Dmitry Litovkin-about new artillery reconnaissance complexes and modern trends in the development of the armed forces
The new 1B75 "Penicillin" intelligence complex has entered service. The system is able to record acoustic and thermal signals from shots and bursts of artillery shells, giving out the exact coordinates of the location of enemy guns. Data about them is plotted on an electronic map, after which our guns deliver an accurate blow to the enemy.
The new "Penicillin" has nothing in common with the antibiotic of the same name, but, like a super drug, it solves a very serious problem - survival on the battlefield. The emergence of a new intelligence system is another sign that the concept of war is rapidly moving into the digital space, where the reality around us is increasingly becoming like a computer game.
Serious function
Not much is known about the military "Penicillin". According to the developers themselves from the Vega concern (part of the Rostec Group's Roselektronika holding), it also makes equipment for long-range target detection and control aircraft of the A-100 Premier type. This flying command post is based on the IL-76MD-90A aircraft with new low-noise and more powerful PS-90A-76 engines. The machine lifts 20 tons of unique electronic equipment that allows you to instantly detect, identify and classify targets, instantly transmit information to control points for ground, ship and aircraft weapons. If you take the predecessor of this machine, the AWACS A-50, then he "saw" and "heard" everything that is happening around him within a radius of 650 km. At the same time, he accompanied up to 300 targets.
The complex artillery reconnaissance "Penicillin"
Image source: © Research Institute "Vector"
It is for this reason that our Defense Ministry reacts so painfully to the flights of the American analogues of the "Premier", aircraft of the AWACS type, near the Russian borders. By the way, just last week, the agency tracked 27 such reconnaissance aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles of Western states conducting electronic intelligence. Their presence is a virtualization of military confrontation, when modern electronic technologies are thrown in place of real saboteurs and spies.
"Penicillin" is not so global, but its function is serious. It works at any time of the day at temperatures from -40 to +50 °C. The time to get the coordinates of a single target that is firing does not exceed 5 seconds. At the same time, unlike most other similar systems, it detects enemy artillery not with the help of radar, but thanks to a new principle of combining thermal and sound reconnaissance, which makes it impossible to suppress it electronically. This provides a stealth mode. After all, the new system does not unmask itself with radar radiation, but at the same time provides high accuracy of data acquisition. The system is mounted on a Kamaz chassis, and the system's reconnaissance optoelectronic module is mounted on a lifting mast.
When the combat mode is activated, it rises vertically, bringing the cameras to the required height. This allows you to work from behind natural shelters - buildings, forests or terrain depressions, protecting equipment on the battlefield. The platform with cameras is equipped with vertical and horizontal aiming drives.
Penicillin has six of them - television and thermal imaging. They are placed in two cases, fixed movably on a common rotary base. The cameras have an angle of view of 70 degrees in azimuth and 10 degrees in elevation. The signal from all 12 devices is simultaneously transmitted to the computers and processed together. This gives a very high accuracy and detail picture of the situation in the area of operation of the complex.
I don't see the goal
The main advantage of "Penicillin" is precisely that it does not emit anything when working. For guidance systems of high-precision weapons, as well as their detection, this factor becomes vital. Take at least our latest self-propelled artillery installation "Coalition-SV". The machine is capable of sending more than ten 50-kilogram shells in the direction of the explored target in a minute. And when using the "Fire Raid" or "Flurry of Fire" mode, the self-propelled gun fires by changing the angle of inclination of the barrel, which allows you to shoot at different ballistic trajectories. As a result, all the projectiles fired simultaneously cover the target.
This was achieved due to the new automated fire control system, which provides the calculation of the angles of elevation of the gun and the pauses between shots, depending on the range from the target of destruction, the location of the artillery installation itself, the wind direction, and so on.
At the same time, the crew of the combat vehicle may not visually observe the target at all, the system is responsible for this. Outwardly, this is an ordinary iPad installed in the combat compartment of the ACS. It displays a digital map of the area, data comes from the A-100 "Premier", other aircraft or helicopters, as well as individual observers or the same "Penicillin". All this is automatically processed, and the crew of the combat vehicle can only click on the "fire" button.
Until recently, such a calculation was made by voice communication, and the commander of the artillery calculation in a notebook with a pencil calculated the trajectories and rate of fire. It is clear that all this took a lot of time. And the enemy could move, and their own battery could be detected and covered with oncoming fire.
At Army-2020, the Signal Research Institute (part of the High - Precision Complexes of Rostec Group) showed a unique gadget in all respects-the Tablet-A. It is made in the form factor of a portable household impact-resistant device. This is one of the few small-sized wearable automation tools in the country for controlling artillery, mortar units and multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) units.
Complex of automated fire control "Tablet-A"
Image source: © Dmitry Feduska/TASS
"Tablet-A" provides automation of the work of battery commanders to obtain target designation and conduct calculations to defeat the target. Through secure communication channels, it connects to a unified tactical combat control system, receives maps of the area, displays positions and targets, information about which is transmitted to it from various means of intelligence. It also receives data from meteorological complexes and ballistic stations. The commander of the artillery battery has to press the stylus or finger to mark the target on the touch screen and give the command to defeat it.
The tablet allows you to control various artillery systems, ranging from mortars and towed artillery to self-propelled artillery installations such as "Msta-S" and "Coalition", as well as MLRS such as "Tornado-G". And both individually and as part of mixed orders. For example, mortars, cannons, self-propelled guns and MLRS at the same time. And all this is possible, including thanks to the Penicillin artillery reconnaissance vehicle.
Flight of the navigator
Virtual reality glasses make the management of modern military equipment even more sophisticated. The same Research Institute "Signal" is promoting the "transparent armor" system today. This phrase for the West refers to the use of IronVision technology. Its essence is that the operator of military equipment can use a virtual environment to control sights, target designation means and conduct general control of a combat vehicle, being tens of kilometers away from it. Today, experiments are being conducted on the BMP-3. The upgraded BMP is able to force water obstacles and shoot afloat. And all this is done in a virtual 3D reality.
"Signal" has already "digitized" the drives of the 2A42 aircraft gun mounted on the Mi-28N and Ka-52M attack helicopters. Previously, its control system had analog sensors. Now digital and precision mechanisms. The electric drive provides horizontal and vertical guidance of weapons. These innovations have already been implemented in the Pantsir-SA complex, and can be installed on the T-72B3, T-80BVM, T-90 "Breakthrough" and T-14 "Armata" tanks. That is, all this technology has potentially become remotely controlled or fully robotic.
Mi-28N helicopter
Image source: © Sergey Bobylev/TASS
In this series, we should especially note last year's experiment with the fifth-generation Su-57 fighter and the S-70 Hunter drone, when they performed a training flight together. It was a demonstration of the technological capabilities and virtualization of warfare. The robot can be controlled by a fighter pilot, a computer installed on board the machine, or a person from the ground. In any case, there is a result. Humans and robots can exist on the battlefield in the same "ecological niche".
Advances in the development of intelligence systems, targeting and guidance of weapons today are among the most important in the development of weapons and equipment. The Ministry of Defense attaches particular importance to the introduction of robotic systems, as it allows you to save the lives of military personnel when performing combat missions. Robots or, more correctly, robotic systems-the management of them is still in the hands of a person-are in all branches and branches of the armed forces. To work with them, you need not only reliable communication channels, but also accurate positioning and targeting systems. Among them is the "Penicillin" complex.
The Russian army was previously supplied with radar systems for counter-battery warfare, which detect enemy shells and missiles using radar stations, as well as sound-measuring systems equipped only with acoustic sensors, which have significant errors in determining the positions of enemy artillery.
For example, such as AZK-7M, SNAR-10 "Leopard", SNAR-15 "Selenite", artillery complex for reconnaissance and maintenance of ground artillery firing ARK-1M" Lynx", radar complex for reconnaissance of missile positions and artillery"Zoo-1". The abundance of varieties of such equipment indicates the high importance of such equipment in modern combat operations. We can hope that the complex with the sonorous name "Penicillin" will take its rightful place in their ranks.
