Il sistema Kub (2К12 "Куб" - codice NATO SA-6 "Gainful")

Il sistema Kub (codice NATO SA-6 "Gainful"), sviluppato nei primi anni '60 ed entrato in servizio nel 1967, è stato il primo missile a medio raggio mobile del mondo e con un'elevata efficacia operativa. 

La batteria standard di SA-6 comprende 4 veicoli di lancio, ognuno dei quali trasporta 3 missili a guida semiattiva radar ospitati sopra uno scafo modificato del semovente antiaereo ZSU-23-4 Shilka, un veicolo che trasporta un radar noto come Straight Flush per illuminare il bersaglio, e altri 2 camion 6x6 ZIL-131 che accompagnano la batteria per i rifornimenti. 

I veicoli di lancio hanno sistemi per il controllo del tiro e protezione NBC. Di questo missile non si sapeva nulla finché non fu usato dagli egiziani nella Guerra del Kippur, cominciando ad abbattere gli aerei israeliani ad un ritmo impressionante. L'ultimo successo di questo missile fu l'abbattimento del caccia F-16 del Capitano Scott O'Grady sulla ex-Jugoslavia nel 1995. Probabilmente è stato il missile russo da difesa aerea più venduto, in quanto è ancora in uso in circa 20 paesi tra Europa, Africa e Medio Oriente.

Sviluppo

Lo sviluppo del 2K12 fu avviato dopo il 18 luglio 1958 su richiesta del Comitato Centrale del CPSU. Il sistema stabilì i requisiti per poter ingaggiare bersagli aerei che volano a velocità comprese tra 420 e 600 m/s (820-1.170 kn) ad altitudini comprese tra 100 e 7.000 m (330 e 22.970 ft) a distanze fino a 20 km (12 mi), con una probabilità di uccisione con un solo colpo di almeno 0,7.

La progettazione dei sistemi fu affidata all'ora Tikhomirov Scientific Research Institute of Instrument Design (NIIP). Oltre all'NIIP, diversi altri uffici di progettazione furono coinvolti nella creazione del sistema missilistico Kub, tra cui Mytishchi Machine-Building Plant, che progettò e produsse il telaio dei componenti semoventi. Molti degli uffici di progettazione avrebbero poi collaborato allo sviluppo del successore del 2K12 "Kub", il 9K37 "Buk".

I primi esperimenti del sistema missilistico furono avviati alla fine del 1959 per scoprire una serie di problemi:

• bassa potenza per il cercatore di radar missilistico e cono di naso mal progettato
• fallimento della progettazione delle prese d'aria dei missili
• bassa qualità dello scudo termico all'interno della camera di postcombustione (il titanio è stato sostituito dall'acciaio).

Nell'agosto 1961 Toropov fu sostituito da Lyapin come capo progettista di Vympel e nel gennaio 1962 Tikhomirov fu sostituito da Figurovskiy come capo progettista di NIIP. Tuttavia, il lavoro non fu intensificato. Prima del 1963 solo 11 degli 83 missili lanciati avevano installato la testa del cercatore; solo 3 lanci hanno avuto successo.

Kub abbatté il suo primo bersaglio aereo in assoluto il 18 febbraio 1963, durante le prove statali nel sito di test di Donguz, nell'Oblast di Orenburg. Era un bombardiere Ilyushin Il-28.

Il sistema entrò in un periodo di prove prolungato tra il 1959 e il 1966, dopo aver superato le difficoltà tecniche di produzione del 2K12 "Kub" il sistema fu accettato in servizio il 23 gennaio 1967 ed entrò in produzione nello stesso anno.

A volte si sostiene che il sistema navale M-11 Shtorm sia una versione del 3M9, ma non è così, in quanto l'M-11 Shtorm è un sistema separato e, insolitamente per i missili russi terra-aria, non ha una variante terrestre.

Il 2K12 "Kub" fu raccomandato per lavori di ammodernamento nel 1967 con l'obiettivo di migliorare le caratteristiche di combattimento (maggiore portata, migliore ECCM, affidabilità e tempo di reazione) stabilito per il nuovo capo progettista Ardalion Rastov. Una variante modernizzata fu sottoposta a test di prova nel 1972 e fu infine adottata nel 1973 come "Kub-M1". Il sistema subì un'altra modernizzazione tra il 1974 e il 1976, anche in questo caso le caratteristiche generali di combattimento del sistema furono migliorate con il test di compensazione "Kub-M3" ed entrò in servizio nel 1976.

Dopo la visita di Rastov in Egitto nel 1971 per vedere il Kub in funzione, decise di sviluppare un nuovo sistema, chiamato Buk, dove ogni TEL dovrebbe avere il proprio radar di controllo del fuoco (TELAR) ed è in grado di ingaggiare più bersagli da più direzioni contemporaneamente.

L'ultimo grande sviluppo del sistema missilistico Kub è stato raggiunto durante lo sviluppo del suo successore, il 9K37 "Buk" nel 1974. Sebbene il Buk sia il successore del Kub fu deciso che entrambi i sistemi potevano condividere una certa interoperabilità, il risultato di questa decisione è stato il sistema "Kub-M4". Il Kub-M4 utilizzava componenti Kub-M3 che potevano ricevere le informazioni di controllo del fuoco dal lanciatore di vettori 9А310 e dal radar (TELAR) del 9K37 Buk. Il vantaggio dell'interoperabilità era un aumento del numero di canali di controllo del fuoco e dei missili disponibili per ogni sistema, nonché una più rapida entrata in servizio per i componenti del sistema Buk. 

Il Kub-M4 entrò in servizio nel 1978 dopo il completamento delle prove.

ENGLISH

The 2K12 "Kub" (Russian: 2К12 "Куб"; English: cube) (NATO reporting name: SA-6 "Gainful") mobile surface-to-air missile system is a Soviet low to medium-level air defence system designed to protect ground forces from air attack. "2К12" is the GRAU designation of the system.

Each 2K12 battery consists of a number of similar tracked vehicles, one of which carries the 1S91 (SURN vehicle, NATO designation "Straight Flush") 25 kW G/H band radar (with a range of 75 km (47 mi)) equipped with a continuous wave illuminator, in addition to an optical sight. The battery usually also includes four triple-missile transporter erector launchers (TELs), and four trucks, each carrying three spare missiles and a crane. The TEL is based on a GM-578 chassis, while the 1S91 radar vehicle is based on a GM-568 chassis, all developed and produced by MMZ.

Development

The development of the 2K12 was started after 18 July 1958 at the request of the CPSU Central Committee. The system was set the requirements of being able to engage aerial targets flying at speeds of 420 to 600 m/s (820–1,170 kn) at altitudes of 100 to 7,000 m (330 to 22,970 ft) at ranges up to 20 km (12 mi), with a single shot kill probability of at least 0.7.

The systems design was the responsibility of the now Tikhomirov Scientific Research Institute of Instrument Design (NIIP). In addition to NIIP several other design bureaus were involved in the creation of the Kub missile system including Mytishchi Machine-Building Plant which designed and produced the chassis of the self-propelled components. Many of the design bureaus would later go on to co-operate in the development of the successor to the 2K12 "Kub", the 9K37 "Buk"

First trials of the missile system were started at the end of 1959 to discover a series of problems:

• low power for the missile radar seeker and badly designed nose cone
• missile air inlets design failure
• low quality of heat shield inside the afterburner chamber (titanium was replaced by steel).

In August 1961 Toropov was replaced by Lyapin as the Chief Designer of Vympel and in January 1962 Tikhomirov was replaced by Figurovskiy as the Chief Designer of NIIP. Still, the work was not intensified. Before 1963 only 11 of 83 missiles fired had the seeker head installed; only 3 launches were successful.

Kub downed its first ever air target on February 18, 1963, during the state trials at Donguz test site, Orenburg Oblast. It was an Ilyushin Il-28 bomber.

The system entered an extended testing period between 1959 and 1966, after overcoming the technical difficulties of producing the 2K12 "Kub" the system was accepted into service on 23 January 1967 and went into production that same year.

It is sometimes claimed that the M-11 Shtorm naval system is a version of the 3M9 but this is not the case, as the M-11 Shtorm is a separate system and, unusually for Russian surface-to-air missiles, has no land-based variant.

The 2K12 "Kub" was recommended for modernisation work in 1967 with the goal of improving combat characteristics (longer range, improved ECCM, reliability and reaction time) established for the new chief designer Ardalion Rastov. A modernised variant underwent trial testing in 1972 eventually being adopted in 1973 as the "Kub-M1". The system underwent another modernisation between 1974 and 1976, again the general combat characteristics of the system were improved with the "Kub-M3" clearing testing and entering service in 1976.

After the Rastov visit to Egypt in 1971 to see Kub in operation he decided upon the development of a new system, called Buk, where each TEL should have its own fire control radar (TELAR) and is able to engage multiple targets from multiple directions at the same time.

The final major development of the Kub missile system was achieved during the development of its successor, the 9K37 "Buk" in 1974. Although the Buk is the successor to Kub it was decided that both systems could share some interoperability, the result of this decision was the "Kub-M4" system. The Kub-M4 used Kub-M3 components which could receive fire control information from the 9А310 transporter erector launcher and radar (TELAR) of the 9K37 Buk. The advantage of interoperability was an increase in the number of fire control channels and available missiles for each system as well as a faster service entry for Buk system components. The Kub-M4 was adopted into service in 1978 following completion of trials.

External images

Some early development interpretations of the Buk missile system heavily utilized Kub components, including the 3M9 missile.

There are several plans to integrate active radar homing missiles into Kub. For instance, Polish WZU of Grudziadz demonstrated a project of a Sparrow-armed Kub at the MSPO 2008 defence exhibition in Kielce. It is reported also that Vympel initiated some work to use its RVV-AE air-to-air missile to modernise the Kvadrat SAM system.

Also, the Czech company RETIA presented a SURN (fire control radar) upgrade featuring an optical channel and new multiple-function color displays as well as the radar upgrade and the IFF system.

In 2011 a Kub upgraded launcher (named "2K12 KUB CZ") with three Aspide 2000 missiles in launch containers was presented at the International Exhibition of Defence and Security Technologies (IDET) exposition in Brno. The modifications were made by Retia.

Description

The 2K12 system shares many components with the 2K11 Krug (SA-4) system. In many ways they are designed to complement each other; 2K11 is effective at long ranges and high altitudes, 2K12 at medium ranges and intermediate altitudes.

The system is able to acquire and begin tracking targets using the 1S91 "Самоходная установка разведки и наведения" (SPRGU - "Self-propelled Reconnaissance and Guidance Unit" / NATO: "Straight Flush" radar) at 75 km (47 mi) and begin illumination and guidance at 28 km (17 mi). IFF is also performed using this radar. It can only guide one or two missiles to a single target at any time. The missile is initially command guided with terminal semi-active radar homing (SARH), with target illumination provided by the "Straight Flush" radar. Detonation is via either the impact or proximity fuze. On the latest models, this vehicle is also fitted with an optical tracking system which allows engagement without the use of the radar (for active RF emissions stealth reasons, or due to heavy ECM jamming) in which case the effective altitude is limited to 14 km/46000 ft. The optical tracking method also allows engagements to altitudes below that where the radar is able to track targets. Maximum target speed is around Mach 2 for head-on engagements and Mach 1 for tail-chase engagements. Top speed of the missile is approximately Mach 2.8.

In contrast to the elaborate Patriot missile or even the simpler Hawk system fielded by US forces, most of the system rides on two tracked self-propelled vehicles, rather than towed or mounted on trucks, and either the launcher or control vehicle can be set to launch in only 15 minutes after changing location.

Missiles

The fairly large missiles have an effective range of 4–24 km (2.5–15 miles) and an effective altitude of 50–14,000 m (164–45,931 ft). The missile weighs 599 kg (1,321 lb) and the warhead weighs 56 kg (123 lb). Top missile speed is approx. Mach 2.8. The combined propulsion system 9D16K included solid fuel rocket motor which, when burned out, forms the combustion chamber for a ramjet in a pioneering design putting this missile far ahead of its contemporaries in terms of propulsion.

The missile was fitted with a semi-active radar seeker 1SB4, designed by MNII Agat, which was able to track the target by Doppler frequency since the start. Later upgrades (3M9M3 missile) could do this before the start. Chief Designer of the seeker head was Yu.N. Vekhov, since 1960 – I.G. Akopyan.

In 1977 a new version, the 3M9M1 (DoD designation SA-6B) was created with three missiles fitted onto a different chassis (the same as that of the 9K37 "Buk" (NATO reporting name "Gadfly" / DoD SA-11 ), the 2K12 effective replacement) with an integrated "Fire Dome" missile guidance radar. For comparisons between the 2K12, 9K37, see the 9K37 Buk entry.

An earlier incremental upgrade saw the 2K12 missiles replaced with the 2K12E versions and this system was known as Kvadrat ("Квадрат", meaning square). This name was derived from the most common arrangement pattern of the military vehicles of the 2K12 complex, when the 1S91 radar is located at the center and 4x2P25 TELs at the vertices of a square around the radar.

1S91 radar

SURN 1S91 vehicle included two radar station – a target acquisition and distribution radar 1S11 and a continuous wave illuminator 1S31, in addition to an IFF interrogator and an optical channel.

While 1S31 antenna was installed on the upper section of the superstructure and the 1S11 on the lower, they could turn around independently. To make the height of the vehicle lower the central cylinder was able to hide inside the prime mover.

The acquisition range of the radar was reported as 50 km (31 mi) for a F-4 Phantom II type of target.

Total weight of the 1S91 vehicle with a crew of 4 was 20.3 tonnes and 2P25 vehicle with 3 missiles and a crew of 3 was 19.5 t.

Additional radar

The 2K12 can also be used at a regimental level, if used as such it can be accompanied by a number of additional radar systems for extended air search at longer range and lower altitude, to supplement the 1S91 "Straight Flush". These systems include the:

• P-12 "Spoon Rest", a VHF early warning radar (also used by the S-75 Dvina), with a 200 kilometres (120 mi) range.
• P-40 "Long Track", an E band early warning radar (also used by the 2K11 Krug and 9K33 Osa), with a 370 kilometres (230 mi) range.
• P-15 "Flat Face A", a UHF early warning radar (also used by the S-125 Neva, with a 150 kilometres (93 mi) range.
• "Thin Skin" or "Side Net" E band height finding radar (also used by the S-75, 2K11 Krug and S-200, range 240 km/148 miles)
• "Score Board" IFF radar.

The "Spoon Rest" and "Thin Skin" are mounted on a truck, "Long Track" on a tracked vehicle (a modified AT-T) and "Flat Face" on a van. It is unknown what kind of mounting the "Score Board" has.

Without the P-40 "Long Track" mobile radar vehicle, the 2K12 is unable to track aircraft at high altitudes.


Operational history

Middle East

Yom Kippur War

The Egyptian and Syrian 2K12s surprised the Israeli military in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, because they were accustomed to having air superiority over the battlefield. The highly mobile 2K12 took a heavy toll on the slower A-4 Skyhawk and even the F-4 Phantom, forming a protective umbrella until they could be removed. The radar warning receivers on the Israeli aircraft did not alert the pilot to the fact that he was being illuminated by the radar. The 2K12 achieved a good performance as a weapon according to a conversantion between Israeli General Peled and Henry Kissinger, and was the main anti air missile in Egytian inventory to cause Israeli losses followed by 9K32 Strela-2.

The superior low altitude performance of the weapon, and its new CW semi-active missile seeker resulted in a much higher success rate compared to the earlier S-75 Dvina and S-125 Neva systems. While exact losses continue to be disputed, around 40 aircraft are usually cited as lost to SAM shots, and the 2K12 Kub proved most effective of the three weapons. But in subsequent conflicts, its performance declined as captured examples resulted in effective counter-measures being developed.

1982 Lebanon war

The Syrians also deployed the 2K12 Kub to Lebanon in 1981 after the Israelis shot down Syrian helicopters near Zahlé. The SAM batteries were placed in the Bekaa Valley near the Beirut-Damascus road. They remained close to the existing Syrian air defense system but could not be fully integrated into it. Early in the 1982 Lebanon war, the Israeli Air Force concentrated on suppressing the SAM threat in the Beqaa Valley, launching Operation Mole Cricket 19. The result was a complete success. Several 2K12 Kub batteries, along with S-75s and S-125 systems, were destroyed in a single day. While Syria's own air defenses remained largely intact, its forces in Lebanon were left exposed to attacks by Israeli strike aircraft for the remainder of the war.

South African Border War

The People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) procured a number of 2K12 Kub systems from the Soviet Union in 1981. According to the Central Intelligence Agency, Angola had obtained sixteen TEL launchers for the 2K12 Kub systems, which were deployed in the Moçâmedes District. The South African military noted that the missiles would make it difficult for it to provide air cover for its cross-border operations against guerrillas of the People's Liberation Army of Namibia, which were operating from Angolan sanctuaries. All of Angola'a 2K12 Kub launchers were destroyed in a South African preemptive strike as part of Operation Protea.

2K12 Kub missile sites were also operated by Cuban expeditionary forces in Angola during Operation Excite/Hilti. On 26 June 1988, six 3M9M3 missiles launched from a Cuban 2K12 Kub battery were fired at a South African weather balloon being used as a radar decoy over Tchipa. South African observers used the firing data to plot the location of the 2K12 Kub launchers and destroyed them in a concentrated bombardment with G5 howitzers.

Western Sahara War

Forces of the Polisario Front acquired two full batteries of 2K12 Kub missiles from Algeria during the Western Sahara War, which they used effectively against the fighters of the Royal Moroccan Air Force, including shooting down two Mirage F1 fighters in 1981 during a major battle in Guelta Zemmur.

Poland

On 19 August 2003, a Polish Air Force Su-22M4K was accidentally shot down by friendly fire during an exercise by a Polish 2K12 Kub battery. The aircraft was flying 21 km (13 mi) from the coast over the Baltic Sea near Ustka. The pilot, General Andrzej Andrzejewski, ejected and was rescued after two hours in the water.

Libya

The system was deployed by Libya during the border dispute with Chad and proved a threat for French aircraft. On 16 February 1986, the system failed in detecting low flying French jets which were attacking the Ouadi Doum airbase. On January 7, 1987, the French Air Force were successful in destroying a 2K12 Kub radar site in the Faya Largeau area with SEPECAT Jaguars armed with Martel anti-radiation missiles.

In March, the Chadian rebels captured Ouadi Doum air base, seizing virtually all heavy equipment used for the defense of this airfield, intact. Most of this equipment was transported to France and the United States in the following days, but some 2K12 Kub systems remained in Chad.

With this catastrophe, the Libyan occupation of the northern Chad – and the annexation of the Aouzou Strip – was over: by 30 March, the bases at Faya Largeau and Aouzou had to be abandoned. The LARAF now had a completely different task: its Tu-22Bs were to attack the abandoned bases and destroy as much equipment left there as possible. The first strikes were flown in April, and they continued until 8 August 1987, when two Tu-22Bs tasked to strike Aouzou were ambushed by a captured 2K12 Kub battery used by the Chadian Army. One of the bombers was shot down.

Libyan air defense, including 2K12 Kub batteries, was active during the 2011 military intervention in Libya. They were completely ineffective, not managing to shoot down any NATO or allied aircraft.

Iraq

Several 2K12 Kub batteries, along with other SAM systems and military equipment, were supplied to Iraq before and during the Iran–Iraq War as part of large military packages from the Soviet Union. The batteries were active since the start of the war in September 1980, scoring kills against U.S-supplied Iranian F-4 Phantoms and Northrop F-5s.

Kub systems were active again during the 1991 war. On the opening night of Desert Storm, on 17 January 1991, a B-52G was damaged by a missile. Different versions of this engagement are told. It could have been a S-125 or a 2K12 Kub while other versions report a MiG-29 allegedly fired a R-27R missile and damaged the B-52G. However, the U.S. Air Force disputes these claims, stating the bomber was actually hit by friendly fire, an AGM-88 High-speed, Anti-Radiation Missile (HARM) that homed on the fire-control radar of the B-52's tail gun; the jet was subsequently renamed In HARM's Way. Shortly following this incident, General George Lee Butler announced that the gunner position on B-52 crews would be eliminated, and the gun turrets permanently deactivated, commencing on 1 October 1991.

On January 19, 1991, a USAF F-16 (serial 87-228) was shot down by a 2K12 Kub during the massive (though ill-fated) Package Q Strike against a heavily defended Baghdad. It was combat loss number 10 in Operation Desert Storm. The pilot, Captain Harry 'Mike' Roberts, ejected safely but was taken prisoner and freed in March 1991. The aircraft was on a mission to attack the Air Defense Headquarters Building. It had flown 4 combat missions before being lost.

In any case, the 2K12 Kub threat was largely controlled by Allied EW assets together with the older S-75s and S-125 missile systems. Most of the losses were due to IR guided SAMs.

Kubs continued to be used by the Iraqi military, along with other SAM systems, to challenge the Western imposed no-fly zones during the 1990s and early 2000s. They were not able to shoot down any Coalition aircraft though several sites were destroyed as retaliation. For example, on December 30, 1998, a 2K12 Kub site near Talil fired 6-8 missiles at aircraft enforcing the Southern Watch component of the NFZ. American F-16s responded by dropping six GBU-12 laser-guided bombs on the site and also launching two HARMs "as a preemptive measure" to warn Iraqi radar operators against carrying out more firings.

Bosnia and Kosovo

Army of Republika Srpska forces, using modified 2K12 Kub systems were successful in shooting down Scott O'Grady's F-16 in 1995 and two to three Croatian AN-2 aircraft that were used as night bombers with improvised 100 kg bombs.

One Mi-17 was shot down by a Kub on May 28, 1995, killing the Bosniak Minister Irfan Ljubijankić, a few other politicians, and the helicopter's Ukrainian crew.

During the Kosovo War in 1999, on the first night of the war (March 24/25), a Yugoslav Air Force MiG-29 flown by Maj. Predrag Milutinović was downed by a Kub battery in a friendly fire incident, while approaching Niš Airport after an unsuccessful engagement with NATO aircraft.

The Yugoslav Air Defence had 22 2K12 Kub batteries. Using shoot and scoot tactics, the self-propelled ground system demonstrated a good surviability with only three radars lost in the face of nearly four-hundred AGM-88 shots. As comparison the fixed S-75 and S-125 sites suffered losses to around 66 to 80 percent. According to the then-commander of Air force and air defense General Spasoje Smiljanić, during the 78 day campaign, 2K12 Kub had 46 shooting with 70 missiles.

Syrian War

On April 14, 2018, American, British, and French forces launched 103 air-to-surface and cruise missiles targeting sites in Syria. According to the Russian military, twenty-one Kub missiles launched in response allegedly destroyed eleven incoming missiles, However, the American Department of Defense stated no Allied missiles were shot down.

Yemen Civil War

On 6 June 2019, Houthi forces successfully shot down a USAF MQ-9. CENTCOM officials blamed the shoot down on a Houthi-operated 2K12 Kub system.

Operators

Current operators

• Algeria – about 40 2K12s, as of 2012
• Angola – 25 2К12s, as of 2012
• Armenia
• Bulgaria – 20 2K12, as of 2016
• Bosnia and Herzegovina – 20 2K12, as of 2019
• Cuba – 25+
• Czech Republic – 4 batteries – 16 launchers and 4 radiolocators
• Egypt – 56 2K12s, as of 2012
• Ethiopia – unknown number in service.
• Hungary – 16 2K12s, as of 2012
• India – 180 2K12s, as of 2012
• Iran
• Kazakhstan – 20 2K12s, as of 2012
• Libya
• Myanmar – Kub kvadrat from Belarus
• North Korea
• Poland – 20 2K12s, as of 2015.
• Romania – 8 batteries, future upgrading expected and proposed
• Russia – Replaced by 9K37 Buk. Current 1 battery 2K12s deployed in Armenia, as of 2012 (retired as of 2015). Also in service as IVC 3M20M3 Peniye missile training target imitator system
• Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
• Serbia - Serbian Army – 87 2К12s
• Slovakia – 4 2K12s with C2 Tatrapan PVO
• Syria – 195 2K12s, as of 2012
• Tanzania – 20 2K12s, as of 2012
• Turkmenistan – 2+ in service as of 2016
• Ukraine
• Vietnam
• Yemen
• Houthi.

Former operators

• Chad
• Czechoslovakia
• East Germany – Retired after German reunification
• Iraq
• Soviet Union – Passed on to successor states
• Yugoslavia – Passed on to successor states.

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