| SS-N-23 | |
|---|---|
| Type | Strategic SLBM |
| Service history | |
| In service | since 1986 |
| Used by | Soviet Union / Russia |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Krasnoyarsk Machine-Building Plant |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 40.3 tonnes |
| Length | 14.8 metres |
| Diameter | 1.9 m |
| Warhead | 4 |
| Blast yield | 100 kt each |
|
| |
| Engine | three-stage liquid propellant |
Operational range | 8,300 kilometres (5,200 mi) |
Guidance system | Astroinertial |
The R-29RM Shtil[1] (NATO designation SS-N-23 Skiff) is a liquid propellant, submarine-launched ballistic missile in use by Russia. It has the alternate Russian designations RSM-54 and 3M27.[2] It is designed to be launched from the Russian Delta IV submarine, each of which is capable of carrying 16 missiles. On 6 August 1991 at 21:09 Novomoskovsk, under the command of Captain Second Rank Sergey Yegorov, became the world's only submarine to successfully launch an all-missile salvo, launching 16 R-29RM (RSM-54) ballistic missiles of total weight of almost 700 tons in 244 seconds (operation code name "Behemoth-2"). The first and the last missiles hit their targets successfully, while the others were self-destroyed in the air according to the plan.
The R-29RM carries four 100 kiloton warheads and has a range of about 8,500 kilometres (5,300 mi).[3] A derivative, the R-29RMU Sineva, entered service in 2007. The last boat with R-29RM, K-51 Verkhoturye, went into overhaul for rearming with R-29RMU on 23 Aug 2010.[4]
Operation Behemoth[]
Operation Behemoth entailed SSBN K-407 Novomoskovsk launching its full ammunition load of 16 missiles, the first such test in the world. Previously the largest number of missiles launched from a submerged SSBN was 4 Trident-2 missiles.
Operators[]
Soviet Union
Russia
References[]
- ↑ Aviation.ru – Missiles
- ↑ "R-29RM Shetal/Sineva (SS-N-23 'Skiff'/RSM-54/3M27) (Russian Federation), Offensive weapons". Janes.com. http://www.janes.com/extracts/extract/jsws/jsws0479.html.
- ↑ SS-N-23[dead link]
- ↑ "SSBN K-51 Verkhoturye arrived to Zvezdochka for repairs today". Rusnavy.com. 23 August 2010. http://rusnavy.com/news/navy/index.php?ELEMENT_ID=10095.
External links[]
- IDB RSM-54 (R-29RM) 3M37, SS-N-23 "Skiff" (Russian)
- Russian nuclear delivery systems at the Center for Defense Information
The original article can be found at R-29RM Shtil and the edit history here.