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The Soviet R-5 Missile and its Variants

The R-5 missile was the first Soviet intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) and its variant, the R-5M, was the first Soviet missile with a nuclear warhead in service. The R-5 was designed after the planned R-3 missile was cancelled. Other variants of the R-5 were used to test equipment for the R-7 missile and for launching scientific experiments to space. R-5 missiles were also used as targets for an anti-ballistic missile system.

History of the R-5 and R-5M

The R-3 was supposed to be a missile that would carry a 3 000 kg warhead to 3 000 km distance. A technology demonstrator for the R-3 was authorized in 1949 but was cancelled in October 1951. The demonstrator would have been called the R-3A. The reason for cancelling the R-3 was because Sergei Korolev thought that a better missile could be built with a different engine configuration. This new missile would become the R-7. Because the R-3 was cancelled, two new missiles, the R-5 and R-11, were ordered to be designed by a decree on 20 October 1951 to replace the R-3. Because a lot of the technologies designed for the R-3 were used in the R-5, the design was quickly completed on 30 November 1951 at NII-88. A new engine for the R-5 was developed at OKB-456. It was based on the previous engines used on the R-1 and R-2, which were based on the engine used in the German A-4.

Testing of the R-5 systems began in December of 1951 and continued to February 1952 at the Scientific-Research Institute 2 (NII-2) at Zagorsk. Test trials were ordered by a decree on 13 February 1953 at Kapustin Yar. The first R-5 was launched on 15 March 1953, but this launch failed. The first successful R-5 launch was on 2 April 1953. Test launches were conducted from March of 1953 to February of 1955 in three separate stages. In the first stage, between March 1953 and May 1953, 8 missiles were launched, 6 were successful. In the second stage, between October 1953 and December 1953, 7 missiles were launched, 6 were successful. In the last stage, between August 1954 and February 1955, 15 missiles were launched, 10 were succesful. R-5R variants were used to test radio guidance systems during this last stage. The R-5 was accepted for military service but was either not deployed in active service or only very few were deployed.

On 12 August 1953, a lightweight 400 kiloton thermonuclear warhead RDS-6 was successfully tested at Semipalatinsk. Sergei Korolev began working on a re-entry vehicle for this warhead. On 10 April 1954, a Council of Soviet Ministers decree authorized the development of a nuclear-tipped R-5 missile, called the R-5M. The decree also established the Experimental Design Bureau 586 (OKB-586) at the Dnepropetrovsk Factory 586. This new design bureau would become another designer of Soviet missiles.

Testing of the nuclear-tipped R-5M with dummy warheads was started on 11 January 1956 at Kapustin Yar. 5 test launches were made before live warheads were tested. The first test with a nuclear warhead was done on 2 February 1956. The launch was successful but the nuclear warhead, that was supposed to produce a 70 kT explosion, failed to properly explode and produced an explosion of 300 T. R-5M missiles were launched from 24 November to 30 December 1956 to act as targets for testing the anti-ballistic missile system V-1000. R-5RD variants were used to test systems for the R-7 missile.

The production of R-5M with the nuclear warhead was started at Factory 586 in 1955 and at the Special Design Bureau 386 (SKB-386) at Dnepropetrovsk in 1956. It was accepted into service on 21 June 1956 or 21 July 1956 (sources vary). To store and install nuclear warheads, the 6th Directorate of the Ministry of Military Forces was transformed to the 12th General Directorate of the Ministry of Defense. It was originally meant to be in charge of development, trials, deployment, and security of nuclear warheads, but from December 1959 its activities were only limited to safekeeping nuclear warheads.

Locations of military units and installations related to the R-5

R-5M missiles were used by the 72nd Engineer Brigade in Medved, 77th Engineer Brigade in Belokorovichi, 80th Engineer Brigade in Belokorovichi, 73rd Engineer Brigade in Kamyshin, 85th Engineer Brigade in Kapustin Yar, 90th Engineer Brigade in Kiev, and by four regiments in Ussuriysk, Manzovka, Simferopol and Slavuta. Around 1960, the engineer brigades were renamed to rocket divisions. In 1961, units using the R-5M’s were the 101st Rocket Regiment (44th Rocket Division) in Kamyshin, 84th Rocket Regiment (46th Rocket Division) in Simferopol, 97th Rocket Regiment (24th Rocket Division) in Gvardeysk, 115th Rocket Regiment (29th Rocket Division) in Taurage, and the 652nd Rocket Regiment (45th Rocket Division) in Ussuriysk. A total of 48 launchers for the R-5M were made by the end of 1957 and about 200 missiles were built in total. Only about 36 R-5M’s were in service at all times. The R-5M was being replaced by the R-12 in 1961 and was completely removed from service by 1968 or 1969 (sources vary).

On 26 March 1955, a decree of the Communist Party ordered the deployment of the 72nd and 73rd Engineer Brigades to East Germany and Bulgaria but these were not carried out. In January 1959, the 72nd Engineer Brigade performed a test deployment to East Germany. The brigade moved back to the Soviet Union between August and September of 1959 to be equipped with new missiles. Documentation of the R-5 was delivered to China in the late 1950’s. In 1962, the Chinese DF-2 missile, which was very similar to the R-5, was tested.

R-5 / 8A62 Missile (Р-5 / 8А62)

The R-5 missile received the GRAU index 8A62. It had a range of 1 200 km with a 1 425 kg warhead. The warhead was the radiological Generator-S (some sources say it was called the Generator-5) with 710 kg of active material. This was a variant of the Generator radiological warhead that was designed for the R-2. The R-5 took 10.5 minutes to reach its target and would reach a maximum height and speed of 300 km and 3 044 m/s. The circular error probable was 1.4 km or 5.16 km (sources vary).

The R-5 missile was designed to be able to use additional warhead options, that increased the payload but decreased the range. The options were the 1 425 kg warhead at the nose and either 2 or 4 lateral warheads with a mass of 600 kg each. The variant with 2 lateral warheads had a total warhead mass of 2 625 kg and a range of 820 km, and the variant with 4 lateral warheads had a total warhead mass of 3 830 kg and a range of 600 km.

R-5 (single warhead) with dimensions

The R-5 was 21.34 m, 20.75 m, or 22.115 m tall (sources vary), 1.65 m in diameter, and had a finspan of 2.64 m. It had a launch weight of 28 625 kg, 27 250 kg or 28 570 kg (sources vary) and an empty mass of 4 625 kg, 3 250 kg, or 4 200 kg (sources vary). The fins were small and triangular instead of the large A-4 derived wings used on the previous missiles. The structure of the R-5 was mostly made from Amg-3 aluminium-magnesium alloy. The tail section was made of D-16T aluminium alloy. This aluminium structure was lighter than the structures that were used in the previous R-1 and R-2 missiles.

The engine of the R-5 was the RD-103 (GRAU index 8D54). The RD-103 was designed by OKB-456 and was based on the earlier engines used in the R-1 and R-2. It featured improvements, such as a better cooling system, automatic thrust control, and elastic fuel lines. The engine burned ethyl alcohol with 92 % alcohol and 8 % water as fuel and liquid oxygen as oxidizer. It would run for 120 s and had a thrust of 500 kN or 480.2 kN in vacuum and 432 kN or 429.828 kN at sea level (sources vary). The specific impulse of the engine was 243 s or 254 s in vacuum and 216 s or 219 s at sea level (sources vary). Control of the missile after engine cutoff was achieved by directing the oxygen, that was used for pressurizing the oxidizer tank during engine firing, into nozzles in the conical section of the missile.

R-5M / 8K51 Missile (Р-5М / 8К51)

The R-5M missile received the GRAU index 8K51. It had a range of 1 200 km, like the R-5. Three different nuclear warheads were used and they all weighed 1 350 kg. The explosive strength of the warheads was 80 kT, 300 kT, and 1 MT. The 80 kT warhead was a fission warhead, the 300 kT was a boosted fission or fusion warhead, and the 1 MT was a fission warhead. The flight charasteristics and accuracy were similiar to the R-5.

R-5M with dimensions

The R-5M was 20.747 m tall, 1.65 m in diameter, and had a finspan of 3.453 m. The launch weight of the R-5M was 28 610 kg, 29 100 kg, or 29 500 kg (sources vary). The empty mass the missile was 4 390 kg. The fins of the R-5M were larger but similar in shape as the fins in the R-5.

The engine of the R-5M was the RD-103M (GRAU index 8D71), developed by OKB-456. (Accurate details of the engine are difficult to find, because some authors seem to confuse it with the RD-103 and the sources vary) It was an improvement of the RD-103. It used the same fuel (96 % alcohol, 4 % water or 92 % alcohol, 8 % water) and oxidizer (liquid oxygen) as the RD-103 and would run for 120 s. The RD-103M had a thrust of 500,1 kN or 499.8 kN in vacuum and 432 kN or 430.122 kN at sea level. The specific impulse of the engine was 248 s in vacuum and 219.3 s at sea level. The R-5M used the same nozzle control system as the R-5.

R-5R and R-5RD Experimental Missiles (Р-5Р, Р-5РД)

The R-5R was a variant of the R-5, used for testing a new radio guidance system, that was to be used on the R-5, and missile tracking with radars. Five R-5R missiles were launched between 1954 and 1955, when the R-5 was still being tested. Four of these launches were successful. Some sources say that only three R-5R missiles were tested between May and June 1956.

The R-5RD (also known as M5RD) was a variant of the R-5M, used for testing systems for the R-7 missile, that was being developed. These systems included control systems, telemetry systems, and warheads. Ten R-5RD missiles were launched from 15 February to 18 August 1956. (Some sources say they were launched between July and September 1956)

R-5A and R-5B Sounding Rockets (Р-5А, Р-5Б)

The R-5A was a sounding rocket version of the R-5, that was used to launch scientific equipment and animals to high vertical trajectories. The equipment was located in a payload section that would separate from the booster and land back to Earth with a parachute. Some animal flights tested spacesuits and parachutes for human spaceflight by ejecting animals with experimental spacesuits and parachutes from high altitudes. 26 R-5A rockets were launched between 1958 and 1965. The highest altitude reached by an R-5A was 473 km in 1958.

The R-5B was another sounding rocket used for an high-altitude astrophysical observatories. There is not much information about this rocket, but it was probably a version the R-5 and was launched from 1963 to mid or late 60’s. (Some sources say 8 R-5B’s were launched between 1962 and 1965)

R-5V and R-5VAO Sounding Rockets (Р-5В, Р-5ВАО)

The R-5V was a high-altitude sounding rocket version of the R-5 or R-5M (sources do not mention this). This rocket was used to study descent vehicles for manned spaceflight. Some other scientific launches were made with the R-5V rocket under the “Vertical” program. These launches most likely used similar payload recovery techniques as the earlier sounding rockets. 10 R-5V’s were launched between 1964 and 1975. (Some sources say 15 R-5’s were launched between 1959 and 1983)

The R-5VAO is a rocket mentioned in some sources. It seems to have been another sounding rocket for launching scientific experiments and for testing equipment for the R-11 missile. It was a version of either the R-5 or the R-5M. Some sources indicate that the R-5VAO migth have been just the R-5B with the high-altitude astrophysical observatory as payload. Two R-5VAO’s might have been launched between 1964 and 1965.

Sources

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