R-5 Pobeda
The R-5 Pobeda (Побе́да, "Victory") was a medium range ballistic missile developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. The upgraded R-5M version, the first Soviet missile capable of carrying a nuclear weapon, was assigned the NATO reporting name SS-3 Shyster and carried the GRAU index 8K51.
| R-5 | |
|---|---|
R-5 on display at the Zhytomyr Korolyov Museum | |
| Type | Theatre ballistic missile Medium-range ballistic missile |
| Place of origin | USSR |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1956 – 1967 |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Yuzhmash |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 29,100 kg |
| Length | 20.75 m |
| Diameter | 1.65 m |
| Warhead | 80 kt, 1 Mt thermonuclear warhead |
| Engine | RD-103M, 8D52 |
| Propellant | Liquid (92% Ethanol/water solution & LOX) |
Operational range | 1,200 km (750 mi) |
Guidance system | inertial guidance plus radio command guidance |
| Accuracy | 1.5 km |
The R-5 was developed by OKB-1 as a single-stage missile with a detachable warhead reentry vehicle. The R-5M was a nuclear armed missile with greater payload and weight entered service in March 1956, was deployed along the western and eastern Russian borders, and in 1959 was installed in East Germany, the first Soviet nuclear missile bases outside the USSR. The missile was retired in 1967, superseded by the R-12.
In 1958, R-5A rockets were used to launch pairs of dogs to altitudes above 450 km (280 mi).