Russia: SS-21 Scarab Missiles Test Fired
November 28, 2007 :: RIA-Novosti :: News
The November 28 edition of RIA Novosti reports that a Russian missile brigade from Siberia test fired two SS-21 Scarab short range ballistic missiles in the Kapustin Yar testing range. The SS-21 or Scarab, also referred to as the "Tochka-U" in Russia, is a single-warhead, road-mobile ballistic missile. Russia is phasing out the SS-21 missiles, which it has used since 1976, and replacing them with the new Iskander-M missiles (SS-26/Stone) which carry multiple warheads. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: SS-21 A, SS-21 B
Russia Tests SS-19 Missile
October 29, 2007 :: Spacewar.com :: News
Russia test fired an RS-18 (SS-19) intercontinental ballistic missile October 29 from the Baikonur cosmodrome in neighboring Kazakhstan, Russian news agencies reported. The missile's warhead successfully traveled eastward to the missile testing ground on the Kamchatka peninsula. The test was intended to check the continued effectiveness of the missile's flight systems. The RS-18s are specially equipped to overcome missile defense systems. The Itar-Tass news agency notes that Russia has some 160 of the SS-19 missile, and that they are equipped with countermeasures to resist American missile defense systems. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: SS-19 Mod 1, SS-19 Mod 2
India Tests Agni-1
October 24, 2007 :: Spacewar.com :: News
On October 24, India successfully test fired its nuclear-capable Agni-1 ballistic missile from a test range in the eastern state of Orissa. The test is the second this month, following an earlier October 5 launch. The Agni-1 has a range of 700 kilometers (420 miles), making it capable of striking at most targets within Pakistan. The launch was conducted by India's recently-established strategic armed forces, signaling Agni-1's official induction into the million-plus military, defense experts said. "It is a major success," the official added. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: Agni, Agni-1
Russia Launches SS-25 Topol Missile
October 18, 2007 :: RIA-Novosti :: News
On October 18, Russia reported that it had successfully test-fired an RS-12 Topol (SS-25) intercontinental ballistic missile from the Plesetsk space center. The warhead aboard the missile traveled successfully to its target at the testing grounds located on the far eastern Kamchatka peninsula. In service since 1988, the RS-12 is a road-mobile single-warhead ICBM, similar in size and shape to the U.S. Minuteman ICBM. The launch from the space center in north Russia had been conducted to assess the possibility of extending the ten year long service life of Topol missiles. The missile will be replaced over the coming decade by a mobile version of the Topol-M (SS-27) missile, which can carry up to six nuclear warheads. (Article, Link)
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Russia Tests Gazelle Missile Interceptor
October 13, 2007 :: News
Russia reports the successful test of a missile defense interceptor from the Sary Shagan test site on on Lake Balkash in Kazakhstan, according to Space Forces spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Alexei Zolotukhin. Zolotukhin said that the test launch of a Gazelle interceptor was made to assess extending the service life of the A-135 missile defense system which has long been deployed around Moscow.
"A combined team of the Space Forces, the Sary Shagan testing site and industry officials fired a short-range interceptor missile at a target missile," said Zolotukhin. According to the same report, the Sary Shagan site "recently has experienced a spate of testing by the Russian Strategic Missile Forces, which have tested six anti-missile systems, 12 air defence systems, seven types of missile interceptors, 12 types of ground-to-air missiles and 18 radars at the site." (Article, Link)
» Additional report of Russian interceptor test
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» Missile system details for: System A-135, Gazelle (SH-08/ABM-3)
India Tests Agni-1
October 5, 2007 :: News
On October 5, India successfully test fired the short-range variant of its nuclear-capable Agni-1 ballistic missile which can strike most targets in rival Pakistan, a defence official said. The Agni-1, which has a range of 700km, was launched from Wheeler Island at mid-morning off the eastern state of Orissa, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: Agni-1
Pakistan Test Fires Hatf-8 Cruise Missile
August 25, 2007 :: News
Pakistan today successfully test fired a new Air-Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) termed the Hatf-8 (Ra'ad). The indigenously developed Ra'ad ("Thunder" in Arabic), is said to have a range of 350 kilometers, though there is speculation that this range might be extended. The missile is said to have a stealth design, to be as accurate as the Babur cruise missile, and have the capability to carry various types of warheads. The missile has been reportedly designed exclusively for launch from a variety of Pakistan's air platforms, providing these with a strategic stand off capability on land and at sea.
The Hatf-8 is a designation which has apparently not been previously used by Pakistan, and it seems uncertain if this is a genuinely new missile or a variation of the Hatf-7. (Article, Link)
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» Cruise missile details: Hatf 7
Russia Tests Iskander-M
May 30, 2007 :: Itar-Tass :: News
A new version of the Russian Iskander-M mobile ballistic missile was successfully tested at the Kapustin Yar site in the Astrakhan Region, reports Itar-Tass. The missile was in flight for 24 minutes. The missile's deviation from the expected path was no greater than 30 meters despite strong winds and air temperatures of over 40 degrees. One journalist reported that "three minutes thirty seconds after the launch the missile rose to an altitude of 100 meters and its speed at the moment was 250 meters per second." The maximum speed of the new missile is 257 meters per second, with a range of 300 kilometers. Those Iskanders for export are said to have less of a range than those for Russian forces. First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov and Defense Minister Anatoly Serdiukov monitored the launch. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: SS-26
Russia Tests RS-24 ICBM
May 29, 2007 :: The Guardian :: News
Russia today tested what it described as a new intercontinental ballistic missile system, capable of carrying multiple independent warheads and penetrating any defense system. The missile, designated as the RS-24, was fired at 2:20 p.m. from a mobile launcher at the northwestern Plesetsk Cosmodrome. It traveled 6,000 miles to the Kamchatka Peninsula. The test was called successful, and the missile's multiple re-entry vehicles landed on target on the Kura testing range, the Strategic Missile Forces said in a statement. Itar-Tass quoted a Russian press release saying that, together with the Topol-M (SS-27, RS-12-M) the new missile system will provide the backbone of Russia’s missile forces beginning in 2008, as construction intensifies and aging Ukrainian made RS-18s and RS-20s (known in the West as the SS-19 Stiletto and the SS-18 Satan) are being retired.
The AFP quotes Ivan Safranchuk, head of the Center for Defense Information's Moscow office, as noting that "the main advantage is that this is a Russian rocket...The other multiple-warhead missiles were built in Ukraine. Before, there [were] no Russian-built multiple-warhead missiles." (Article, Link)
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Iran Tests Missiles in Exercise
January 22, 2007 :: Financial Times :: News
Iranian television has announced the beginning of a military exercise Sunday, involving the tests of short range missiles. The Muharram Missile Exercise is said to be taking place in the Garmsar region, outside Tehran. The 350km-range Zelzal and the 70km-range Fajr-3 rocket were reportedly among those tested. These missiles are of course modest compared to Iran's more capable 2,000km-range Shahab-3/4.
The Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran radio quoted a Commander A'ineh of the Revolutionary Guard as saying that the exercises were to test the ability to attack an enemy at a variety of distances. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: Zelzal-1/2/3
