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SA-6 Gainful
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The 2K12 "Kub" (; ) mobile surface-to-air missile system is a Soviet low to medium-level air defence system designed to protect ground forces from air attack. "2?12" is the GRAU designation of the system. Kub is known in the west by its NATO reporting name "Gainful" as well as the US Department of Defense designation SA-6.
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 (range 75 km/47 miles) equipped with a continuous wave illuminator, in addition to an optical sight.
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Encyclopedia
The 2K12 "Kub" (; ) mobile surface-to-air missile system is a Soviet low to medium-level air defence system designed to protect ground forces from air attack. "2?12" is the GRAU designation of the system. Kub is known in the west by its NATO reporting name "Gainful" as well as the US Department of Defense designation SA-6.
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 (range 75 km/47 miles) equipped with a continuous wave illuminator, in addition to an optical sight. The battery usually also includes 4 triple-missile transporter erector launchers (TELs) and 4 trucks each carrying 3 spare missiles and a crane. TEL is based on a GM-578 chassis, while the 1S91 radar vehicle on a GM-568, all developed and produced by MMZ.
Development
The development of the 2K12 "Kub" was started after 18th 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 420-600 m/s at altitudes of 100 m to 7 km at ranges up to 20 km, 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 the now JSC Metrowagonmash (former MMZ)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"
Kub downed it's first ever air target on February 18, 1963 during the state trials at Donguz artillery testing range, 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 the 23rd January, 1967 and went into production that same year. It is sometimes claimed that the M-11 Shtorm (SA-N-3) 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). 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, against the general combat characteristics of the system were improved with the "Kub-M3" clearing testing and entering service in 1976.
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 9?310 transporter erector launcher and radar (TELAR) of the 9K37 Buk. The advantage 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 state trails.
There are several plans to integrate a active radar homing missiles into Kub. For instance, Polish WZU of Grudziadz shows a project of 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.
Description
The 2K12 system shares a lot of 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 "Straight Flush" radar at 75 km (47 miles) and begin illumination and guidance at 28 km (17 miles). IFF is also performed using this radar. It can only guide between one and 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
Missiles
The fairly large missiles have an effective range of 3-24 km (2-15 miles) and an effective altitude of 50-12000 m (164-39,370 ft). The missile weighs 599 kg (1321 lb) and the warhead weighs 56 kg (123 lb). Top missile speed is approx. Mach 2.8. Propulsion is via a 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 (not to mention other areas).
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 ("???????", meaning square). This name was derived from the most common arrangement pattern of the military vehicles of the 2K12 complex, when the 1C91 radar is located at the center and 4x2P25 TELs at the vertexes of a square around the radar.
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 suppliment the 1S91 "Straight Flush". These systems include the:
- P-12 "Spoon Rest", a VHF early warning radar (also used by the SA-2), with a range.
- P-40 "Long Track", an E band early warning radar (also used by the SA-4
is its NATO reporting name....
and SA-8, with a range.P-15 "Flat Face A", a UHF early warning radar (also used by the SA-3, with a range."Thin Skin" or "Side Net" E band height finding radar (also used by the SA-2, SA-4 and SA-5, 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.
Combat history
The 2K12 surprised the Israelis in the 1973 Yom Kippur War. They were used 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. Once the RWRs were reprogrammed and tactics changed, the 2K12 was no longer such a grave threat. Pilots dubbed the 2K12 "Three Fingers of Death", in reference to the launcher's appearance.
Army of Republika Srpska forces, using modified SA-6s were successful in shooting down Scott O'Grady's F-16 Fighting Falcon in 1995 and one Croatian Air Force MiG-21.
Operators
- in service only as IVC 3M20M3 Peniye missile training target imitator system
Former Operators
Sources
External links
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