3M-54 Klub

The 3M-54 Kalibr, (Калибр, caliber), also referred to it as 3M54-1 Kalibr, 3M14 Biryuza (Бирюза, turquoise), ( NATO reporting name SS-N-27 Sizzler and SS-N-30A) is a family of Russian cruise missiles developed by the Novator Design Bureau ( OKB-8). There are ship-launched, submarine-launched and air-launched versions of the missile, and variants for anti-ship, anti-submarine and land attack use. Some versions have a second propulsion stage that initiates a supersonic sprint in the terminal approach to the target, reducing the time that target's defense systems have to react, while subsonic versions have greater range than the supersonic variants. The missile can carry a warhead weighing up to of explosive or a thermonuclear warhead.

Design

The missile is a modular system with five versions: two anti-shipping types, one for land attack and two anti-submarine types. The missile is designed to share common parts between the surface and submarine-launched variants but each missile consists of different components, for example, the booster. The missile can be launched from a surface ship using a vertical launching system (VLS).

It has a booster with thrust vectoring capability. The missile launched from a submarine torpedo tube has no need for such an addition but has a conventional booster instead. The air launched version is held in a container that is dropped as the missile launches, detaching from the container.

There are several claims about the maximum range of Kalibr land attack versions in use by Russia. The U.S. Department of Defense estimates its range at , and Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu put its range at "almost ." Following its first operational firing in October 2015, Russian Ministry of Defence statements suggested a range of , while a December 2015 Office of Naval Intelligence report gathered a number of Russian statements projecting ranges between 1,500-.

Discrepancies in range values may be political declarations for strategic effect, or potentially longer 2,500 km-range claims could be associated with a thermonuclear armed variant while shorter 1,500 km-range estimates are for the conventionally armed missile.Sokov on Russian Cruise Missiles
– Armscontrolwonk.com, 25 August 2015

Terminal supersonic flight

The Russian domestic variant (3M54T / 3M54K) and export variants (3M54TE/3M54KE) fly at sub-sonic speeds while achieving supersonic speed (Mach 3.0) as they near their target. They are also capable of performing very high angled defensive high speed maneuvers in contrast to the common linear flight path of other anti-ship cruise missiles.

Its Mach 3.0 speed means that modern missile defense systems have a harder time countering it and its precision makes it lethal to medium targets such as destroyers

Operational history

Russian military intervention in the Syrian civil war

* On 7 October 2015, a Gepard class frigate and three Buyan-M class Russian Navy corvettes, part of the Caspian Flotilla launched 26 Kalibr-NK system cruise missiles 3M14T from the Caspian Sea at 11 targets in Syria during the Syrian Civil War. The missiles traveled 1,500 km (932 mi) through Iranian and Iraqi airspace and struck targets in Raqqa and Aleppo provinces (controlled by the Islamic State) but primarily in Idlib province (controlled by the Free Syrian Army and Nusra Front). Anonymous US DoD officials alleged that four missiles crashed in Iran. The US officials offered no evidence while Russian and Iranian governments denied the claim of missile crash. Pentagon and State Department officials refused to comment on the reports. Russia posted video footage of 26 Kalibr missile launches as well as several videos of missile impacts without time or location information.
* On 20 November 2015 Russia launched 18 3M14T cruise missiles from the Caspian Sea onto targets in Syria, the targets were in Raqqa, Idlib and Aleppo.
* On 9 December 2015 Russia fired a group of 3M14K cruise missiles from Kalibr-PL system at positions occupied by ISIL from the Improved Kilo-class submarine B-237 ''Rostov-on-Don'' deployed in the Mediterranean.
*On 19 August 2016 Russia launched three Kalibr-NK cruise missiles from Buyan-class corvette Zelenyy Dol and Serpukhov deployed in the eastern Mediterranean, and struck al-Nusra targets in the Aleppo province.
*On 20 September 2016 Russian state media reported that Russian warships in the Mediterranean fired three Kalibr-NK missiles at western Aleppo, near Mount Simeon. The Russians claimed that the missile strike killed "30 Israeli and Western officers directing the terrorists' attacks in Aleppo and Idlib".
*On 15 November 2016 Russian frigate ''Admiral Grigorovich'' fired at least three missiles against targets in Idlib and Homs provinces, Syria, in the opening stages of the decisive offensive on Aleppo.
*On 31 May 2017 the Russian frigate ''Admiral Essen'' and submarine ''Krasnodar'' launched four missiles against targets east of Palmyra, Syria.
*On 23 June 2017 Russian frigates ''Admiral Grigorovich'' and ''Admiral Essen'', and the submarine ''Krasnodar'' fired six Kalibr missiles at ISIL arms depot targets in Hama.
*On 5 September 2017 the Russian frigate ''Admiral Essen'' fired some Kalibr missiles on ISIL targets (command posts, a communications center, a facility repairing armored vehicles, and arms and ammunition depots) as part of an operation to take Deir ez-Zor.
*On 14 September 2017 the Russian submarines ''Veliky Novgorod'' and ''Kolpino'' fired seven Kalibr missiles on ISIL targets (command posts, communications centers and ammunition depots) in the south-east of Deir ez-Zor.
*On 22 September 2017 the Russian submarine '' Veliky Novgorod'' fired at least three Kalibr missiles on al-Nusra in the Idlib province. The missile strike destroyed command centers, training bases and armored vehicles.
*On 5 October 2017 the Russian submarines ''Veliky Novgorod'' and ''Kolpino'' launched 10 Kalibr missiles. The strikes were to support Syrian troops conducting a ground offensive in Deir-ez-Zor province.
*On 31 October 2017 the Russian submarine ''Veliky Novgorod'' launched 3 Kalibr missiles. The strikes were again to support Syrian troops conducting a ground offensive in Deir-ez-Zor province.
*On 3 November 2017 the Russian submarine '' Kolpino'' launched 6 Kalibr missiles from a submerged position. Missiles hit terrorists' strongholds, weapon and ammunition depots, concentrations of militants, and important command centres near Abu Kamal, Deir-ez-Zor.
*On 3 February 2018 Russian frigates and submarines active in the Mediterranean sea launched several Kalibr missiles on the positions of rebels in the Idlib province, Syria where the Sukhoi Su-25 attack aircraft of Major Roman Filipov was shot down, killing about 30.

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

*During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine's military command reported widespread usage of Kalibr cruise missiles in strikes against strategic and non-combat targets across Ukraine. The opening assault is said to have included about 30 missiles.
*On 14 July, 2022, three Kalibr cruise missiles hit the city center of Vinnytsia, Ukraine, killing at least 20 people, including at least 3 children. Ukraine claimed two other missiles were shot down.
*On 11 September 2022, Kalibr cruise missiles were fired from the Black Sea on targets in Ukraine. The same day, missile strike on Kharkiv TEC-5 thermal power plant in Kharkiv was confirmed by Ukrainian officials.
*On 10 October 2022, during the Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian energy and civilian infrastructure, three Kalibr cruise missile fired by Russian warships from the Black Sea violated the airspace of the Republic of Moldova on their way to Ukraine.

Variants

Domestic variants are basic versions of this missile family; these are the 3M54 and 3M14. The export model is called Club (formerly Klub). There are two major launch platforms: the Kalibr-PL (export Club-S), designed for use from submarines, and the Kalibr-NK (export Club-N), designed for surface ships. These two launch platforms can be equipped with the following warhead and guidance combinations:Jane's Weapons: Naval 2012–2013, Janes Information Group, 2012, p. 13

Domestic variants

*: A submarine-launched anti-shipping variant deployed by the Russian Navy. Its length is , with a warhead. Its range is (estimate). It is a Sea-skimmer with a final stage flight altitude of and a supersonic terminal speed of .
* An anti-shipping variant deployed by the Russian Navy on surface ships. It is launched with a VLS, has a Thrust vectoring booster, and is long. Its warhead weight and other performances are the same as the 3M-54K.
* (SS-N-30A) An inertial guidance land attack variant deployed by the Russian Navy. The submarine-launched weapon has a basic length of , with a warhead. Its range is , allowing the Russian Navy to strike targets throughout Central/Western Europe from beyond the GIUK gap. Its subsonic terminal speed is Mach 0.8.
* is the inertial guidance land attack variant which is deployed by the Russian Navy. A surface ship with VLS launched missile, with thrust vectoring booster, its basic length is , its warhead weight and other performance are the same as the 3M14K. Russia fired 26 3M14T cruise missiles from four surface ships in the Caspian Sea against 11 targets in Syria on 7 October 2015.
* According to state television news (broadcast of 11.10.2015), launch of production took place in 2012. Details of this version – a maximum speed of Mach 3, a range of 4,000 km, basing in the air, on land, on water and under water. The missile can make in-flight maneuvers 147 times or more (in any direction), it has a minimum height of 10 meters, an average one of 20 – 50 meters (up to 1000 m), it will automatically follow terrain, it can be controlled in flight.
* Russia has improved the targeting system of its ship- and submarine-launched Kalibr cruise missiles to improve their ability to conduct time sensitive attacks. Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu revealed the development, which was initiated as a result of combat experience in Syria, in an interview with the Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper on 22 September 2019.
* is a new version of Kalibr with larger warhead and extended range to 4,500 km. The ship, submarine, air, and land-launched versions are in development.

Export variants

Club-S

*Jane's Weapons: Naval 2012–2013, Janes Information Group, 2012, p. 15 is the submarine-launched anti-shipping variant, Its basic length is , with a 450 kg warhead. Its range is 300 km; (note that its range is less than the 3M-54). It is a sea-skimmer with a supersonic terminal speed of 3.0 mach and a flight altitude of at its final stage.

* is a submarine-launched anti-shipping variant, Its basic length is , with a warhead. Its range is . It is a sea-skimmer with a subsonic terminal speed of 0.8 mach.
* An inertially guided land attack variant; it is launched from a submarine. Its basic length is , with a warhead. Its range is . It has a subsonic terminal speed of 0.8 mach.
* A submarine-launched anti-submarine variant, it consists of two stages, one solid booster with four grid fins and one anti-submarine light torpedo. Its basic length is , it has a range of . It can reach supersonic speed. The torpedo has a warhead weight of . It is similar to the American ASROC/SUBROC missile/torpedo system. It follows a ballistic path on the surface, with a speed of Mach 2.5.

Club-N

* – A surface vessel with VLS launched anti-shipping variant; with a thrust vectoring booster. Its basic length is 8.9 m, its warhead weight and other performance is the same as the 3M-54E. Its range is less than the 3M-54. It is a sea-skimmer with supersonic terminal speed and a flight altitude of at its final stage, when it has a speed of 3.0 mach, with a range of at supersonic speed.
* – A surface ship with VLS anti-shipping variant, with thrust vectoring booster. Its basic length is , its warhead weight and other performance is the same as the 3M-54E1. A sea-skimmer with a subsonic terminal speed of 0.8 mach.
* – An inertially guided land attack variant. It is a surface ship with VLS missile and a thrust vectoring booster. Its basic length is , its warhead weight and other performances are the same as the 3M-14E. Its subsonic terminal speed is 3.0 mach, with a range of at supersonic speed.

* – A surface ship with the VLS launched anti-submarine variant; it consists of three stages, one booster with thrust vector nozzle, one conventional booster, and one anti-submarine light torpedo. Its basic length is , with a range of at supersonic speed. The torpedo has a warhead weight of . The lightest of all variants, with a launch weight of . Speed is Mach 2.

Club-T

Land-based anti-ship (3M-54E2) and land-attack (3M-14E1) self-propelled missile system for coastal defense. Both missile variants in the system arsenal weigh 1,700 kg and feature a 450 kg warhead and flight speed of 240 m/s. According to the manufacturer, in land-attack mode, the system has a CEP of 50 m.

Club-A

* – Air-launched anti-ship variant. Two stages, terminal supersonic speed. Weight 1950 kg. Warhead 200 kg. Range 300 km.
* – Air-launched anti-ship variant. Subsonic.
* – Air-launched land attack variant. Subsonic. INS+satellite guidance. Length 6.2 m. Weight 1400 kg. Warhead 450 kg. Range 300 km.

Launch platforms

'' 'Club-K' '' – a Russian container complex of missile weapons, placed in the standard 20- and 40-foot sea container. It is designed to defeat surface and ground targets. The complex can be mounted on shorelines, vessels of various classes, rail platforms and trucks. It is a modification of the Kalibr missile system.

The Russian ''Kilo'' class, ''Lada'' class, ''Amur'' class, ''Akula'' class, ''Yasen'' class, and ''Borei'' class are the submarine launch platforms for the missiles.

The Russian ''Admiral Gorshkov'' class, ''Admiral Grigorovich'' class, and ''Gepard'' class frigates are able to carry these missiles. Also the Indian ''Talwar'' class frigate is another shipborne launch platform for the Club missile system.

The Russian ''Gremyashchy'' class, ''Buyan-M'' class, the second batch of ''Steregushchy'' class corvettes and the ''Karakurt'' class are low displacement platforms with Kalibr system ability.

It is believed by some analysts that an air-launched variant will be developed to arm the Tu-142s currently in service with the Russian navy. A truck mounted version is planned for development by the Novator Design Bureau. A Club-K variant, which is disguised as a shipping container that can be placed on a truck, train, or merchant vessel, was advertised in 2010 and was shown for the first time at the MAKS 2011 air show. Putting the launcher system into a standard shipping container allows the missiles to be moved and stored without arousing suspicion, which in turn renders pre-emptive strikes against the launcher very difficult.

Operators

*:
** uses the 3M14, 3M54, 3M54-1, 91R1, 91RT2. Submarine-launched variants (entered service in 2016) are used by , , , Oscar II-class submarine and the . Surface ship launched variants are used by the ''Gremyashchy'' class, ''Karakurt'' class, ''Buyan-M'' class corvettes, ''Gepard'' class, ''Admiral Gorshkov'' class and the ''Admiral Grigorovich''-class frigates.
*: The Algerian National Navy uses the 'Club-S' variant for their ''Kilo'' class submarines.
*: The Indian Navy uses both 'Club-S' and 'Club-N' variants for the ''Kilo'' class submarines (known as the in Indian service), the ''Talwar'' class frigates respectively.
*: The Vietnam People's Navy uses the 'Club-S' variant for its six ''Kilo'' class submarines.
*: The People's Liberation Army Navy uses the 'Club-S' variant for its ''Kilo'' class submarines.
*: Contradictory sourcesNTI, articl
Iran Submarine Import and Export Behavior , NTI
''Iran Submarine Import and Export Behavior''], Aug. 8, 2012 indicate that the Iranian Navy is thought to have purchased or is about to purchase 'Club-S' missiles for its three ''Kilo'' class submarines.

See also

* 3M-51 Alfa
* Atmaca
* AV-TM 300
*Babur
* BGM-109 Tomahawk
* BrahMos
* Hyunmoo-3
*Khalij Fars
* Noor ASCM
*P-800 Oniks
* Qader
* Ra'ad
*RK-55
* SOM
*YJ-18
* Zafar

References

External links

*

Graphics Illustration

CSIS Missile Threat – SS-N-30

Producer, corporate WWW
*
*
*
*
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:3m-54 Klub
Anti-ship missiles of Russia
Anti-ship cruise missiles of Russia
Anti-submarine missiles
Air-to-surface missiles of Russia
Surface-to-surface missiles
Submarine-launched cruise missiles of Russia
Post–Cold War weapons of Russia
NPO Novator products
Anti-ship cruise missiles of India
Nuclear cruise missiles of Russia
Military equipment introduced in the 1990s