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| Russia's Bastion Missile System Capable of Protecting 600 Km of Coastline From Threat Enemys |
International Military - The Russian Bastion missile system is a mobile coastal missile system designed to protect warships of the Red Bear Navy from enemy aircraft or warships. The Bastion missile system has been in Russian military service since 2010 and was most recently deployed to the Kuril Islands near Japan.
The bastion missile system's primary purpose is to protect a coast that stretches for more than 600 km from enemy amphibious operations. The missile system is mounted on a mobile vehicle that can fire a missile in less than five minutes and remain on active alert for 3–5 days.
Read Also: Russia Deploys Bastion Coast Missile System on Kuril Islands Near Japan
Quoted from the Military Today page, Wednesday (7/12/2022), the Bastion launcher carries two P-800 Oniks or Yakhont (SS-N-26 Strobile) anti-ship cruise missiles. This missile has a range of 300 km with a low-altitude flight path and a range of 120 km with a low-low flight trajectory.
The Yakhont missile carries a warhead weighing 200 kilograms and has the unique ability to fly several meters above the surface of the water, making it difficult for any defense system to detect and intercept. Although designed to carry a conventional warhead, it can also carry a nuclear warhead. The Yakhont missile is of the fire-and-forget type (shoot and forget).
When fired the missile is satellite guided in the early stages of flight and active radar when approaching the target. The missile has a two-stage propulsion system, using a solid-fuel rocket booster for initial acceleration and a liquid-propellant ramjet for a sustained supersonic cruise. The booster is ejected by airflow after burning.
This missile uses Russian-made sea-skimming cruise missile technology. So this missile can fly at an altitude of 5 to 14,000 meters above sea level. The melee weapon system may not be effective against the Yakhont missile, as it moves too fast. This missile can also be used in an electronic countermeasures environment, so it can be difficult for air defense systems to intercept it.
Meanwhile, the bastion missile system launcher vehicle uses the Belarusian MZKT-7930 high mobility chassis. This vehicle has good cross-country mobility and can operate on rough terrain. The vehicle is operated by a crew of 3, including commander, operator and driver. The vehicle has a vertical launch configuration and can launch both missiles with short intervals of 2-5 seconds between launches. The missile can be deployed up to Sea State 7. Once supported by a combat duty support vehicle, the Bastion-P launcher can remain on active alert for up to 30 days.
The Bastion missile system battery consists of 4 mobile launchers, 1-2 command and control vehicles, 1 support vehicle; 4 transloaders. The launcher vehicle can be positioned up to 25 km from the command and control vehicle. The entire Bastion battery is controlled from the main Naval headquarters. If required the launch vehicle can operate independently.
Russia is also proposing an additional over-the-horizon radar for the Bastion missile system. As an alternative, Russia uses the Ka-31 airborne early warning helicopter for this role. The Russian military operates a very similar Bal coastal defense missile system, adopted in 2004. This system uses the less capable Kh-35 anti-ship cruise missiles, but carries 8 missiles per launch vehicle.