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    Tactical Nuclear Weapons

    George1
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    Post  George1 Wed Dec 28, 2011 1:01 am

    Does anyone has details for nuclear bombs analogous to B-61 us bomb? And from which aircraft are carried?


    Last edited by George1 on Thu Jun 11, 2015 12:53 pm; edited 3 times in total
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    Post  GarryB Wed Dec 28, 2011 7:49 am

    Info on Russian tactical nuclear bombs is pretty sparse, and would be associated with the Su-24, Su-34, and Tu-22M3 aircraft.

    Tu-95MS and Tu-160 are pretty much cruise missile carriers, though they are getting conventional guided weapon capability, I rather doubt they would carry nuclear free fall bombs on any missions.
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    Post  coolieno99 Wed Jan 04, 2012 9:23 pm

    The largest nuclear gravity bomb tested (Oct. 30, 1961) by RuAF was the Tsar Bomba (yield = 50 MT). It was air-dropped by a specially modified Tu-95 bomber.  The shock wave from the blast traveled around the world 3 times. Because of its huge size (27 ton), it was more of a "political" weapon than a practical military weapon.



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    Post  GarryB Sun Jan 15, 2012 11:17 pm

    Found a few pics of Russian nuclear bombs... no detail though... cry

    Tactical Nuclear Weapons Penza_10

    Tactical Nuclear Weapons Penza_11
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    Post  George1 Mon Jan 16, 2012 12:42 am

    i think they are in a museum Smile
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    Post  GarryB Mon Jan 16, 2012 1:49 am

    That is correct...

    Museums and line drawings are your most likely result when asking about secret stuff like nuclear weapons.

    Just looking that them the large M54 shaped bombs in the background will be for internal carriage, while the more aerodynamic silver weapons look like they are based on the later M62 design for external carriage and have been aerodynamics.
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    Post  George1 Fri Jan 20, 2012 8:07 pm

    If i understand correctly FAB series bombs will be used with nuclear charge?
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    Post  GarryB Fri Jan 20, 2012 8:54 pm

    Not as far as I know.

    FABs are explosive (F) aerial (A) bombs (B), and come in a range of sizes and uses.

    Tactical nuclear bombs might look similar externally but would not be based on existing types.

    The main types of FAB are the M54 and M62 and come in a range of weights and payloads, but basically the M54s are stubby compact designs designed for internal carriage in bomber aircraft and high drag, so when dropped they decelerate rapidly and are less likely to explode directly below a low flying plane.

    The M62 designs are much more aerodynamic and are designed for external carriage on fighter bombers.

    Tactical nukes also come in a range of sizes for bomb bay use and for tactical use.

    To carry tactical nukes extra electronics and systems are required and it is known that Su-24, and Mig-29 aircraft were wired to carry such weapons as export models of those aircraft are fitted for but not with the extra equipment needed. It is therefore rather likely that the Su-27 was also similarly equipped, and the Su-34 will definitely be equipped to use TNs.

    Ironically the Tu-16 was designed to use very old very large nukes and because of this was used in Afghanistan because it could carry the FAB-9000.
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    Post  The-thing-next-door Fri Nov 10, 2017 6:20 pm

    The INF treaty prohibits building tactical missiles with more range than 500km but says nothing about warhead size so wyh not make a heavy tactical missile with somehing like the FOAB to destroy tows,airfields,factories and other things in 1 hit without people whining about "the Russians used a nuke on these people who only wanted freedom (freedom to succumb to western)"
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    Post  kvs Fri Nov 10, 2017 10:59 pm

    The-thing-next-door wrote:The INF treaty prohibits building tactical missiles with more range than 500km but says nothing about warhead size so wyh not make a heavy tactical missile with somehing like the FOAB to destroy tows,airfields,factories and other things in 1 hit without people whining about "the Russians used a nuke on these people who only wanted freedom (freedom to succumb to western)"

    It's not a bad idea, but even FOABs cannot compete with nukes for damage induced. Sometimes by listening to the "conventional warhead"
    drivel from Washington (e.g. prompt global strike) one would get the impression that all that matters is precision. BS. The blast energy
    matters more. Conventional warheads require many more missiles to do the same level of damage. During a modern rocket war, every advantage
    counts.
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    Post  Big_Gazza Sat Nov 11, 2017 5:13 am

    ..or a HGV that acts as a carrier for a FOAB. Its a ~7T weapon however, so you'd need an ICBM with a 10T throw-weight. Global Strike on steroids...

    Now, what new Russian liquid-fuelled ICBM is being developed that could potentially lift such a beast?... Very Happy
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    Post  GarryB Sat Nov 11, 2017 9:00 am

    Actually if you are going to put it on an ICBM it would be just as effective to use 7 tons of small steel balls about 10mm across with an ablative nose cone to protect them from the hypersonic slipstream until just short of impact...
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    Post  George1 Wed Oct 31, 2018 1:16 am

    Given the lack of transparency surrounding Russia's non-strategic stockpile, numerical estimates vary. One open source estimate from April 2018 placed the number of warheads assigned to non-strategic delivery systems slightly over 1,800―with approximately 500 air-to-surface missiles and bombs assigned to tactical air forces;
    https://www.nti.org/learn/countries/russia/nuclear/




    Problems with estimates

    For the US, the remaining TNWs are more of a political tool that cements the Trans-Atlantic Alliance. The stockpile comprises 300 B61 gravity bombs (their number has been reduced by 95% over 27 years). About half are deployed at European bases.

    Initially, 20,000 warheads were a challenge for Russia. Today, estimates of the size of the Russian arsenal vary significantly, from 860-1,040 warheads, as assessed by Igor Sutyagin, to nearly 2,000 according to Hans Kristensen and Robert Norris. Estimates by Alexey Arbatov and Vladimir Dvorkin are closer to the upper end.

    But given that TNWs can be used only if infrastructure, combat-ready equipment and staff are available, the number of operational tactical warheads in Russia does not exceed the figure given by Sutyagin.

    Russian TNW infrastructure

    The 12th Chief Directorate of the Ministry of Defence is in charge of Russia’s nuclear weapons. It maintains 12 consolidated storage sites: Olenegorsk-2 (Murmansk Oblast), Vologda-20, Mozhaisk-10, Voronezh-45, Bryansk-18, Byelgorod-22, Saratov-63, the closed city of Tryokhgorny (Chelyabinsk Oblast), the closed city of Lesnoy (Sverdlovsk Oblast), Irkutsk-45, Khabarovsk-47 and Komsomolsk-on-Amur-31.

    The repair and maintenance bases where nuclear warheads are made combat-ready after their delivery from the arsenal are halfway between the storage site and the troops. Each such base is formally part of a consolidated nuclear storage site, even if it is located hundreds of kilometres away. Therefore, whenever the authorities state that all Russian TNWs are stored at consolidated storage sites, it is unclear what exactly this means. A base is assigned to each military formation authorised to use nuclear weapons. In the case of TNWs, this means that the troops bear no responsibility for the weapons until a special order is issued.

    For example, the Vologda-20 arsenal stores nuclear warheads for the Baltic Fleet. The repair-and-maintenance base in the Kaliningrad Oblast is linked to this arsenal. Vessels capable of carrying TNWs include the 956-type destroyer Nastoychyvy (Persistent), the 11540-type frigate Yaroslav Mudry (named after the great ruler of the Kievan Rus, Yaroslav the Wise) and several corvettes. Hypothetically, the 152nd Guards Missile Brigade, upgraded last year with 12 Iskander-M missiles, can also carry TNWs.

    The technical capabilities of a repair and maintenance base are limited: It cannot provide services to more than one unit simultaneously. This means that in the distribution of TNWs among military formations, prioritisation is most probably applied, according to the following criteria:

    - vulnerability of TNW delivery systems to the enemy;
    - extent of control exercised by nuclear maintenance officers and the Russian military and political command at all stages of the TNW use;
    - time needed to rescind the order to use TNWs.

    The 152nd Guards Missile Brigade excels at fulfilling these criteria. Although there are 10 brigades of this kind in Russia, not all of them can operate TNWs. There are no repair-and-maintenance bases for at least three of them: the 1st Guards Missile Brigade (Molkino, in Krasnodar Krai), the 92nd (Yelansky District, Sverdlovsk Oblast) and the 119th (Totsky District, Orenburg Oblast).

    Presumably, only military formations in the vicinity of Russia’s western and eastern borders are entrusted with TNWs. Repair and maintenance bases can only work with ‘their own’ formations, due to limited human and technical resources. In other words, a military formation moved closer to the border does not automatically receive the repair-and-maintenance facility to provide it with TNWs. Therefore, the Russian nuclear maintenance system limits the number of operational TNWs.

    https://www.ridl.io/en/russias-tactical-nuclear-weapons-a-reality-check/
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    Post  Hole Wed Oct 31, 2018 9:28 am

    The numbers are limited? Yeah, because you can´t transport nuclear weapons in, let´s say trucks or trains or even planes.
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    Post  George1 Wed Oct 31, 2018 3:09 pm

    i am trying to find mor specific info about russian air-launched TNW like US B61 gravity bomb but i cant till now
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    Post  Hole Wed Oct 31, 2018 3:20 pm

    There are RN-24, RN-28, RN-40 and RN-41 for tactical aircraft, RN-30, RN-32 and RN-42 for strategic aircraft.
    Numbers? dunno
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    Post  Singular_Transform Wed Oct 31, 2018 7:55 pm

    Hole wrote:The numbers are limited? Yeah, because you can´t transport nuclear weapons in, let´s say trucks or trains or even planes.

    It is about storage/maintenance.

    SAFE storage.


    Each weapon worth around 100 million in any chosen currency. Or more.
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    Post  Hole Wed Oct 31, 2018 9:22 pm

    Yeah, but in wartime they would be transported to the units which can launch them. I guess the warheads can be transported around safely a few days (weeks?). Use the same safety measures as with mobile ICBM´s.
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    Post  GarryB Fri Nov 02, 2018 3:13 am

    The KGB used to control nuke warheads for tactical nukes and they used to deliver them under armed escort to prevent interference.

    During WWII the accuracy of bombers was pathetic... you would have 1,000 bomber raids intending to hit a single factory in a city and then have to attack it again the following night to try to get it because you missed it the first night.

    If the modern target is a SAM system or radar, a modern guided missile like Iskander, with a 600kg HE warhead could do the job... 30 years ago you would need a SCUD or a SCALEBOARD... but to actually ensure you got the radar or SAM you would need to use a nuclear warhead.

    Accuracy in terms of terminal guidance means conventional warheads can now do jobs that previously would have required nuclear weapons to achieve.

    A single Kalibr missile can now take out the important buildings in a ball bearing factory... though with the Gefest & T system a single aircraft with a half a dozen bombs could probably get the same job done too.
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    Post  George1 Sat May 16, 2020 10:19 pm

    From charly015 site

    A Su-30SM fighter-bomber loaded with an IAB-500 bomb, designed to simulate an izdeliye 244N tactical nuclear bomb

    Tactical Nuclear Weapons Bomba_10

    What is striking is that the IAB-500 continues to be used taking into account that the 244N is no longer in service (it is from the 1960s) and that the current pumps have very different shapes, as can be seen by taking a look to the RN-32 which is a design from the 80s

    Tactical Nuclear Weapons Bomba_11

    http://charly015.blogspot.com/2020/05/una-bomba-nuclear-en-un-sujoi.html
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    Post  George1 Sat May 16, 2020 10:38 pm

    Also i found this (from soviet era, maybe still used). [GRAU index:8U-64. Platforms: MiG-23, MiG-27, MiG-29 (9-12)]


    RN-40 Tactical Bomb [30kT Nuclear]

    http://cmano-db.com/weapon/1694/
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    Post  George1 Sat Apr 03, 2021 9:24 pm

    photo of a front-line Su-34 bomber with ten simulated aviation bombs suspended at once (IAB, a simulator of nuclear bombs)

    Tactical Nuclear Weapons 88414010

    https://bmpd.livejournal.com/4286699.html

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    Post  Scorpius Mon Apr 05, 2021 3:44 pm

    George1 wrote:photo of a front-line Su-34 bomber with ten simulated aviation bombs suspended at once (IAB, a simulator of nuclear bombs)

    Tactical Nuclear Weapons 88414010

    https://bmpd.livejournal.com/4286699.html

    Now combine the capabilities of the Hephaestus sighting complex and 10 * 30kilotons of nuclear energy... You can bring fire to humanity.
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    Post  Hole Mon Apr 05, 2021 5:53 pm

    Tactical Nuclear Weapons 165010
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    Post  franco Mon Apr 05, 2021 8:54 pm

    You liked to blow things up as a kid didn't you Wink

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