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The Soviet R-2 Missile and its Variants

The R-2 missile was the second large rocket, that was built in the Soviet Union. Like the R-1, the R-2 was also based on the German A-4 (V-2) missile. The R-2 was basically a streched R-1 with double the range and payload weight. The missile had other improvements, such as a new engine and a separable warhead. The R-2 was designed and produced by the same organizations that were created for the R-1. Variants of the R-2 were used to test equipment for future Soviet rockets and for scientific research.

History of the R-2

The development of the R-2 began in 1946 at the NII-88 almost in parallel with the R-1. The lead designer of the missile was Sergei Korolev and it was in competition with the G-1 missile that was being designed by Helmut Gröttrup. Gröttrup was a German rocket scientist, who had been brought to the Soviet Union after the second world war. Korolev designed the R-2 based on a new engine that was developed by Valentin Glushko’s OKB-456. This new engine allowed the missile to have a greater range and paylod than the R-1 by simply strecthing the R-1. The engines were tested between 1948 and 1949.

The first preliminary design was ready by the end of 1946. After review by the Minister of Armaments in 1947, a second design was created with some technical improvements, such as a detachable warhead. This new prototype version was called the R-2E. The G-1 and R-2 were evaluated by the State Commission in december 1948. The G-1 was superior to the R-2 but, because the G-1 was more complex and the R-2 was easier to build, the R-2 was selected for testing. Korolev did include some features of the G-1 in the R-2, such as integral fuel tanks and a radio-controlled engine cut-off system.

Test flights of the R-2E prototype version of the missile, began on 21 September 1949 at Kapustin Yar. Five launches were made in 1949, three of which were successfull. Tests of the regular R-2 began on 26 October 1950. All 12 launches of the first batch failed. A second batch of 13 missiles were tested in 1951, only one of them failed. A third batch in 1952 contained 16 missiles of which 2 failed. The production of R-2 missiles were authorized by a Ministry of Armaments decree on 30 November 1951 at Factory 586 at Dnepropetrovsk. The first production R-2 was ready in June 1953.

Military units and other facilities related to the R-1 (mid 50s)

On 27 November 1951, the Council of Soviet Ministers accepted the R-2 into military service by the decree 4972-2096. On 1 June 1952, the 54th and 56th BON RVGK started testing the R-2 in Kapustin Yar. The R-2 was used by the same military units that were using the R-1. Military units using the R-2 were deployed to Zhitomir, Kolomoaya, Medved, Kamyshin, Shyalya, Dzhambul, and Ordzhonikidze. The exact units using the R-2 are unknown. Most likely the 77th and 80th Engineer Brigades in Zhitomir, the 72nd Engineer Brigade in Medved, and the 73rd Engineer Brigade in Kamyshin. The R-2 was decommisioned in 1960.

On 6 December 1957, an agreement between the Soviet Union and China was made to allow for license production of the R-2 in China. On 1st of September 1960, the Chinese tested an R-2 missile that was delivered from the Soviet Union. The chinese missile Dong Feng 1 (DF-1) was a copy of the R-2 and was first tested on 5 November 1960. The R-2 provided the technological base for future Chinese rocket programs.

R-2 / 8Zh38 Missile (Р-2 / 8Ж38)

R-2 missile with dimensions
R-2 missile with dimensions

The R-2 missile received the GRAU index 8Zh38. It had a range of 550 km with a separable warhead weighing 1 350 kg. The warhead of the R-2 was still conventional, like in the R-1. However, the Geran radiological warhead was developed for the R-2. The Geran was not a nuclear explosive, but used radioactive material to create the fallout effects of a nuclear explosive without the explosion. A similiar radiological warhead, the Generator, was also developed. The R-2 took 7.5 minutes to fly to its target and reach a maximum altitude of 171 km and a maximum speed of 2 175 m/s. The circular error probable was 6.94 km.

The R-2 was 17.68 or 17.65 meters long (sources vary), 1.65 meters in diameter, and had a wing span of 3.56 meters. It had a launch weight of 20 091 kg, 19 632 kg, or 20 416 kg (sources vary) and an empty mass of 4 592 kg or 4 528 kg (sources vary). The shape of the R-2 was similiar to the R-1. Both had the same diameter and wing span.

The Engine of the R-2 was the RD-101 (GRAU index 8D52). Glushko’s OKB-456 designed the new engine based on the RD-100, which was used in the R-1. The RD-101 was basically an RD-100 that used a solution of 96 % alcohol and 4 % water as fuel, instead of the 75 % alcohol and 25 % water that was used in the RD-100 (other source says 92 % alcohol and 8 % water). It still used liquid oxygen as oxidizer. The engine would run for 85 seconds and would produce 364.9 kN or 363 kN (sources vary) of thrust at sea level and 404.112 kN of thrust in vacuum. The specific impulse of the RD-101 was 214 s or 210 s (sources vary) at sea level and 237 s in vacuum

R-2E Experimental Missile (Р-2Э)

The R-2E was a prototype of the R-2. It was used to test features, such as integral fuel tanks and separable warheads, that were to be used in the R-2. The R-2E had a range of 576 km, which was longer than with the final R-2 version. The R-2E was structurally almost identical to the regular R-2. The differences it had, made it 9 cm shorter than the R-2. Five launches of the R-2E were made between September and October of 1949.

R-2R Experimental Missile (Р-2Р)

The R-2R was used to test a new radio controlled engine cut-off system, that was being designed for the R-3 and R-5 missiles. The development of the R-2R began in 1950 when the development of the radio control system was started. Five R-2R missiles were launched in 1952 or in 1951 (sources vary).

R-2A Sounding Rocket (Р-2А)

The R-2A was made as a successor to the sounding rockets that were modifications of the R-1. It was capable of flying 1 400 kg of scientific instruments or 260 kg in a 1 400 kg warhead (sources vary) up to 209 kilometers high. Different scientific experiments and animals were flown on the R-2A. The detachable warhead was equipped with aerodynamic brakes, that slowed the missile to 100-150 m/s speed before a parachute opened. The first R-2A was launched in 1957. A total of 13 launches were made from Kapustin Yar between 1957 and 1960.

Other Variants

A version of the R-2 with the RD-103 engine was used to test the engine for use in the R-5 missile. This version was not launched but it was tested on a ground stand. A modified warhead with higher accuracy was tested in 1955. This modification may have had the GRAU designation 8Zh39. The R-2M, a version of the R-2 with a nuclear warhead was tested in 1956. The designation R-2B is mentioned in some sources as another sounding rocket version of the R-2 like the R-2A.

Sources

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