THE SUPER POWERFUL IRAN MILITARY

http://www.rense.com/general59/theSunburniransawesome.htm ---------------------------------- The Sunburn - Iran's Awesome Nuclear Anti-Ship Missile The Weapon That Could Defeat The US In The Gulf ----------------------

Many years ago, Soviet planners gave up trying to match the US Navy ship for ship, gun for gun, and dollar for dollar. The Soviets simply could not compete with the high levels of US spending required to build up and maintain a huge naval armada. They shrewdly adopted an alternative approach based on strategic defense. They searched for weaknesses, and sought relatively inexpensive ways to exploit those weaknesses. The Soviets succeeded: by developing several supersonic anti-ship missiles, one of which, the SS-N-22 Sunburn, has been called "the most lethal missile in the world today."

After the collapse of the Soviet Union the old military establishment fell upon hard times. But in the late1990s Moscow awakened to the under-utilized potential of its missile technology to generate desperately needed foreign exchange. A decision was made to resuscitate selected programs, and, very soon, Russian missile technology became a hot export commodity. Today, Russian missiles are a growth industry generating much-needed cash for Russia, with many billions in combined sales to India, China, Viet Nam, Cuba, and also Iran. In the near future this dissemination of advanced technology is likely to present serious challenges to the US. Some have even warned that the US Navy's largest ships, the massive carriers, have now become floating death traps, and should for this reason be mothballed.

The Sunburn missile has never seen use in combat, to my knowledge, which probably explains why its fearsome capabilities are not more widely recognized. Other cruise missiles have been used, of course, on several occasions, and with devastating results. During the Falklands War, French-made Exocet missiles, fired from Argentine fighters, sunk the HMS Sheffield and another ship. And, in 1987, during the Iran-Iraq war, the USS Stark was nearly cut in half by a pair of Exocets while on patrol in the Persian Gulf. On that occasion US Aegis radar picked up the incoming Iraqi fighter (a French-made Mirage), and tracked its approach to within 50 miles. The radar also "saw" the Iraqi plane turn about and return to its base. But radar never detected the pilot launch his weapons. The sea-skimming Exocets came smoking in under radar and were only sighted by human eyes moments before they ripped into the Stark, crippling the ship and killing 37 US sailors.

The 1987 surprise attack on the Stark exemplifies the dangers posed by anti-ship cruise missiles. And the dangers are much more serious in the case of the Sunburn, whose specs leave the sub-sonic Exocet in the dust. Not only is the Sunburn much larger and faster, it has far greater range and a superior guidance system. Those who have witnessed its performance trials invariably come away stunned. According to one report, when the Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani visited Moscow in October 2001 he requested a test firing of the Sunburn, which the Russians were only too happy to arrange. So impressed was Ali Shamkhani that he placed an order for an undisclosed number of the missiles.

The Sunburn can deliver a 200-kiloton nuclear payload, or: a 750-pound conventional warhead, within a range of 100 miles, more than twice the range of the Exocet. The Sunburn combines a Mach 2.1 speed (two times the speed of sound) with a flight pattern that hugs the deck and includes "violent end maneuvers" to elude enemy defenses. The missile was specifically designed to defeat the US Aegis radar defense system. Should a US Navy Phalanx point defense somehow manage to detect an incoming Sunburn missile, the system has only seconds to calculate a fire solution not enough time to take out the intruding missile. The US Phalanx defense employs a six-barreled gun that fires 3,000 depleted-uranium rounds a minute, but the gun must have precise coordinates to destroy an intruder "just in time."

The Sunburn's combined supersonic speed and payload size produce tremendous kinetic energy on impact, with devastating consequences for ship and crew. A single one of these missiles can sink a large warship, yet costs considerably less than a fighter jet. Although the Navy has been phasing out the older Phalanx defense system, its replacement, known as the Rolling Action Missile (RAM) has never been tested against the weapon it seems destined to one day face in combat. Implications For US Forces in the Gulf

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[666Batman420]

NATO is 75% of the worlds military...

[kylewest100]

@sebkav88 of coarse a russian would hate america. i honestly don't know why. is it because america is stronger? is it because we are better? if russia hates america so much why don't they do something about it cause I'm sure you already know america doesn't run from a fight. only the strongest survive. we throw the first punch every time.

[AssyrianBabylonian]

@RobertM408 Unlike Iraq, your country isn't the cradle of civilization.

[Mmunchies]

I assume the title of this video is to be ironic?

[RobertM408]

@43MrMom. They are not funny. They are determined to develop nukes and put them on medium range warheads. It has been their aim since 1990. That is why the Int Atomic Inspectors are not allowed real access. It is why the key elements of Iranian bomb project are rapidly moved to hardened protected sites. Iran will become a fortefied base of terrorists and nuclear weapons aimed at Israel. And Rice and Clinton will welcome it, as their aim is remove Israels settlements and create the Hamas state.

[RobertM408]

@Z28inNC Unlike Iraq, Iran is a large powerful nation. Iran is the sole islamic state with a sophisticated military industrial complex capable of advanced missile development. Irans development of 1980s Soviet and Chinese missiles, torpedoes, mines, FAC and small submarines are potentially lethal even too two or three USN carrier groups in the gulf. The Sunburn missile flies at Mach 2.4 9 feet above the sea. In cf Harpoon and Exocet are toys.

[petridg]

Psychos with guns...

[sebkav88]

@robertfusion I dont hate america,I hate the obnoxious people who are rude and culturally ignorant.Do you know what I mean?Other then that Im fine with them.

[robertfusion]

@sebkav88 ....Why is that because there a democracy ? the richest and most powerful country?

because they stand against those who oppress Hitler...Imperial Japan ... Stalin ....Islam ?...

[sebkav88]

@1Zike95 Do you hate america?Cause I do.And im not muslim Im russian