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| R-1 Cutaway - 10,708 bytes. 115 x 480 pixels. |
Soviet production copy of the German V-2. Despite the threatening supervision of the program by Stalin's secret police chief, Beria, and the assistance of German rocket engineers, it took eight years for the Geman technology to be absorbed and the missile to be put into service. The difficulties confirm the German's 1946 assessment that Russian industrial technology was fifteen years behind that of Germany. Payload 815 kg. Range 270 km. Maximum altitude 77 km. Time of flight 5 minutes. Max velocity at burnout 1465 m/s. Accuracy 8 km in range, 4 km laterally.
Aside from the service version of the missile, variants were used for technology and scientific tests. From the fifth flight of the R-1A these were equipped with ejectable lateral containers and a separable nose cone for recovery of biological specimens (dogs and rabbits) and other instruments exposed to zero G conditions and altitudes up to 100 km:
The decision to copy the German V-2 missile did not come quickly. Following construction of an initial batch of V-2 missiles in Germany (the N series), and the removal of available German rocket specialists to Soviet territory, Stalin spent some time before deciding what to do with them. It was not until 26 July 1947 that a decree was issued for test of the V-2 missiles at the new rocket test ground at Kapustin Yar. The first test series of 'N' rockets was conducted from September to October 1947. German assistance was required to get the rockets to fire, and then of 10 or 11 launched, only 5 were successful. A follow-on launch of 10 'T' series rockets, completed in Germany at Kleinbodungen, was just as dismal. Only 5 worked, with the others demonstrating a maximum rang of 274 km and 86 km altitude.
A resolution to put into production a Soviet-built copy of the V-2, the R-1, was issued on 14 April 1948. Aleksander Shcherbakov was responsible for seeing that a fifteen year technology gap was bridged. To accomplish this the resources of 13 research institutes and 35 factories were tapped. Glushko was tasked with producing the RD-100 copy of the V-2 engine. Prototypes had already begun factory tests at the end of 1947, with stand tests beginning in May 1948. R-1 test flight trials were accomplished swiftly - ten in 1948 and 20 in 1949. On 25 November 1950 the missile was accepted for service, with the first operational unit the 92nd brigade (BON RVGK) at Kapustin Yar. Things seemed to be going well, but getting the missile in production would be another matter.
The missiles flown so far had been built by Korolev's NII-88 research institute at Podpliki. But Soviet aerospace practice was to assign production to a factory facility. Factory 66 at Zlatoust was selected for this in 1949, with SKB-385 to assume production design responsibility and to develop variations of the R-1 with greater range. But the work dragged on without results, and on 1 June 1951 Beria switched R-1 production to Factory 586 at Dnepropetrovsk. He ordered engine production to begin in two months - even allowing an engineer to blurt out that it would take at least eight months without consigning him to the Gulag. But the engineer was more nearly right, and the first Dnepropetrovsk production R-1, albeit still containing many parts and assemblies fabricated at NII-88, was finally completed in June 1952. First stand tests of production 8D51 engines began on 15 August 1952. The first rocket built completely of Dnepropetrovsk-fabricated parts was rolled out on 28 November 1952.
In field service the rocket required twenty vehicles and four kinds of liquid propellants for the main engine, turbines, and starter (liquid oxygen, alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, permanganate catalyst). Six hours were required to prepare the rocket for launch, and CEP was only 1500 m. Another major objection of Red Army Generals - they didn't dare let the troops work with a rocket using alcohol for a propellant...
Nevertheless in December 1950 the first field R-1 unit was formed - the 23th brigade (BON RUGK). Each brigade was equipped with six launchers. In January 1951 the 23rd deployed to Kamishin in Volgograd oblast. Further deployments of this pathfinder unit were to Belokovorovich, Ukraine; Shyalyay, Lithuania; Dzhambul, Kazakhstan, and Ordzhonikidze, the Far East, the Primorsk area. The 77th and 90th brigades were formed at Lvov, Khmelnitskiy, and Zhitomir, Ukraine. In August 1958 they were transferred to the Land Forces. The number of units fielded were small, reflecting the long delay in getting the R-1 into production. The field equipment was designed to also be used for R-2 missiles, which quickly replaced the R-1 in the field units.
A sea launched variant of the R-1, probably similar to the German 'Pruefstand VII' submarine-towed, pod-launched project, was also studied from 1949 to 1950, but not proceeded with.
Liftoff Thrust: 27,690 kgf. Total Mass: 12,798 kg. Core Diameter: 1.7 m. Total Length: 17.0 m.
Council of Soviet Ministers (SM) Decree 1017-419ss 'Questions of Reactive Armaments-formation of Special Committee for Reactive Technology (later Special Committee No. 2) of Council of Ministers for the co-ordination of work on missiles' was issued. This decree set up a number of new research institutes to exploit German rocket technology.
Groettrup team in Nordhausen completes design of the K1 (R-1). The design uses some parts manufactured in reopened factories in the German east zone. Factory 88 at Podlipki (later Kaliningrad, then Korolev) 16 km north-west of Moscow, and Factory 456, at Khimki, 7 km north-west of Moscow, are to be the first two Soviet rocket assembly factories.
Ministry of Aviation Industry (MAP) Decree 424 'On redirecting Plant No. 456 at Khimki for the production of rocket engines' was issued.
Decree 'On establishment of BON of Fourth Directorate of GAU in Ministry of Armed Forces' was issued.
Ministry of Armaments Decree 83-K 'On appointment of S. P Korolev as Chief Designer of R-1' was issued.
Decree 'On appointment of S. P. Korolev as Chief of Department No. 3 of NII-88 SKB' was issued.
Council of Soviet Ministers (SM) Decree 1167 'On establishment of OKB-456 at Plant No. 456 at Khimki' was issued.
In overnight roundup, 20,000 Germans transported to USSR to transfer technology on aerospace and other technical fields.
Decree 'On work on the R-1 and R-2 missiles' was issued. To accomplish putting the R-1 into production the resources of 13 research institutes and 35 factories were tapped. Glushko was tasked with producing the RD-100 copy of the V-2 engine. R-1 stand tests began the same day the decree was issued (Prototypes had already begun factory tests at the end of 1947). The decree also set forth design goals for the R-3.The specification was an order of magnitude leap from the other vehicles - to deliver a 3 tonne atomic bomb to any point in Europe from Soviet territory - a required range of 3000 km.
 | Space bunny - Sounding rocket capsule with rabbit and hamster payload Credit: © Mark Wade. 18,438 bytes. 341 x 290 pixels. |
Test of separable warhead. Range achieved 200 km. Ballistic launch. Expected range 210 km. Launched at 0612 local time. The launches were first made public by Tass on March 27, 1958: 'In May 1949 a single-stage Russian rocket attained an altitude of 109 km with an instrument payload of 120 to 130 kg'.
Test of separable warhead. Range achieved 279.6 km. Ballistic launch. Expected range 210 km. Launched at 1857 local time.
Test of separable warhead. Range achieved 210 km. Ballistic launch. Expected range 210 km. Launched at 0548 local time.
Test of separable warhead. Range achieved 320 km. Ballistic launch. Expected range 210 km. Launched at 0055 local time.
Test of separable warhead. Range achieved 32.9 km. Vertical launch. Expected range 22 km. Launched at 0440 local time. Carried two 85 kg Physical Measurement of Atmospheric Boundary (FIAR-1) containers, but they were not recovered.
Test of separable warhead. Range achieved 31.9 km. Vertical launch. Expected range 22 km. Launched at 0450 local time. Carried two 85 kg Physical Measurement of Atmospheric Boundary (FIAR-1) containers, which were recovered but damaged; no science resulted
First launch of second series - 10 preproduction and 11 prototype rockets available. A total of 20 were fired; six failures in 16 launches.
Decree 'On work on geophysical variants of the R-1 missile' was issued.
Council of Soviet Ministers (SM) Decree 'On adoption of the R-1 into armaments' was issued. The missile was accepted for service, with the first operational unit the 92nd brigade (BON RVGK) at Kapustin Yar.
The first field R-1 unit was formed - the 23th brigade (BON RUGK). Each brigade was equipped with six launchers. In January 1951 the 23rd deployed to Kamishin in Volgograd oblast. In August 1958 they were transferred to the Land Forces. The number of units fielded were small, reflecting the long delay in getting the R-1 into production. The field equipment was designed to also be used for R-2 missiles, which quickly replaced the R-1 in the field units.
A sea launched variant of the R-1, probably similar to the German 'Pruefstand VII' submarine-towed, pod-launched project, was also studied from 1949 to 1950, but not proceeded with.
Decree 'On the Transfer of the Dnepropetrovsk Automobile Plant From the Ministry of Automobile and SM Tractor Industry to the Ministry of Armaments--transfer of Dnepropetrovsk Plant No. 586 into the Ministry of Armaments for missile production' was issued
Ministry of Armaments Decree 'On starting of series production of the R-1 at Dnepropetrovsk Plant No. 586' was issued. Factory 66 at Zlatoust was originally selected to produce the R-1 in 1949, with SKB-385 to assume production design responsibility and to develop variations of the R-1 with greater range. But the work dragged on without results, and on 1 June 1951 Beria switched R-1 production to Factory 586 at Dnepropetrovsk. He ordered engine production to begin in two months.
First Soviet rocket flight with animals (dogs Dezik and Zhegan). Maximum Altitude - 100 km. Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container failed.
Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container failed. Carried dogs.
Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container functioned. Carried dogs.
Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container failed. Carried dogs.
First Dnepropetrovsk production R-1, albeit still containing many parts and assemblies fabricated at NII-88, was finally complete.
First stand tests of production 8D51 engines began on 15 August 1952.
The first rocket built completely of Dnepropetrovsk-fabricated parts was rolled out of the factory.
Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container failed. Carried dogs Lyza and Ryjik.
Payload recovered; instruments, left animal containers. Smoke container failed. Carried dogs.
Payload section deployed at 22 seconds. Left animal container recovered. Carried dogs.
Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container functioned. Carried dogs.
Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container functioned. Carried dogs.
Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container failed. Carried dogs.
Payload, instruments, left and right animal containers all recovered. Smoke container functioned. Carried dogs.
The number of units fielded were small, reflecting the long delay in getting the R-1 into production. The field equipment was designed to also be used for R-2 missiles, which quickly replaced the R-1 in the field units.