Hi everyone. Welcome back to another episode of Military TV. Today, we are going to discuss the
S-550, a newest air defence system which has been introduced recently by the Russian government.
Let’s see what this new system entails! Stay tuned and don’t go anywhere.
On November 9, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoygu cited the statement of
President Vladimir Putin about the necessity to “deliver the air defence systems S-350,
S-500 and S-550 to the Russian troops”. It implies that Russia has successfully developed an
undeniably unknown weapon and is about to deploy it. This announcement took the public by surprise,
yet the military circles have not unveiled any details about this new machinery nor have
they agreed on giving any relevant commentaries. Also goes by the name 55R6M "Triumfator-M", S550
is a Russian surface-to-air missile/anti-ballistic missile system created to replace the A-135
missile system presently in service, and to also provide support for the S-400.
The S-500 was developed by the Almaz-Antey Air Defence Concern. It is first delivered in 2021,
though already planned to be in production by 2014. According to the Pravda report,
due to its characteristics, S-550 is unrivalled by any other similar system in the world,
being the top of its classes of space-defence weapons. Still citing the same report,
it is known that the weapon shares similarity with the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD)
system in that it will be synthesized into a single network of assets of defence in aerospace.
Let’s get into the history of how the Russian came up with the S-550.
Initially, the existence of an air defence or missile defence system in Russia
under the code ‘S-550’ had been unknown. The only project codenamed ‘S-550’ was started
to be built back towards the end of 1980s, at the end of the Soviet Union. It was meant to
be an air defence unit with mobility that could intercept ballistic missiles, among other things.
However, before the final dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1988,
the ongoing work and development on what was intended to be a massive air defence system
fell to a cease. Subsequently, it is not widely known whether the project has
anything to do with an array of new system claimed by the Minister of Defence.
Despite sharing a similar designation with the 1960s S-500U project, the relationship between
the two remains unknown. The S-500U multichannel anti-aircraft system was developed in 1968 by
the Soviet Air Defence Forces, the Soviet Navy, the Ministry of Radio Industry, and the Ministry
of Shipbuilding Industry to create a unified complex for the National Air Defence Troops,
the navy, and ground troops. The S-500U complex's missiles were designed to engage enemy aircraft
at ranges of up to 100 kilometers. The Soviet Army rejected the S-500U SAM complex project,
which required it to engage not only enemy aircraft but also short-range ballistic missiles.
As a result, the S-300 family (SA-10 and SA-12) was created instead.
The system was in the design stage at Almaz-Antey in 2009, with a completion date of 2012. It was
announced in February 2011 that the first S-500 units would be in serial production by 2014. Two
S-500 production plants were to be built by 2013, with first deliveries scheduled for 2015 or 2017.
Originally, ten S-500 battalions were to be purchased for the Russian Aerospace Defense (VKO)
as part of the State Armament Programme 2020. (GPV-2020).
The S-500s will operate in tandem with the S-400s and will eventually replace the S-300
missile systems. The first units will be stationed in and around Moscow and the
country's central region. A naval version is the likely armament for the new Lider-class destroyer,
which is set to enter service after 2020. With the S-500, Russia conducted the
longest-range surface-to-air missile test to date in May 2018. The S-500 was able to hit a target
482 km or around 300 miles away, according to reports citing unnamed sources familiar with US
intelligence on the program, which is 80 km further than the previous record.
And then on June 4, 2019, the Russian Ministry of Defence released a video of the successful
launch of a new anti-ballistic missile system in the form of a long-range surface-to-air missile.
Though the nature of the air defense system being tested was not specified, it is widely
assumed to be a test of the S-500 Prometheus long-range surface-to-air missile system.
For its operational history, the first regiment of S-500 took off to combat mission after passing
the state exams in Moscow on 13 October 2021. What does the experts have to say about the S-550?
Experts thought that the S-550 will become an intermediate version of the S-500,
with the notably cheaper price and the capability to perform other tactical tasks. While it can
be inferred that S-500 is the first generation of air defence systems capable of intercepting
ballistic and hypersonic missiles in space. Furthermore, experts believe that the S-550
is a variant that differs in additional combat characteristics from the basic
S-500. It was upgraded for specific tasks as well as the ability to hit a variety of targets.
The S-500 'Prometheus' is a universal long-range and high-altitude interceptor
capable of intercepting ballistic, cruise, and aerodynamic targets (aircraft). The S-500
has a damage radius of about 600 kilometers. Its shipment to the military began a few months ago.
"State tests have just been completed, and the first system deliveries have begun."
And that is not yet in the full nomenclature that Almaz-Antey must create at the customer's
request," Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov said on one of his statements.
The difference between the S-500 and S-550, according to Viktor Murahovsky, editor-in-chief
of 'Homeland Arsenal,' is roughly the same as the difference between the S-350 and S-400.
"We can draw parallels between the S-350 and S-400 air defense units,
which were developed at the same time but for different purposes," he says.
The S-350 is a less expensive option designed for closer targets, whereas the S-400 is a more
expensive option equipped with missiles capable of shooting down long-range reconnaissance aircrafts
such as the RC-135, ground target designation and reconnaissance aircrafts such as the E-8,
AWACS aircrafts, as well as strategic bombers at distances beyond their fire range and other
nuclear weapon carriers," Murahovsky says. Concomitantly, the S-550 will be definitely
a cheaper alternative designed for shorter distances, while the S-500 is quite high
in price and capable of conducting long-range and high-altitude missions.