effectiveness and capabilities of the Strategic nuclear forces are increasing,” Karakaev said.

He recalled that to date the final decision on completing the development of the BZHRK has not been made; preliminary design is underway. “Of course, many generations of rocket scientists regret that such a complex does not exist today. The Supreme Commander-in-Chief asked me about this, I reported to him that I am for the BZHRK,” the general added.

He noted that the country's leadership has set the Russian Ministry of Defense and, in particular, the Strategic Missile Forces, the task of analyzing the economic parameters of this development. “This is everything that concerns our railway from the point of view of both ensuring traffic and the railway track itself, taking into account the fact that heavy and dangerous military cargo will be moved,” Karakaev explained.

Flight testing of a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile with the working title RS-26, created on the basis of the RS-24 Yars, will be completed in 2014, a mobile ground-based missile system with this missile is planned to be put on combat duty in 2015, it was reported on Wednesday Commander of the Strategic Missile Forces (RVSN) of the Russian Federation, Colonel General Sergei Karakaev.

He recalled that in 2012, a new rocket was launched from the first state test cosmodrome at the Kura test site to a range of more than 5.6 thousand kilometers.

“The missile completed its task, the conditional warhead landed on the Kamchatka Peninsula, and today further work is underway to develop (the missile) and conduct those tests that would confirm everything performance characteristics"- said Karakaev.

“After this work, which is planned to be completed in 2014, the state commission will give an opinion on the acceptance of the complex for operation. If the work is successful, we plan to put this complex on combat duty in 2015,” the commander said.

He added that the divisions where this complex will be located have already been determined, among other things.” Karakaev noted that the RS-26 is a solid-fuel ICBM with improved combat equipment and a multiple warhead.

According to him, the new rocket will be lighter than the Yars. “We talk all the time about the fact that we need to reduce the size (of missile systems). If we are talking about the mobile ground "Yars", then today our launcher weighs more than 120 tons. With this improved rocket, we will achieve weight characteristics of up to 80 tons, it will be lighter,” the commander emphasized.

There was also information that the mass of the new rocket for the railway complex should not exceed 47 tons. According to Karakaev, the intercontinental missile will be disguised in a 24-meter-long refrigerator car. The length of the rocket itself will be 22.5 meters. Externally, the “refrigerated car” will not differ from a regular car; there will be no need to increase the number of axes. The new “nuclear train” will be able to travel along any route, and not along a special one with reinforced tracks.

The development of a new combat railway missile system is being carried out as a response to the US instant global strike program, which implies the destruction of enemy targets anywhere in the world within no more than two hours. Earlier, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin spoke about the need to develop a military-technical response to the American “lightning strike” strategy.

Now let’s remember the history of this type of weapon:

Who, and in whose brilliant mind, originally came up with the idea to mount a ballistic missile launcher on a railway platform is now unknown. There is a legend that initially, the Americans were persuaded to create a railway missile system, who decided, with the help of disinformation, to force the USSR to spend money on a very expensive and pointless project. They provoked Moscow with disinformation that they were allegedly developing such a project, and very successfully. So Moscow got involved in a fictitious railway arms race.

Since, after the war, the Russians and Americans received German project documentation, which contained data on German projects that were not completed to the final state due to lack of time. The Germans were working on a project to create a railway transporter with a lifting mechanism, a launch platform, and a tank with alcohol and liquid oxygen included in the structure.

It was impossible to fit that rocket in a belt into the largest railway car - a refrigerated one. Since the rockets were bulky, and they had to be quickly refueled before launch.

With the advent of new missiles, the USSR and the USA returned to this idea again.

The order “On the creation of a mobile combat railway missile system (BZHRK) with the RT-23 missile” was signed on January 13, 1969, and assigned to the Yuzhnoye design bureau. The advantages of this railway complex were obvious: it was impossible to track its movements across the vast territory of the USSR. Possessing increased survivability and a high probability of surviving in the event of a strike, the BZHRK was supposed to form the basis of the retaliatory strike group.

Despite the fact that the USSR had to put in a lot of effort to implement the project, the project was implemented.

The design of the rocket was entrusted to the design brothers, Vladimir and Alexei Fedorovich Utkin. Vladimir Fedorovich Utkin became the general designer of the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau in 1979, who was entrusted with the creation of the RT-23 UTTH ballistic solid-propellant missile, named “Molodets”. The maximum flight range is 10,000 km, the height of the ballistic trajectory is 800 km. The warhead contained 10 individually targeted combat units with a capacity of 550 kilotons each. Hit accuracy - 200m. The BZHRK carried 3 missiles, hence the total number of 30 nuclear warheads.

The first test launches of the experimental version of the RT-23U took place at the Plesetsk test site in 1984. In 1985, direct testing of missiles intended for the railway complex began. On January 18, 1984, the first launch of the 15Zh52 rocket took place. The first launch of the 15Zh61 rocket took place on February 27, 1985.

Flight tests of the RT-23UTTH (15Zh61) rocket were carried out in 1985-1987 at the Plesetsk cosmodrome (NIIP-53, Mirny), a total of 32 launches were made.

In 1988 At the Semipalatinsk test site, special tests of the BZHRK for the effects of electromagnetic radiation (“Shine”) and lightning protection (“Thunderstorm”) were successfully carried out. In 1991 NIIP-53 was tested for the impact of a shock wave (“Shift”). Two launchers and a command post were tested. The test objects were located: one (the launcher with the rocket's electrical layout loaded into it, as well as the control gear) - at a distance of 850m from the center of the explosion, the other (the second launcher) - at a distance of 450m with the end facing the center of the explosion. A shock wave with a TNT equivalent of 1000 tons did not affect the performance of the rocket and launcher.

The first missile regiment with the RT-23UTTH missile went on combat duty in October 1987, and by mid-1988 5 regiments were deployed (a total of 15 launchers, 4 in the Kostroma region and 1 in the Perm region). The trains were located at a distance of about four kilometers from each other in stationary structures, and when they went on combat duty, the trains were dispersed.

When moving along the country's railway network, the BZHRK made it possible to quickly change the location of the starting position up to 1000 kilometers per day. Since 1991, by agreement with the United States, BZHRKs have been on combat duty at the base, without traveling to the country’s railway network.

By 1991, three missile divisions armed with BZHRK and RT-23UTTH ICBMs were deployed (in the Kostroma region, Perm region and Krasnoyarsk Territory), each of which had four missile regiments (a total of 12 BZHRK trains, three launchers each). Within a radius of 1,500 km from the BZHRK bases, joint measures with the Russian Ministry of Railways were carried out to modernize the railway track: heavier rails were laid, wooden sleepers were replaced with reinforced concrete ones, embankments were strengthened with denser crushed stone.

Since 1991, by agreement with the United States, BZHRKs have been on combat duty at the base, without traveling to the country’s railway network.

According to the START-2 treaty in 1993, Russia was supposed to remove from service and destroy all RT-23UTTH missiles by 2003. At the time of decommissioning, Russia had 3 divisions (Kostroma, Perm (ZATO Zvezdny) and Krasnoyarsk), 4 regiments with three launchers each, a total of 12 trains with 36 launchers. To dispose of “rocket trains”, a special “cutting” line was installed at the Bryansk repair plant of the Strategic Missile Forces. During 2003-2007, all trains and launchers were disposed of, except for one, demilitarized and installed as an exhibit in the museum of railway equipment at the Warsaw station in St. Petersburg, and another one installed in the AvtoVAZ Technical Museum.

On September 5, 2009, Deputy Commander of the Strategic Missile Forces, Lieutenant General Vladimir Gagarin, stated that the Strategic Missile Forces do not exclude the possibility of resuming combat railway missile systems.

Device

Disguising the railway complex as an ordinary train was not an easy task. The composition included railway launchers, supply cars, personnel cars, and three diesel locomotives.

The BZHRK includes: three diesel locomotives DM62, a command post consisting of 7 cars, a tank car with reserves of fuel and lubricants and three launchers (PU) with missiles.

Externally, the railway complex looks like an ordinary train of refrigerated, mail, luggage and passenger cars.

The launch car is almost identical to a regular refrigerator, only it has eight wheel pairs. The remaining cars have four wheel pairs; these cars house the command post, systems that ensure combat readiness and missile launching. The launch car was equipped with a sliding roof and a special device that moved the contact network to the side. Before launch, the rocket assumes a vertical position.

The launch car is equipped with an opening roof and a device for discharging the contact network. The weight of the rocket is about 100 tons. To solve the problem of overloading the launch car, special unloading devices were used to redistribute part of the weight to neighboring cars.

The rocket has an original folding fairing of the head section. This solution was used to reduce the length of the rocket and place it in the carriage. The length of the rocket is 22.6 m.

The missiles could be launched from any point along the route. The launch algorithm is as follows: the train stops, a special device moves the contact network to the side, and the launch container assumes a vertical position. After this, a mortar launch of the rocket can be carried out. Already in the air, the rocket is deflected with the help of a powder accelerator and only after that the main engine is started. Deflection of the rocket made it possible to divert the propulsion engine jet away from the launch complex and the railway track and avoid their damage.

Each of the three launchers included in the BZHRK can launch both as part of a train and independently.

Advantages and disadvantages

The official reasons for removing the BZHRK from service were the outdated design, the high cost of recreating the production of the complexes in Russia, and the preference for mobile units based on tractors.

Also, supporters of removing the complex cite the following arguments:

1. The impossibility of completely camouflaging the train due to the unusual configuration (in particular, three diesel locomotives), which, perhaps, makes it possible to accurately determine the location of the complex using modern satellite reconnaissance tools.
2. Low security of the complex (unlike, for example, mines), which can be overturned or destroyed by a nuclear explosion in the surrounding area.
3. Wear and tear of the railway tracks along which the heavy RT-23UTTKh complex moved.

Supporters of the use of BZHRK note the high mobility of trains capable of moving along the country's railway network (which made it possible to quickly change the location of the starting position up to 1000 kilometers per day), in contrast to tractors operating in a relatively small radius around the base (tens and hundreds of km).

Calculations carried out by American specialists in relation to the railway version of basing the MX ICBM for the US railway network show that with the dispersal of 25 trains (twice the number that Russia had in service) on sections of the railway with a total length of 120 thousand km ( which is much greater than the length of the main route of the Russian railways), the probability of hitting a train is only 10% when using 150 Voevoda-type ICBMs for an attack.

Performance characteristics

And here’s what our overseas partners were doing at that time:

During the development of the combat railway complex (BZHRK), the Americans faced a number of technical and organizational problems, but here they were unexpectedly helped by the Soviet leadership, agreeing to the signing of the START-1 offensive arms reduction treaty in July 1991, according to which the number of Soviet heavy ICBMs, and already deployed Soviet BZHRKs ceased combat duty on the country's highways, taking up stationary duty at bases. After this, work on promising US strategic missile systems (“Peacekeeper Rail Garrison” and “Midgetman”) slowed down sharply, and in January 1992 both programs were closed completely.

Peacekeeper Rail Garrison launch car

With regard to the development of the American BZHRK, the following should be additionally noted. According to foreign sources, a prototype BZHRK was tested at the US railway range and the Western Missile Range (Vandenberg Air Force Base, California) until July 1991. The possible appearance of the American BZHRK included: one or two standard locomotives, two launch cars with MX missiles, a car (command post) with means combat control and communications, a power supply system car, two cars for personnel and support cars. The weight and size characteristics of the rocket made it possible to develop a launch car adapted to the US railway network. Its length was almost 30 m, weight - about 180 tons.

The container with the rocket was lifted into the launch position by a special lifting mechanism. In order to reduce the load on the rails, the launch car had eight wheel pairs. Reducing shock and vibration loads was achieved through air and spring shock absorbers. Testing and starting equipment was located in a separate section. The combat control and communications carriage also contained equipment for various technical systems.

The locomotives were controlled by civilian train crews. In peacetime conditions, BZHRKs were supposed to carry out combat duty at permanent deployment points, in “one of several thousand” pre-selected parking points, or carry out combat patrols. With the transfer of the US Strategic Offensive Forces from peacetime to wartime, it was planned to quickly disperse the complexes over a large area. Upon receiving orders to launch missiles, the BZHRK proceeded to the nearest parking point, where pre-launch preparation and launch of ICBMs were carried out. Based on the test results, the US military leadership planned to put up to 25 BZHRKs with two MX missiles in each on combat duty. Seven air bases located in different states were considered as permanent deployment points for the complexes. To disperse the BZHRK, about 110 thousand km of the US railway network could be used.

At the beginning of 1991, the US military-political leadership unexpectedly announced that comprehensive tests of the BZHRK had been successfully completed. At the same time, however, a set of identified problems was listed. In particular, it was noted that the relative underdevelopment of the US railway network does not provide high secrecy and survivability of the BZHRK. Attention was drawn to their vulnerability and insufficient physical protection from ground and air attacks of a potential enemy, the actions of sabotage, reconnaissance and terrorist groups. Significant expenses were required to strengthen railway tracks and build various infrastructure facilities. A negative attitude of the population towards the movement of nuclear missile weapons across state territories and potential threats of damage was revealed environment. In the interests of strengthening the secrecy regime, it was considered impossible to use civilian specialists. Nevertheless, during the negotiations, the Americans apparently convinced the Soviet side that a significant scientific and technical basis had been created to ensure the deployment of the BZHRK. But an analysis of information materials of those years allows us to conclude that the production of even a prototype of the American BZHRK and its full-scale testing were far from completed.

Thus, the only test launch of a rocket from a railway launcher did not take place for technical reasons and was replaced by a throw test. In this regard, there is no visible solution to the problem of diverting the jet stream from the launch car when starting the missile's propulsion engine after it is ejected from the container. It was noted that the MX rocket was developed for a silo-based version, was not subject to modifications and did not have rocket tilt engines after launch. This could lead to a fire and damage to the launch car and the railway section of the track. Determination of the composition, appearance and requirements for the facilities of the permanent bases of the BZHRK and railway infrastructure was stopped at the preliminary design stage. Dispersal options and combat patrol using an experienced BZHRK on a real railway network have not been developed. It was not possible to create high-precision systems for navigation support for BZHRK and missile aiming in preparation for launches from any suitable sections of railways. There were no comprehensive resource and transport tests of the BZHRK with the MX missile with deployment to railways and testing of combat training missions.

The behavior of the rocket under real shock and vibration conditions has not been assessed. The problem of creating a centralized control system for combat patrols of BZHRK along US railways, which were in the hands of private companies, was not resolved. The combat railway missile system was distinguished by a significant number of unmasking features. It was not possible to practically work out the forms and methods of combat use of BZHRK, the ideology of their dispersal, the organization of combat duty and control nuclear missile weapons on combat patrol routes, the basics of technical operation and comprehensive support for the functioning of the BZHRK.

It is not surprising that Washington’s main efforts were aimed at limiting the functioning and subsequent elimination of domestic BZHRKs. To this end, the Americans achieved the inclusion in the texts of the START Treaty and its annexes of unilateral restrictive and liquidation articles and procedures, the implementation of which led to the destruction of our combat railway missile systems, although the Pentagon did not plan to deploy its own similar group. This is confirmed by the following. Thus, according to clause 10 b) of Article III of the Treaty, the American side declared the MX missile as existing types of ICBMs for mobile launchers (the performance characteristics for the railway version of the missile were not specified), noting that the missile has not been deployed in a mobile version.

In accordance with section II, paragraph b) and Appendix A of the “Memorandum of Understanding on establishing baseline data in connection with the Treaty between the USSR and the USA on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms,” the Americans presented: the number of BZHRK missiles and warheads – 0; their throw weight is 0; non-deployed mobile launchers – prototype only; test launcher – 1; fixed structure for mobile launchers – no; transport and reloading facilities – 1; undeployed MX missile at test site - 1. No photographs of the launch car and other equipment were presented in accordance with Appendix J (as a mutual exchange).

Thus, in reality, the American BZHRK existed mainly in the form of loud statements by US politicians. The infrastructure facilities of the proposed permanent deployment points were not announced either. During the inspections, it turned out that the Americans did not even think of starting to retrofit the previously mentioned air bases in the interests of deploying their BZHRK. Obviously, they did not want to invest funds while waiting for the signing of the START Treaty.

And another photo of our complex:

Look at and why The original article is on the website InfoGlaz.rf Link to the article from which this copy was made -

BZHRK, or the Barguzin combat railway missile system, is a new generation of trains armed with ballistic missiles. Developed in the Russian Federation. It is planned to be put into service in 2020.

What is a nuclear train? What were the first generation of USSR rocket trains like? Why didn't the US manage to create a ghost train? You will get answers to these and many other questions in this article.

What is "BZHRK"?

BZHRK (or ghost train) is a military railway missile system for strategic purposes. The complex is located on the base of a railway train consisting of a diesel locomotive and freight cars. The outside looks no different from normal freight trains, which ply thousands around Russia. However, it has a very complicated filling. Inside are placed intercontinental missiles, command posts, technical service systems, technological modules that ensure the functioning of the complex and the livelihoods of personnel. At the same time, the train is autonomous.

The BZHRK was created primarily as the main strike force for retaliating nuclear strike against a potential enemy, therefore it had the qualities of mobility and survivability. According to the plans of the command, it was supposed to survive after being hit by an intercontinental ballistic missile by a potential enemy.

BZHRK "Scalpel" - previous generation of nuclear trains

First time development nuclear trains began to be carried out in the 60s of the twentieth century. Work was carried out in the USSR and the USA approximately in parallel.

Moreover, the idea of ​​​​creation, according to legend, was planted by the Americans. After unsuccessful attempts by the United States to create the complex, it was decided to spread misinformation that such trains were being actively created and would soon hit the rails. The purpose of the false information was one - to force the Soviet Union to invest huge amounts of money in an unrealizable idea. As a result, the result exceeded all expectations.

On January 13, 1969, the Order of the Commander-in-Chief “On the creation of a mobile combat railway missile system (BZHRK) with the RT-23 missile” was signed, in pursuance of which by the 1980s in the USSR, for the first time in the world, it was put into production and tested in conditions close to combat, a missile carrier on a railway platform, which had no analogues in the whole world. As experts said, there is no more formidable and mobile weapon on the planet than a mobile railway combat train with a continental missile on board.

A team worked on the creation of the complex Russian Academy Sciences, led by brothers Alexei and Vladimir Utkin. During its creation, the designers faced several serious difficulties.

• Firstly, the mass of the train - the huge weight could deform the railway track. Weight of the smallest ICBM (Intercontinental ballistic missile) was 100 tons.
• Secondly, the direct flame from the rocket launch melted the train and the rails on which it stood.
• Thirdly, the contact network above the car, naturally, was an obstacle to launching a rocket. And this is not the entire list of problems that Soviet specialists faced.

The BZHRK used RT-23U missiles (NATO classification SS-24 "Scalpel"). Special rockets with a retractable nozzle and fairing were manufactured for the composition. One missile carries a MIRV-type multiple warhead with 10 warheads with a yield of 500 kilotons each.

An original solution was made to distribute the load on the track. The three cars were connected by a rigid coupling, which ensured that the weight of the rocket was distributed over more long section railway track. IN combat condition special hydraulic paws extended.

To remove the catenary system that interfered with the launch, a special device was invented that carefully removed the wires from the complex’s operating area. The network was de-energized before launch.

An ingenious solution was also invented to launch the rocket - a mortar launch. A powder charge ejected the rocket 20 meters above the ground, after which another charge adjusted the tilt of the rocket nozzle away from the train, and after that the first stage engine turned on. Thus, the column of flame of enormous temperature did not cause damage to the cars and tracks, but was directed in the right direction.

The autonomy of the rocket train was more than 20 days.

On October 20, 1987, after tests carried out at the Semipalatinsk test site, the RT-23UTTH "Molodets" missile regiment went on combat duty. And by 1989, 3 divisions of the BZHRK were deployed on the territory of the USSR, dispersed over a distance of many thousands of kilometers: in the Kostroma region, in the Perm and Krasnoyarsk territories.

The BZHRK device includes railway modules for various purposes, namely: 3 ICBM launch modules RT-23UTTH, 7 cars as part of the command module, a module with fuel reserves in a railway tank and 2 diesel locomotives of the DM-62 modification. Work on improving the equipment did not stop even after entering the troops, and its combat potential grew steadily.

BZHRK "Molodets" were a nightmare for the Americans. Huge amounts of money have been allocated to track ghost trains. Reconnaissance satellites searched for 12 ghost trains across the country and could not distinguish the combat complex from a train with refrigerators (refrigerated cars) carrying food.

After the collapse Soviet Union, already in Russia everything has changed. On January 3, 1993, the START-2 treaty was signed in Moscow, according to which the Russian Federation must destroy part of its missile potential, including the RT-23U missiles, therefore by 2005, according to the official version, all BZHRKs are removed from combat duty and destroyed, and the few survivors are sent to storage for further disposal.

The complex was officially on combat duty in the Soviet Union for about 20 years, until 2005.

US attempts to create a ghost train

The United States has also made attempts to create missile systems on a railway platform. Their development began in the 1960s, since around the same time Pentagon scientists first created a solid-fuel Minuteman ballistic missile, which, according to its technical parameters, could be launched from small sites and in railway shaking conditions. The development was given the name "Minitman Rail Garrison".

Initially, it was planned that a ghost train filled with missiles would run along predetermined positions, for which work would be carried out at the specified locations to create conditions in order to simplify the launch and adjust the missile’s navigation system to the specified launch points.

The first mobile Minuteman missiles on a railway platform were supposed to enter the US Army by mid-1962. But the American administration did not allocate the necessary amount to prepare the infrastructure and launch the production of prototypes, and the program was shelved. And the created transport cars were used to deliver the “Minitman” to the place of combat deployment - launch silos.

However, after the success of the Soviet Union in developing similar projects, the United States remembered the technology that had been gathering dust since the 60s and in 1986 created new project using old developments. The then existing LGM-118A “Peacekeeper” missile was chosen for the prototype. It was planned that its traction would be provided by four-axle diesel locomotives, and each train would be provided with two security cars. 2 cars will be allocated to the launcher with an already charged missile in the launch container, another one will house the control center, and the remaining cars will take fuel and parts for routine repairs.

But the Peacekeeper Rail Garrison was never destined to get on the rails. After the official end of the Cold War, the US authorities abandoned the development of missile systems on a railway platform and redirected cash flows to other military industry projects.

In the United States, the railway-based missile system was never put into operation - its history ended after unsuccessful tests in 1989.

New railway missile system of the Russian Federation

Currently according to various reasons None of the armies in the world are armed with railway launchers. The Russian Federation is the only one that has been working on the creation of this type of weapon since 2012, and has now developed preliminary designs for a railway launcher that meets all modern requirements for strategic weapons.

It is known that the design name of the new BZHRK is “Barguzin”. Project documentation indicates that the Barguzin will be assembled from two main parts: a railway launcher and a combat missile.

The railway launcher will be located on a railway platform, to which a special beam with a lifting boom and a control mechanism is attached. A lifting frame with the possibility of longitudinal movement is attached to the railway boom. The TPK (torpedo hull perforator) with the missile will be supported by supports that are mounted on support plates and equipped with rotary rods.

The rocket is launched from the TPK, commands for which are given from a special car as part of the BZHRK with control systems attached to it. When a rocket is launched, the roof of the car opens (reclines), thereby creating the distance necessary for the launch.

Comparative characteristics

Advantages of the new BZHRK:

1. Less train weight
2. Modern navigation systems
3. Greater missile accuracy

Rockets

At the stage of developing design documentation, the developers and command were faced with a choice - which of the modern missiles in service with the Russian army should be used as a projectile for the Barguzin BZHRK. After numerous discussions, the Yars and Yars-M missiles were chosen. This rocket is a silo-based and mobile-based solid-fuel ballistic missile with a detachable warhead, the maximum flight range of which is 11,000 kilometers, and the charge power in TNT equivalent ranges from 150 to 300 kilograms. This ballistic missile performed excellently during preliminary tests.

Does BZHRK exist now?

After the signing of the START-2 international treaty in January 1993, Russia lost its railway combat missile systems. Now most of them have been destroyed, and the rest have turned into exhibits standing on the sidings of railway depots. Therefore, in fact, until 2006, our state was left without a strike force to deliver a retaliatory strike with colossal mobile capabilities. But in 2002, Russia refused to ratify the START II treaty, which meant the possibility of restoring ballistic missile capabilities.

As mentioned above, none of the world powers currently has a single BZHRK worker in combat service. The only country taking steps to create a BZHRK is Russia, and several stages have already passed in the process of creating the complex.

Current situation

In 2006, the troops began to receive Topol-M ground-based mobile missile systems armed with Yars missiles instead of the BZHRK. Currently, the Russian army is armed with more than a hundred Topol-M combat systems, which can partially fill the gap left after the decommissioning of the BZHRK.

The current situation gives reasons for optimism - we all hope that by 2020 the Barguzin BZHRK will go into mass production, which will equip our army.

Experimental design work (R&D) on the Barguzin project began at the Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering in 2012. The completion of the research and development work is planned for 2020, and funds for their implementation are already being allocated. In 2014, the preliminary design of the complex was completed, and by the beginning of 2015, designers began the first stage of experimental design work to create a railway launcher. Development of design documentation is full progress since 2015. The timing of the creation of individual elements of Barguzin, its assembly and preliminary tests will become known by 2018. The deployment of the complex and its entry into the army is planned for 2020.

Wikipedia BZHRK "Molodets"

Military expert and editor-in-chief of the National Defense magazine Igor Korotchenko told RIA Novosti about these plans. According to him, a logical step against the backdrop of cooling relations between the United States and Russia would be the implementation of two programs: the creation of an updated BZHRK, as well as a new medium-range ground launch complex. Korotchenko noted that these are extreme response measures, but preparation for them is necessary in advance. In addition to them, the most likely option for strengthening the country’s defense capability would be to modernize and strengthen aerospace defense on its western borders.

Missile-carrying trains were already in service with the USSR and Russia from 1987 to 2005. The complex, codenamed “Molodets” (“Scalpel” according to NATO classification), was armed with three launchers for intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) RT-23. At a distance of 11 thousand kilometers, it was capable of throwing ten warheads with a capacity of up to 550 kilotons of TNT. The train consisted of three diesel locomotives and at least eleven cars, three of which (launchers) were eight-axle. The large weight of the rocket in the launch container (more than 126 tons) forced the designers to use special devices to partially transfer the load to adjacent cars. Despite this, the train still required strengthening of the railway track along the entire route. The launch took place after stopping and releasing the supports; preparation took no more than three minutes. After the end of the missiles' service life, all built complexes were either sent to a museum or cut into scrap metal. The developer and manufacturer of both the RT-32 missile and the launch complex equipment is the Ukrainian Yuzhnoye Design Bureau.

Peacekeeper Rail Garrison as imagined by an artist

A similar system was developed in the USA and was called Peacekeeper Rail Garrison. Its development was discontinued along with the end cold war as unnecessary. In a number of parameters and according to test results, it was superior to the Soviet design: it did not require prepared railway tracks, the cars were completely identical to civilian ones (4 axles, standard length), the launch crew was smaller - 42 people including security versus 70 in Molodets. The previously closed Russian Barguzin project will be closer to US developments in its concept than to its Soviet predecessor. It is supposed to launch RS-24 Yars missiles - a modernized Topol-M, or RS-26, or 3M30 Bulava missiles. Their weight fits into the carrying capacity of a standard railway car, which means that camouflage and development of the entire launch complex becomes easier.

Information has appeared about the successful launch of a missile from the Barguzin combat railway complex. No official confirmation yet.

RT-23 UTTH "Well done".

Information has appeared about the successful launch of a missile from the Barguzin combat railway complex (BZHRK), which is being developed in Russia to replace the Molodets complex, created in the 1980s. However, there has not yet been confirmation of this information from the Ministry of Defense. It is quite possible that the talk (without specifying) was about the start of throw tests, which were scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2016.

For the first time after the 80s, Academician Yu.S. Solomonov carried out a successful launch of the Barguzin rocket, this is the so-called “wandering launch”. Combat railway missile system "Barguzin" - a promising mobile complex missile weapons missile forces strategic purpose Armed Forces Russian Federation.

Vladimir Putin and Yuri Solomonov

The Barguzin rocket takes off from the freight car of an ordinary train, i.e. the train itself is a spaceport. Such missiles - four BZHRKs - have been in service with our Strategic Missile Forces since the late 80s, but first Gorbachev, then Yeltsin destroyed all four complexes. The Americans feared such missiles more than anything else, because in one night such trains could go anywhere, to any point in the Soviet Union.

Vladimir Putin and the Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering Research Institute, which is headed by Hero of Labor of the Russian Federation, Academician Yuri Semenovich Solomonov, recreated this great weapon practically from scratch. Until today, we were ahead of the Americans and Chinese in rocket science by about 10 to 15 years, and from now on we are already half a century ahead of them! All the country's leaders have already congratulated the great Russian rocket scientist Yuri Solomonov on his successful launch. We join in their congratulations.

In May 2016, information appeared about the completion of the process of developing documentation for the Barguzin BZHRK. It is assumed that new complex will carry more modern and lighter missiles created on the basis of the RS-24 Yars. One train will include six missiles - each is located in a separate carriage, disguised as a standard refrigerator. For traction, one diesel locomotive will be used instead of three, as in the Molodets BZHRK.

This option The deployment of ballistic missiles is very much criticized by NATO countries. The fact is that with such a placement it is very difficult to track the movement of such trains. From above, the cars are generally identical and can change direction at any time, which makes the destruction of the complex in the event of a launch very difficult. Although international treaty START-3 does not prohibit the creation of such weapons; every news about the return of “ghost trains” is met with a wave of criticism in the Western press.

Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) / combat railway missile system (BZHRK). The R&D work on the creation of the BZHRK began in 2012 and is being carried out by the Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering (MIT). Until December 2014, it was discussed that the creation of the complex was possible either on the basis of the RS-24 Yars ICBM, or on the basis of the RS-26 Rubezh ICBM, or using developments on the 3M30 Bulava intercontinental SLBM. But in December 2014, information appeared in the media that the complex would include ICBMs of the Yars or Yars-M type.
It is unlikely that the chief designer of the complex could be Yu.S. Solomonov because in his speeches in the media, he repeatedly spoke out against the BZHRK as a class of missile systems. By 2020, it is planned to complete R&D, create and test prototypes of BZHRK (according to 2012 plans). After 2020, the complexes will begin to enter service with the Strategic Missile Forces.

On April 23, 2013, Deputy Minister of Defense of Russia Yuri Borisov stated that the preliminary design of the BZHRK is currently underway, work in progress for technical projects. On December 18, 2013, the commander of the Strategic Missile Forces, Colonel General Sergei Karakaev, announced that the preliminary design will be completed in the first half of 2014, but the final decision on the design of the BZHRK has not yet been made. As a result, the preliminary design of the complex was completed at the end of 2014. The media reported that as of mid-2015, the first stage of development work to create the complex was underway.

In December 2014, in the media, the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Strategic Missile Forces stated that the development of the BZHRK could soon begin, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Strategic Missile Forces stated a day later that the new complex is called “Barguzin”. The development of design documentation began in 2015 and is planned to be completed in mid-2016. Although later in December 2015, a source in the Russian defense industry told the media that due to the difficult financial situation, the deadline for the creation of Barguzin has been postponed by more than one year and will be completed no earlier than 2020. On May 12, 2016, information appeared in the media that “the design documentation has been worked out, individual elements of the complex are being created, but exact dates there is no creation and adoption of it,” the timing will become clear in 2018.

The start of deployment of the new BZHRK is expected no earlier than 2018, and most likely in 2019. At the end of 2015, the start date for deployment of the complex has been specified - 2020.

Illustrations for the TsKB Titan patent for a railway launcher.
The numbers in the diagram indicate: 1 - railway car or platform, 2 - fixed pinned beam, 3 - lifting boom, 4 - boom lifting mechanism, 5 - movable frame mounted on the boom with the possibility of longitudinal movement, 6 - TPK with a rocket , 7 - telescopic supports, 8 - support plates, 9 - rotary rods for “aiming” the supports on the rails of the railway track.

Launcher - BZHRK - combat railway missile system. The launch is carried out from a TPK, brought into the starting position at the starting point from a special railway car with a drop-down roof. Technically, the BZHRK may include several cars with ICBMs, as well as cars for combat duty support and, probably, maintenance of the complex.

There is a possibility that the development of the BZHRK launcher is being carried out by the Federal State Unitary Enterprise Central Design Bureau "Titan" (Volgograd) - this company has registered a patent for "Launcher for transporting and launching a missile from a transport-launch container located in a railway car or on a platform" (RU 2392573). Designers (authors of the patent) - V.A. Shurygin, B.M. Abramovich, D.N. Biryukov and I.V. Shapkin.

The development of launch equipment is most likely being carried out by KBSM within the framework of the Barguzin theme. In 2013, KBSM developed a preliminary design of system units and the complex as a whole, formed cooperation between co-executing enterprises, and developed technical specifications for contractors.

In addition, on the topic "Barguzin-RV" in 2013, the development of preliminary designs for special railway formations was carried out at the Central Design Bureau of Transport Engineering.

According to media reports, as of 2014, a variant of the Barguzin BZHRK train with 6 launchers is being considered - which is equal to a regiment of the Strategic Missile Forces. The missile division will include 5 regiments of the Barguzin BZHRK.

Missile - it is likely to use a missile similar to previously created intercontinental missile systems with a minimum time of the active part of the trajectory and with a MIRV. RS-24 Yars ICBMs, RS-26 Rubezh ICBMs, and 3M30 Bulava SLBMs can be considered as basic options. With a high probability, the degree of unification among missiles will be high, but less than 100%.

According to media reports, as of 2014, the option of a railway composition of the Barguzin BZHRK with 6 launchers with Yars or Yars-M missiles is being considered.

The rocket design is a three-stage rocket of a classical layout with a sequential arrangement of stages. With a high probability, the missile will be equipped with a complex of means for overcoming missile defense (KSP ABM).

Control and guidance system - inertial autonomous.

Engines - solid propellant rocket engines at all stages.

Warhead types - MIRV IN. It is possible to use advanced maneuvering combat equipment.

Status: Russia
- 2012 - The Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering began R&D to create a BZHRK.

2013 - development of preliminary designs for the complex components.