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2022-12-01

Russia May Deliver Abakan Non-Strategic BMD System to Middle East

By: Dr. Nikolai

On October 13, the U.S. National Security Council Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby, told the media that the Biden administration was dismayed by the OPEC+ decision to cut oil production by two mln barrels per day since November.

Following the OPEC+ decision, a group of Democratic congressmen introduced a draft act obliging the presidential administration to withdraw U.S. troops and materiel from certain countries in the Middle East due to this decision.

The draft document also envisages the redeployment of U.S. defensive weapon systems to other Middle Eastern regions in order to maintain the security of U.S. personnel.

Therefore, regional powers may need to look towards Russian-made air defence and ballistic missile defence weapons, some of which are currently in operation.

In particular, the Almaz-Antey Corporation has completed designing the 98R6E Abakan non-strategic ballistic missile defence (BMD) system.

At the Army 2020 defence show, the company presented the 51P6E2 transporter erector launcher (TEL) incorporating two containerised surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) with a 5x5 wheeled truck. The Army 2021 expo saw the presentation of both TEL and the 98L6E 4x4 vehicle-mounted target detection and designation radar.

The full composition of the Abakan non-strategic BMD system was unveiled at this year’s Army defence show.

Spotlight on Abakan

The highly manoeuvrable multichannel system has been designed to protect critically sensitive military industrial, government, and administrative facilities against tactical ballistic missiles. The launcher is intended to transport two 9M82MDE SAMs, vertically launch the missiles in the automatic mode, and control them.

The Abakan integrates a 4x4 vehicle-based mobile multifunctional ballistic target detection and targeting radar 98L6E and several 51P6E2 mobile launchers mounted on 5x5 vehicles.

The exact number of launchers depend on a combat task. Each launcher carries two vertically erectable cylindrical containers with two-stage 9M82MDE SAMs and a disc radar that is folded between the containers in transportation mode. A ready-to-use launcher weighs 53.5 t and is controlled by a two-strong crew.

The 98L6E radar can detect up to 300 aerodynamic and ballistic vehicles. The Abakan is capable of engaging aerial targets with a minimum radar cross-section of 0.02 sq m at a distance of up to 30 km and an altitude of up to 25 km.

Two missiles can be guided at a single target. The increased probability of hitting a ballistic target is ensured by launching two missiles at it with an interval of two seconds. The flight speed of the 9M82MDE SAM is three km/s.

The launcher produces a top speed of 60 km/h and has a deployment time of some six minutes. It takes 7.5 seconds to prepare a SAM for a launch, while the time between launches reaches around two seconds. The launcher cruises for 500 km on surfaced roads and has a power capacity to use a gas-turbine auxiliary power unit for two hours. The radar has two power generators that provide an autonomous power supply.

Abakan has a combined navigation and orientation system while driving. There is satellite navigation, and an inertial navigation system is used in the absence of a satellite signal.

The time of the Abakan BMD system readiness for combat work from the transportation mode is less than 15 minutes, from the deployed state less than three minutes, and the standby mode less than 40 s.

The minimum combat crew is five operators, while the work on the 98L6E radar is provided by two servicemen.

The typical composition of the Abakan BMD system includes one 98L6E mobile radar and four 51P6E2l mobile launchers, but the number of launchers can be increased at the request of the customer.

The Abakan non-strategic BMD system is reportedly based on the S-300V4 tactical air defence system. The launcher is produced by Yekaterinburg-based JSC Kalinin Plant and uses 80 per cent of new electronic equipment, a new data processing system and information exchange with the 98L6E radar. The radar is produced by LEMZ (Lyanozovskyi Electromechanical Plant).

The Abakan non-strategic BMD system is intended primarily for export. It can be integrated into the existing air defence and missile defence systems of any country and ensures the fulfilment of combat missions both when conducting autonomous combat operations and as an additional missile defence module that expands the capabilities of an air defence/missile defence group to repel massive attacks by ballistic missiles with a launch range of up to 3,000 km .

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