Technical characteristics of the Zircon rocket. Hypersonic Zircon missile: how new Russian weapons forced America to rewrite military doctrine New Russian supersonic missile

In recent years, the United States has been intensively developing its national system missile defense. The US government's desire to locate some elements of its missile defense system in Eastern Europe caused the start of the missile-missile race. nuclear weapons between America and Russia.

The urgency of creating new supersonic weapons

In view of the intensive strengthening of American missile defense systems near the borders of Russia, the country's Ministry of Defense made a strategic decision to actively counter this by creating new hypersonic missiles. One of them is the ZK-22 - the Zircon hypersonic missile. Russia, according to its military experts, will be able to effectively resist any potential aggressor only if it urgently modernizes its army and navy.

The essence of modernization of the Russian Navy

Since 2011, according to the plan of the Russian Ministry of Defense, work has been carried out to create such unique weapons, like a Zircon rocket. The characteristics of supersonic missiles are distinguished by one common quality - the highest speed. They are so fast that the enemy may have difficulty not only in intercepting them, but also in trying to detect them. According to military experts, the Zircon cruise missile today is a very effective weapon that deters any aggression. The characteristics of the product allow us to consider this weapon a modern hypersonic sword of the Russian air and naval fleet.

Statements in the media

For the first time, statements about the start of development of a complex with the Zircon hypersonic cruise missile sea-based appeared in the media in February 2011. The weapon has become the latest complex development of Russian designers.

The presumptive designation was the abbreviation 3K-22.

In August 2011, the general director of the Tactical Missile Arms concern, Boris Obnosov, announced that the corporation had begun developing a rocket that would reach speeds of up to Mach 13, exceeding the speed of sound by 12-13 times. (For comparison: today the speed of strike missiles of the Russian Navy is up to Mach 2.5).

In 2012, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation stated that the first test of the created hypersonic missile was expected in the near future.

Open sources reported that the development ship complex NPO Mashinostroeniya was entrusted with the Zircon hypersonic missile. It is known that information about the technical characteristics of the installation is classified, tentative data were reported: range - 300-400 km, speed - 5-6 Mach.

There are unconfirmed reports that the missile is a hypersonic version of the BrahMos, a supersonic cruise missile that was developed by Russian designers together with Indian specialists based on the Onyx P-800 missile. In 2016 (February), BrahMos Aerospace announced that a hypersonic engine for its brainchild could be developed within 3-4 years.

In March 2016, the media announced the start of tests of the Zircon hypersonic missile, which were carried out with ground complex start.

In the future, it was planned to install Zircon on the latest Russian Husky submarines. IN given time These 5th generation multi-purpose nuclear submarines are being developed by the Malachite design bureau.

At the same time, information was released in the media that state flight tests of the rocket were in full swing. Upon completion, a decision is expected to be made on the adoption of the Zircon into service with the Russian Navy. In April 2016, information was published that tests of the Zircon missile would be completed by 2017, and the launch of the installation into mass production was expected in 2018.

Development and testing

In 2011, the Tactical Missiles Concern began designing Zircon hypersonic anti-ship missiles. The characteristics of the new weapons, according to experts, have much in common with the existing Bolid complex.

In 2012 and 2013, testing of a new rocket was carried out at the test site in Akhtubinsk. It was used as a carrier. The results of the tests led to conclusions about the reason for the unsuccessful launch and short-term flight of the warhead. Subsequent testing was carried out in 2015 using a ground-based launch complex as a carrier. Now the Zircon rocket was launched from an emergency launch. The characteristics of 2016 during testing gave a positive result, which prompted the developers to announce in the media the creation of a new hypersonic missile weapons.

Where are the new missiles planned to be used?

After the completion of further planned state tests, hypersonic missiles will be equipped with Huskies (multi-purpose nuclear submarines), Leader cruisers and the modernized nuclear cruisers Orlan and Pyotr Velikiy. The heavy nuclear cruiser Admiral Nakhimov will also be equipped with the Zircon anti-ship missile. The characteristics of the new ultra-high-speed weapon are much superior to similar models - for example, such as the Granit complex. Over time it will be replaced by ZK-22. Exclusively promising and modernized submarines and surface vessels will use the Zircon missile.

Specifications

• The missile's flight range is 1,500 km.
• The installation has a speed of about Mach 6. (Mach 1 equals 331 meters per second).
• The ZK-22 warhead weighs at least 200 kg.
• 500 km is the radius of destruction of the Zircon hypersonic missile.

The characteristics of the weapon give grounds to judge the superiority of the army wielding it over an enemy who does not possess such weapons.

Engine and fuel

An object whose speed is at least 4,500 km/h is considered hypersonic or ultra-high-speed. When creating such weapons, developers face many scientific and technical problems. Among them, very pressing questions are how to accelerate a rocket using a traditional jet engine and what fuel to use? Russian development scientists made a decision: to accelerate the ZK-22, use a special ramjet engine, which is characterized by supersonic combustion. These engines operate on the new fuel “Decilin - M”, which has an increased energy intensity (20%).

Fields of science involved in development

High temperature is a common environment in which the Zircon rocket carries out its maneuverable flight after acceleration. The characteristics of a homing system at supersonic speeds during flight can be significantly distorted. The reason for this is the formation of a plasma cloud that can block the target from the system and damage the sensor, antenna and controls. To fly at hypersonic speeds, missiles must be equipped with more advanced avionics. The serial production of the ZK-22 involves such sciences as materials science, engine engineering, electronics, aerodynamics and others.

For what purpose was the Zircon rocket (Russia) created?

The characteristics obtained after state tests give reason to believe that these supersonic objects can easily overcome enemy anti-tank defenses. This became possible due to two features inherent in the ZK-22:

• The speed of the warhead at an altitude of 100 km is Mach 15, i.e. 7 km/sec.
• Being in a dense atmospheric layer, already before approaching its target, the warhead performs complex maneuvers, which complicates the work of the enemy’s missile defense system.

Many military experts, both Russian and foreign, believe that achieving military-strategic parity directly depends on the availability of hypersonic missiles.

About prospects

The media is actively circulating information about the US lagging behind Russia in terms of developing hypersonic missiles. In their statements, journalists refer to data from American military research. The appearance of even more modern hypersonic weapons than the Zircon missile in the arsenal of the Russian Army is expected by 2020. For the US missile defense system, considered one of the most developed systems in the world, the emergence of extreme high-speed nuclear weapons in Russian Air Force will become, according to journalists, a real challenge.

An undeclared high-tech arms race continues around the world. refer to the latest technologies, which in the 21st century will play a decisive role in the outcome of the war. It is no coincidence that in 2000, US President George W. Bush signed a directive making the possibility of quickly inflicting global impact using hypersonic high-precision cruise missiles.

It's easy to guess who it was intended for. This is probably why in October 2016, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced the use of the latest cruise missiles in the X-101, the range of which is about 4500 km.

Hypersonic missile The Zircon, whose characteristics guarantee a colossal advantage in armament for the army that possesses it, is the “golden dream” of any general, minister and president. Availability similar weapons can become a significant deterrent in any military conflict.

Flights of the “three-mach” aircraft were accompanied by furious heating of the structure. The temperature of the edges of the air intakes and the leading edge of the wing reached 580-605 K, and the rest of the skin 470-500 K. The consequences of such heating are evidenced by the fact that already at a temperature of 370 K the organic glass used for glazing the cabins softens and the fuel begins to boil. At 400 K, the strength of duralumin decreases; at 500 K, chemical decomposition of the working fluid in the hydraulic system and destruction of seals occurs. At 800 K, titanium alloys lose the necessary mechanical properties. At temperatures above 900 K, aluminum and magnesium melt, and heat-resistant steel loses its properties.

The flights were carried out in the stratosphere at an altitude of 20,000 meters in very rarefied air. Achieving Mach 3 speed at lower altitudes was not possible: the skin temperature would reach four-digit values.

Over the next half century, a number of measures have been proposed to combat the searing fury of atmospheric heating. Beryllium alloys and new ablative materials, composites based on boron and carbon fibers, plasma spraying of refractory coatings...

Despite the progress achieved, the thermal barrier still remains a serious obstacle on the path to hypersound. An obligatory obstacle, but not the only one.

Supersonic flight is extremely expensive in terms of required thrust and fuel consumption. And the level of complexity of this problem rapidly increases with decreasing flight altitude.

To date, none of the existing types aircraft and cruise missiles could not reach speed = 3M at sea level.

The record holder among manned aircraft was the MiG-23. Thanks to its relatively small size, variable sweep wing and powerful R-29-300 engine, it was able to reach 1,700 km/h near the ground. More than anyone in the world!

Cruise missiles showed slightly better results, but also failed to reach the Mach 3 threshold.

Among the variety of anti-ship missiles around the world, only four anti-ship missiles can fly twice the speed of sound at sea level. Among them:

ZM80 “Mosquito”(launch weight 4 tons, maximum speed at an altitude of 14 kilometers - 2.8 M, at sea level - 2 M).

ZM55 “Onyx”(launch weight 3 tons, maximum speed at an altitude of 14 km - 2.6 M).

ZM54 “Caliber”.

And finally, Russian-Indian “BrahMos”(launch weight 3 tons, design speed at low altitude 2M).

The promising “Caliber” came closest to the treasured 3M. Thanks to its multi-stage design, its detachable combat unit(which itself is the third stage) is capable of developing a speed of 2.9 M at the finish line. However, not for long: the separation and acceleration of the warhead is carried out in close proximity to the target. During the marching phase, the ZM54 flies at subsonic levels.

It is worth noting that there is no information about testing and testing the ZM54 separation algorithm in practice. Despite the common name, the ZM54 missile has little in common with those “Calibers” that staged an unforgettable fireworks display in the sky over the Caspian Sea last fall (subsonic missile for attacks on land targets, index ZM14).

It can be stated that a rocket developing a speed of > 2M at low altitude is, in a literal sense, still only tomorrow.

You have already noticed that each of the three anti-ship missiles capable of developing 2M during the sustaining phase of flight (“Moskit”, “Onyx”, “Brahmos”) is distinguished by exceptional weight and size characteristics. The length is 8-10 meters, the launch mass is 7-8 times higher than that of subsonic anti-ship missiles. At the same time, their warheads are relatively small, accounting for about 8% of the launch mass of the rocket. And the flight range at low altitude barely reaches 100 km.

The possibility of air-launching these missiles remains questionable. Due to their too long length, “Mosquito” and “Brahmos” do not fit into air defense systems; they require separate launchers on the decks of ships. As a result, the number of carriers of supersonic anti-ship missiles can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

At this point it is worth turning to the title topic of this article.

ZM22 “Zircon” is a hypersonic sword of the Russian Navy. Myth or reality?

The rocket that is talked about so much, but no one has even seen its outlines. What will this superweapon look like? What are its capabilities? And the main question: how realistic are the plans to create such an anti-ship missile system at the modern technological level?

After reading the long introduction about the torment of the creators of supersonic aircraft and missiles, many of the readers probably had doubts about the realism of the existence of “Zircon”.

A fiery arrow flying on the border of supersonic and hypersonic, capable of hitting naval targets at ranges of 500 kilometers or more. Whose overall dimensions do not exceed the established restrictions when placed in UKSK cells.

The 3S14 universal ship-based firing system is an 8-charge under-deck vertical launcher for launching the entire range of Caliber family missiles. Max. the length of the transport and launch container with the missile is 8.9 meters. The starting weight limit is up to three tons. It is planned that ten such modules (80 launch silos) will form the basis of strike weapons on the modernized nuclear-powered Orlans.

A promising superweapon or another unfulfilled promise? Doubts are in vain.

The appearance of a supersonic anti-ship missile capable of reaching a speed of 4.5 M in flight is the next logical step in improving missile weapons. It is curious that missiles with similar characteristics have been in service with the leading navies of the world for about 30 years. One index is enough to understand what we are talking about.

Anti-aircraft missile 48N6E2 as part of a naval anti-aircraft system S-300FM “Fort”

The length and diameter of the body are standard for all missiles of the S-300 family.
Length = 7.5 m, diameter of the rocket with folded wings = 0.519 m. Launch weight 1.9 tons.

The warhead is a high-explosive fragmentation unit weighing 180 kg.

The estimated range of destruction of the VC is up to 200 km.

Speed ​​- up to 2100 m/s (SIX speeds of sound).

SAM 48N6E2 included land complex S-300PMU2 “Favorite”

How justified is the comparison? anti-aircraft missiles with RCC?

There are not many conceptual differences. The anti-aircraft 48N6E2 and the promising Zircon are guided missiles with all the ensuing consequences.

Sailors are well aware of the hidden capabilities of shipborne air defense systems. Half a century ago, during the first firing of anti-aircraft missiles, an obvious discovery was made: at a line-of-sight range, missile defense systems would be the first to be used. They have a smaller warhead mass, but their reaction time is 5-10 times less compared to anti-ship missiles! This tactic was widely used in “skirmishes” at sea. The Yankees damaged an Iranian frigate with the Standard (1988). Russian sailors, with the help of the Osa, dealt with the Georgian boats.

The bottom line is that if a conventional missile defense system with a disabled proximity fuse can be used against ships, then why not create one based on it? special remedy for hitting surface targets?

The advantage will be high flight speed, at the border of hypersound. The main disadvantage is the high-altitude flight profile, which makes the missile vulnerable to breaking through enemy air defenses.

What are the main design differences between missiles and anti-ship missiles?

Guidance system.

To detect targets over the horizon, anti-ship missiles require an active radar seeker.

It is worth noting that anti-aircraft missiles with ARGSN have been used in the world for a long time. The first of them (the European Aster) was put into service over ten years ago. A similar missile was created by the Americans (Standard-6). The domestic analogues are 9M96E and E2 - anti-aircraft missiles of the Redut naval air defense system.

At the same time, detecting a 100-meter ship should be easier than targeting an actively maneuvering point-sized object (an airplane or missile).

Engine.

Most anti-aircraft missiles are equipped with solid fuel rocket engine, whose operating time is limited to seconds. The operating time of the 48N6E2 rocket propulsion engine is only 12 s, after which the rocket flies by inertia, controlled by aerodynamic rudders. As a rule, the flight range of missiles along a quasi-ballistic trajectory, with a marching section high in the stratosphere, does not exceed 200 kilometers (the most “long-range”), which is quite enough to perform the tasks assigned to them.

Anti-ship weapons, on the contrary, are equipped with turbojet engines - for a long, tens of minutes, flight in dense layers atmosphere. At a much lower speed than is typical for anti-aircraft missiles.

The creators of the 4-mach Zircon will obviously have to abandon any turbojet or ramjet engines, using a proven technique with a powder turbojet engine.

The problem of increasing the flight range is solved by a multi-stage layout. For example: American rocket-The Standard-3 interceptor has a destruction range of 700 km, and the interception altitude is limited to low Earth orbit.

Standard-3 is a four-stage rocket (Mk.72 launch booster, two sustainer stages and a detachable kinetic interceptor with its own engines for trajectory correction). After separation of the third stage, the speed of the warhead reaches Mach 10!

It is noteworthy that the Standard-3 is a relatively light compact weapon, with a launch weight of ~1600 kg. The anti-missile missile is placed in a standard air defense cell on board any American destroyer.

The anti-missile missile does not have a warhead. The main and only destructive element is its fourth stage (infrared sensor, computer and set of engines), which crashes into the enemy at full speed.

Returning to the Zircon, the author does not see any fundamental obstacles to the fact that an anti-aircraft missile, which has a lower speed and a flatter trajectory than the standard-3, after passing the apogee, can safely return to the dense layers of the atmosphere. Then detect and attack the target, falling like a star onto the deck of the ship.

Development and creation of hypersonic anti-ship missiles based on existing anti-aircraft missiles is the most optimal solution, from the point of view of minimizing technical risks and financial costs.

A) Shooting at moving sea targets at a distance of over 500 km. Due to the high flight speed of the Zircon, its flight time will be reduced to 10-15 minutes. Which will automatically solve the problem of data obsolescence.
Previously, as now, anti-ship missiles are launched in the direction of the probable location of the target. By the time it arrives at the specified square, the target may already go beyond its boundaries, making it impossible for the missile's seeker to detect it.

B) From the previous paragraph it follows that it is possible to effectively fire at ultra-long distances, which will make the missile the “long arm” of the fleet. The ability to carry out operational strikes at enormous ranges. The reaction time of such a system is tens of times less than that of an aircraft carrier wing.

C) Launching an attack from the zenith, along with the unexpectedly high speed of the missile (after braking in dense layers of the atmosphere, it will be about 2 M), will make most of the existing close-in defense systems ineffective (“Dirks”, “Goalkeepers”, RIM-116 etc.)

At the same time, the negative aspects will be:

1. Altitude flight path. Within a second after launch, the enemy will notice the missile launch and begin to prepare to repel the attack.

Speed ​​= 4.5M is not a panacea here. The characteristics of the domestic S-400 make it possible to intercept air targets flying at speeds of up to 10 Mach.

The new American Standard-6 missile defense system has a maximum destruction altitude of 30 km. Last year, with its help, the longest-range interception of a military center in a naval environment (140+ kilometers) was carried out in practice. And the powerful radar and computing capabilities of Aegis allow destroyers to hit targets in low-Earth orbits.

The second problem is the weak warhead. Some will say that at such speeds you can do without it. But that's not true.

A Talos anti-aircraft missile without a warhead almost cut the target in half (exercises off the coast of California, 1968).

The Talos core stage weighed one and a half tons (more than any existing rocket) and was powered by a ramjet engine. When it hit the target, an unspent supply of kerosene detonated. Speed ​​at the moment of impact = 2M. The target was a WWII-era escort destroyer (1,100 tons), whose dimensions corresponded to a modern small missile ship.

Talos hitting a cruiser or destroyer (5000-10000 tons), logically, could not lead to serious consequences. IN maritime history There are many cases where ships, having received numerous through holes from armor-piercing shells, remained in service. Thus, the American aircraft carrier “Kalinin Bay” in the battle near the island. Samar was pierced through 12 times.

The Zircon anti-ship missile needs a warhead. However, due to the need to ensure a speed of 4.5 M and limited weight and dimensions when placed in an airborne missile launcher, the mass of the warhead will be no more than 200 kg (estimated based on examples of existing missiles).

Vladimir Putin's annual address to the Federal Assembly, or rather, its second part, produced the effect of a bomb exploding on military experts and all those interested in weapons.

It turned out that promising developments, which were considered unfinished and were exaggerated in Western and Russian media, according to the president, are already being tested and are about to be put into service.

And if the new intercontinental missile "Sarmat" is still somewhat well-known, the names of the remaining strategic complexes were generally heard in public for the first time. And some don’t have them at all; Vladimir Putin suggested that Russians come up with them themselves.

It can be assumed that the president decided to “reveal his cards” in response to the US modernization of its nuclear weapons. And also the creation of low-power, but high-precision nuclear charges, which, in particular, are equipped with cruise missiles.

It is no coincidence that the Russian leader emphasized that any powerful nuclear attack on Russia or its allies will be perceived as full-fledged nuclear attack and will cause an instant response.

Putin made it clear to the United States that he will not tolerate the use of nuclear weapons of any size, including B-61-12 aerial bombs and air- and sea-launched cruise missiles. It is believed that low-yield charges lower the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons.

Vladimir Putin traditionally named the main reason for the development of new types of weapons as the US global missile defense system, which can make Russian missiles ultimately useless. As well as the unilateral withdrawal of the United States from the ABM Treaty.

Now more about weapons. Judging by the video shown in Manege, the Sarmat missile actually passed throw tests, as has been repeatedly stated previously.

In the picture, a mock-up is launched from a silo, identical in size, weight and geometry to a real rocket. This is how the real start is worked out. The start of flight development tests is planned for this year, and adoption into service in 2019-2020. That is, very soon.

As the Supreme Commander-in-Chief said, a missile weighing 200 tons with hypersonic warheads will have an almost unlimited range of action and will be able to hit targets both through the Northern and South Pole. For clarity, the video showed how the rocket easily flies across the United States and falls in the Pacific Ocean.

Another project, Avangard, is directly related to Sarmat, which the president also spoke about. It is a gliding winged unit that flies at 20 times the speed of sound.

If we are talking about the Yu-71 block, the plasma trace from which was seen by residents near the Kura test site in the fall of 2016, then it is the Sarmat missile that is equipped with it. The warhead heats up to almost 2 thousand degrees and rushes towards the target “like a meteorite,” bypassing all known missile defense systems, and at the same time maneuvering. The President emphasized that mass production of such units is being prepared.

DF-ZF. Photo: wikipedia.org

By the way, Beijing is testing similar gliders - the DF-ZF project. But the video shown on Chinese television was only from a wind tunnel; whether it rose into the sky is not known for sure. Perhaps Vladimir Putin's speech will encourage the Chinese to lift the veil of secrecy.

Avangard is currently undergoing testing. But hypersonic missiles, which in recent years have been either buried or resurrected in the media, it turns out that Russia already has and is even on duty. This is an aviation missile system"Dagger".

MiG-31. Photo: mil.ru

During the president's speech, a video was shown of a MiG-31 interceptor launching a heavy missile. It accelerates to a speed of Mach 10 and, according to the head of state, overcomes any missile defense shield. The missile's range is more than 2 thousand km, it can be equipped with both a nuclear and conventional warhead. The complex is already on experimental combat duty at airfields in the southern military district.

But the highlight of Vladimir Putin's speech was the nuclear power plant that powers the latest Russian cruise missiles with unlimited range.

They are similar to the existing X-101, but inside they have small-sized, super-powerful nuclear installations, which increase the flight range tens of times compared to the “101st”.

The cruise missile flies low, maneuvers and, as the designers intended, will successfully bypass any radar. At the end of 2017, successful tests of a new rocket were carried out at the test site. By the way, it doesn't have a name yet. President Putin invited the Russians to choose him, which has already caused a great stir in the media.

It is worth noting that under the USSR, nuclear installations were installed on military satellites, which flew successfully. However, the technology was subsequently abandoned due to the risk of an accident with radioactive contamination. Moreover, a nuclear installation was even installed on the Tu-95 strategic bomber to increase its flight range. But later the project was closed.

Meanwhile, the president did not even think about stopping. He spoke about a mysterious weapon known in the media as "Status-6".

A lot was written about it in the foreign press and they called it the revival of the Soviet “Tsar Torpedo” T-15, which was supposed to be equipped with a thermonuclear warhead and, if necessary, wipe the United States off the face of the Earth with it.

Vladimir Putin partly confirmed the fears of Western military experts. Russia is preparing an unmanned underwater vehicle, with a nuclear power plant. It is a hundred times smaller than those found on nuclear submarines, but it accelerates the torpedo boat to enormous speeds. It is fundamentally the new kind strategic weapons, since the torpedo goes very deep and is almost impossible to detect. Its main task will be the destruction of enemy aircraft carrier groups and naval bases, which was demonstrated on the screen in the Manege.

It is extremely difficult to assess the readiness of these weapons. As the president rightly noted, there are simply no analogues in the world. All that remains is to wait until the promising units are put into service, and then more will become known about them.

Hypersonic technologies, which are embodied in Russian rocket"Zircon" is a new word in the military sphere. Both Russian and foreign experts recognize this fact. Zircon managed to achieve the highest technological efficiency. And although the project is classified, successful tests are already known.

Judging by the stated characteristics, the main trump card of this weapon is speed. About 8 M, this is more than 9000 km/h, which was recorded at the peak of the trajectory - this is a guarantee that it is absolutely impossible to intercept the missile with existing defense systems.

History of hypersonic missiles

The era of hypersonic missiles can be counted from the appearance of the first prototypes. Nazi Germany already carried out such developments, but, obviously, the technology was not developed enough to prepare a successful solution. Hypersound has always attracted the attention of the world's leading military powers. The possession of such weapons guaranteed a significant advantage in any possible conflict.

It took a long time to wait for the first successes. Soviet Union received a successful project only in the 80s of the twentieth century. The Kh-90 GELA rocket was able to reach approximately 3000 km/h. But the developments were urgently curtailed due to the collapse of the country and a catastrophic budget shortage.

The X-90 GELA turned out to be a very successful weapon.

She could carry two nuclear warheads, due to the plasma cloud formed around it, remain invisible to detection systems. The main trump cards - a speed of 2.5 M and also the ability to maneuver - made intercepting a missile a very difficult task. Recall that the speed M is the Mach speed, or Mach number. Essentially this is the speed of sound propagation, it is different at different altitudes: near the ground it is 1224 km/h, at an altitude of 20 km – 1062 km/h

The second round of development of hypersonic weapons started already in new country, Russia. Presumably, tests began to be carried out in the mid-00s. Already in 2011, the project began to be finalized and improved. The new rocket was named 3K22 Zircon. Testing and modifications took place quite quickly. It only took a few years, from 2012 to the end of 2013. Already in 2016, it was announced that the project was considered successful and would go into service.

Main difficulties at hypersonic speeds

Hypersonic and supersonic technologies have been developed for so long for the simple reason that their implementation required the latest ideas and unique engineering solutions.

Today, anti-ship missiles are widely used, which reach a speed of 3-4 thousand km/h or 2.5-3 M. But such cruise weapons have their drawbacks. Thus, they are launched in the direction of the target, deprived of the ability to maneuver effectively. The missiles are gaining greater height, which almost immediately allows them to be detected and the trajectory of movement to be calculated. The attacked object has a greater chance of successfully leaving the affected area.

Higher speeds (which Zircon is now developing) led to understandable difficulties.

Flights even in upper layers atmosphere (about 20 km) with a speed of more than 3 M were marked by the appearance of a thermal barrier. Due to air resistance, the main parts were subject to serious heating. Thus, the air intakes reached 3000C, and other parts, even with excellent streamlining qualities, heated up to 2500.

During the tests it became clear that:

• Duralumin elements, which are widely used in aviation, lose a lot of strength already at 2300;
• at 5200 titanium and its alloys begin to deform;
• at 6500, the melting of magnesium and aluminum begins, even heat-resistant steel significantly loses its hardness.

If we talk about a flight altitude of less than 20 km (which would lead to difficulties in detection and interception), then the heating of the skin would reach 10,000C, which no known metal can withstand. Temperature is the main problem of hypersonic speeds.

Even if we do not take into account the enormous heating of the metal and the parts necessary for guidance, the fuel begins to boil and decompose, losing its properties.

The problem could be solved using hydrogen. But in liquid form it is quite dangerous and difficult to store. And in gaseous form it occupies a large volume and has low efficiency. An antenna operating at radio frequency required serious and lengthy development. Classic signal receivers certainly burned out within a few seconds of hypersonic flight. The lack of communication with the center would lead to uncontrollability of the weapon and the loss of very important advantages.

Hypersonic missile "Zircon"

The solutions used on the Zircon hypersonic missile were tested on the X-90 GELA. Then unique developments made it possible to significantly increase maximum speed new media. For example, in order to catch a radio signal, they began to use a plasma cloud that formed during flight.

In order to reduce the heating of all parts of the rocket, it was decided to use fuel with a high content of hydrogen with admixtures of water and kerosene. The bottom line was that the mixture was heated and fed into a mini-reactor, where hydrogen was released for acceleration. The reaction itself was accompanied by a decrease in temperature, which made it possible to cool the shell and parts. All these ideas made it possible to get very close to achieving even supersonic speed.

Famous specifications 3K22 "Zircon"

The speed of the Zircon allows it to easily bypass all existing this moment missile defense and air defense systems. In support of these words, data from open sources is provided that advanced American systems anti-missile missiles react to an object in 8-10 seconds. It is obvious that the Zircon, even at marching speed, will cover 15-20 km during this time and turn into an unattainable goal. It will be impossible to catch up with him or intercept him.

Little is known about the missile's armament. However, today Zircon is positioned as a complex anti-ship missiles. Its main targets will probably be well-fortified aircraft carriers. Hence the second name - “aircraft carrier killer”.

Design and where Zircon will be used

The Zircon rocket was kept a closely guarded secret for a long time. And today, very few people have been able to see this weapon with their own eyes. However, we can conclude that the length of the rocket reaches 8...10 m. It has a tail unit, as well as fairings in the middle part.

Characteristic feature can be called the nose part, which is a flattened fairing extending to the sides.

It is planned to replace the P-700 Granit complex with hypersonic missiles. To date, the flagships of the fleet, Admiral Nakhimov and Peter the Great, have been armed with them and carriers of the Onyx and Caliber types. After their reconstruction, it is likely that the Zircons will form the basis of the weapons.

Already in 2018, Admiral Nakhimov should undergo a complete modernization. "Peter the Great" - in 2022. New projects are also being designed for armament with Zircons.
These include:

• nuclear destroyers of the Leader project;

submarines of projects 885M "Yasen-M" and "Husky".

Based on the possible number of missiles, it is planned to install up to 60 Zircons on the ships Admiral Nakhimov and Peter the Great.

Hypersonic projects of the USA and other countries

Leading world analysts admit that Russia has achieved the almost impossible, breaking the speed of 7 Mach. Until recently, such acceleration was considered unattainable. "Zircon" flies at a speed of 8 M.

Zircon's competitors

The main competitor of Zircon is the US project AHW, which is capable of accelerating to Mach 7.5. Just like the Russian development, it is kept secret. It is only known that his tests are being carried out with varying degrees of success. In 2011, out of two launches, one ended in an explosion. In 2014, the Americans presumably also failed.

Another direction is that the X-43A and X-51 Wave Ryder missiles produce 9.65 and 5.1 M, respectively. But the first tests showed that the engine on the X-43 worked for no more than 11 seconds, and on the X-51 - 6 minutes. China is imposing serious competition on Russia and the United States. The PRC is developing the DF-ZF project. It is believed that the rocket speed fluctuates in the range of 5...10 M. A serious advantage of the Chinese is that they plan to develop hypersonic weapons for installation on aircraft.

The future of the 3Q22 project, if successfully implemented, is obvious.

If this super-secret project really delivers the stated characteristics in terms of speed and range, then this type of weapon was decades ahead of its time. Experts believe that the most advanced powers will be able to neutralize the advantages of Zircon no sooner than in 30...50 years.

The missiles put into service will provide Russia with an advantage at sea. Based on board submarines, they will protect the closest borders of our country, threatening large enemy naval formations.

Video