Blagoveshchensk. April 24. INTERFAX-AVN - The new Russian intercontinental ballistic missile "Sarmat", which is planned to be adopted this year, can be equipped with several hypersonic Avangard combat units, said the commander of the Strategic Missile Forces of the Russian Federation Sergey Karakaev.
"With the creation of Avangard, a new era has been created - the era of hypersonic weapons. Today, no one in the world (has such complexes - IF) standing on combat duty, but we do," Karakayev said on the air of the Vesti Nedelya program on the Rossiya-1 TV channel (VGTRK) on Sunday.
"As for the Sarmat, this is a different missile system. It is based on the carrier. It is much more powerful than the Avangard carrier. And it was created, including for the Avangard combat equipment, taking into account the fact that their number (Avangard combat units) on this complex may be more," Karakayev said.
"Sarmat" will be able to strike from both the north and south poles of the Earth, said the General director, General designer of JSC "GRC Makeeva" (developer of "Sarmat") Vladimir Degtyar.
"This rocket can provide a trajectory around the globe. And it is possible, if the target is in the southern part, to attack from the north, if the target is in the north, you can attack from the south," Degtyar said on the Rossiya-1 TV channel.
On April 20, 2022, the Russian Defense Ministry announced the first test launch of a stationary-based Sarmat ICBM from the Plesetsk cosmodrome. According to the ministry, the launch tasks were completed in full, the design characteristics of the rocket were confirmed at all stages of its flight. The training combat units arrived in a given area at the Kura training ground on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
The Sarmat rocket will be put into service no later than the autumn of 2022, the head of Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin said on April 23.
"The new complex has the highest tactical and technical characteristics and is able to overcome all modern means of missile defense. It has no analogues in the world and will not be for a long time," Russian President Vladimir Putin said on April 20 after watching the successful test launch of the Sarmat rocket via video link.
"This truly unique weapon will strengthen the combat potential of our armed forces, reliably ensure Russia's security from external threats and make those who, in the heat of frenzied aggressive rhetoric, are trying to threaten our country think," Putin said at the time.
On April 20, commenting on the first test launch of the Sarmat, Rogozin called it a "gift from NATO."
It was reported that the Sarmat missiles will be mass-produced at the Krasmash plant (Krasnoyarsk, Roscosmos Corporation).
It was reported that the RS-28 Sarmat ICBM will replace the most powerful mine-based strategic missile in the world, the RS-20V Voevoda (according to the NATO classification - SS-18 Satan). in the Uzhurskaya (Krasnoyarsk Territory) and Dombarovskaya (Orenburg region) divisions of the RVSN.
It was officially reported that the Sarmat missiles in the future will become carriers of the Avangard hypersonic gliding cruise warheads developing a speed of about Mach 27 (Mach is the speed of sound). Currently, Avangard combat units are installed on UR-100N UTTH intercontinental ballistic missiles.
The extension by Moscow and Washington of the Strategic Offensive Arms Reduction treaty for five years does not prevent the deployment of new Russian strategic missile systems Avangard and Sarmat, the commander of the Strategic Missile Forces said last December.
The Strategic Missile Forces is a branch of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the main component of its strategic nuclear forces. The strategic missile forces are designed for nuclear deterrence of possible aggression. The basis of the RVSN grouping is made up of modern Yars complexes in mine and mobile versions. "Yars" is capable of hitting targets at a range of up to 11 thousand km, it is equipped with a separable head with maneuvering blocks of individual guidance.
