On October 13, 1964, Khrushchev was ousted from power. The new leadership, under Brezhnev, was adverse to all projects Khrushchev had supported. These included those of Chelomei. An expert commission under M V Keldysh was directed to examine all of Chelomei’s projects and make recommendations as to which should be cancelled. Keldysh found that Yangel’s R-36 rocket was superior to Chelomei’s UR-200 and that the Raketoplan was technically overly ambitious. The UR-200 and Raketoplan were accordingly cancelled, while the IS and US satellites were redesigned for launch by the R-36.
A government decree of 24 August 1965 formalised the decision and the Yangel bureau began design work in 1966. Required modifications to the R-36 were minimal; the IS and US Raketoplan-derived payloads had their own engines for insertion into final orbit. The Tsyklon 11K67 first test version was an adaptation of the 8K67 (SS-9 Mod 1) two stage ICBM and flew only briefly (1967 to 1968). It was quickly replaced by the definitive 11K69 Tsyklon 2 launch vehicle. The military project manager was L A Dolnikov.
AKA: 11K67;F-1;Scarp;SL-11. Status: Operational 1967. First Launch: 1967-10-27. Last Launch: 1969-01-25. Payload: 3,000 kg (6,600 lb). Thrust: 2,366.00 kN (531,897 lbf). Gross mass: 182,000 kg (401,000 lb). Height: 39.70 m (130.20 ft). Diameter: 3.00 m (9.80 ft).
2 stage vehicle consisting of 1 x 8S671 + 1 x 8S672
R-36 ICBM |
R-36 Credit: Ukrainian Space Agency |
8K67 Model Credit: © Mark Wade |
R-36U Credit: Ukrainian Space Agency |
R-36 Family |
R-36U2 Credit: Ukrainian Space Agency |
R-36 ICBM Structural test model of R-36 ICBM / Space launcher Credit: © Mark Wade |
R-36 Credit: © Mark Wade |
Improved survival Chart showing survivability of vented tunnel design for ICBM deployment Credit: © Mark Wade |
Nuclear effect Chart showing effects of nearby nuclear explosion on conventional ICBM silo Credit: © Mark Wade |
Test model of R-36 Test model of R-36 ICBM Credit: © Mark Wade |
11K69 Model Credit: © Mark Wade |
Tsiklon on pad Tsiklon on pad at Plesetsk |
Tsiklon 3 on Pad |
Tsiklon-2 Credit: Ukrainian Space Agency |
Tsiklon-3 Credit: Ukrainian Space Agency |
Tsyklon-2 Tsyklon on pad Credit: Ukrainian Space Agency |
Tsyklon-3 Credit: Ukrainian Space Agency |