Table of Contents

Cover

Title

Foreword

Preface

PART 1: The Proton in the East

1 Vladimir Chelomey: From the V1 to Proton
1. 1.1. The Soviet V-1 designer
2. 1.2. The designer of Soviet naval missiles
2 Chelomey’s Subsidiaries
1. 2.1. Institute no. 642
2. 2.2. Myasishchev’s OKB-23
3. 2.3. Factory no. 23 in Fili
4. 2.4. Lavochkin’s OKB-301
5. 2.5. Factory no. 292 in Saratov
6. 2.6. Factory no. 47 in Orenburg
7. 2.7. The engine designers
3 Intercontinental Missiles, Booster Rockets and Satellites
1. 3.1. Kosmoplan and Raketoplan
2. 3.2. The UR-200
3. 3.3. The UR-500
4. 3.4. The UR-100
5. 3.5. The UR-700
6. 3.6. The UR-1000
4 Versions of the UR-500
1. 4.1. The two-stage version
2. 4.2. The three-stage version UR-500K
3. 4.3. The four-stage version
4. 4.4. The upper stage projects
5. 4.5. The UR-500MK
6. 4.6. The UR-530
7. 4.7. The Proton-M
8. 4.8. Proton medium and light
9. 4.9. Angara
5 The Uses of the Proton
1. 5.1. NPO Mashinostroyenie: the Almaz program
2. 5.2. RKK Energiya
3. 5.3. NPO Lavochkin
4. 5.4. Applied mechanics NPO
5. 5.5. Other satellites
6. 5.6. The centennial celebration of V. N. Chelomey’s birth

PART 2: The Proton in the West

6 Saturn’s Rival
1. 6.1. Records to break
2. 6.2. Target: Moon
3. 6.3. Under a shroud of secrecy
4. 6.4. No second place
7 Commercial Prehistory
1. 7.1. Swiss francs for invisible launchers
2. 7.2. Curtain raiser
3. 7.3. Regime change
4. 7.4. A market to be cornered
5. 7.5. The American friend
6. 7.6. Short-lived contracts and seduction operations
7. 7.7. The end of an era
8 Friends or Foes
1. 8.1. First hope for success
2. 8.2. Lockheed joins the fray
3. 8.3. Voyage to Moscow
4. 8.4. Telephony in the sky
5. 8.5. Khrunichev, Salyut and Energiya
6. 8.6. The Indian obstacle
7. 8.7. Detour through France
8. 8.8. First steps on the market
9 The Transatlantic Alliance
1. 9.1. Reduced quotas
2. 9.2. Baptism of fire
3. 9.3. A “Russified” Atlas
4. 9.4. Discrete success and a spectacular failure
5. 9.5. Keeping pace with Ariane
6. 9.6. Energiya’s game
7. 9.7. Opening up to the market
10 Standing the Test of the Market
1. 10.1. Transition
2. 10.2. Price war
3. 10.3. Divorce
4. 10.4. Challenges for the future
5. 10.5. A surprising rival
6. 10.6. From Proton to Angara

Appendix: List of Launches

Bibliography

Index

Index of Names

End User License Agreement

List of Illustrations

1 Vladimir Chelomey: From the V1 to Proton

Figure 1.1. Vladimir Chelomey
Figure 1.2. The German V-1
Figure 1.3. The TsIAM pulsejet engine
Figure 1.4. The 10X missile from 1944
Figure 1.5. The OKB-51 team in 1944
Figure 1.6. Pulsejet engines D-3 and D14-4
Figure 1.7. The D-3 engine on the TU-2
Figure 1.8. The 14X missile
Figure 1.9. a) La-7 with two D-10 and b) La-9 with two D-13
Figure 1.10. The 16X Priboy missile
Figure 1.11. The 16X missile in flight
Figure 1.12. The 10XN missile
Figure 1.13. The P-2 submarine project from 1949 fully equipped with the 10XN missile
Figure 1.14. The Pr628 submarine project from 1952 and 1953 with the 10X missile
Figure 1.15. Missile wing deployment mechanism
Figure 1.16. The 1955 P-5 missile
Figure 1.17. The 1955 Pr613 missile with the P-5 missile
Figure 1.18. P-5 flight test in 1957
Figure 1.19. P-5 launch from submarine Pr659
Figure 1.20. The 1960 S-5 missile
Figure 1.21. The P-6 (4K48) missile
Figure 1.22. The P-35 (4K44) Redut missile
Figure 1.23. Mobile version of coastal defense Redut
Figure 1.24. The 3M44 Progress
Figure 1.25. The P-7 missile from 1959 to 1965
Figure 1.26. The P-70 (4K46) missile Ametist
Figure 1.27. The P-120 (4K85) missile, Malakhit
Figure 1.28. The P-500 (4K80) Bazalt missile
Figure 1.29. The P-1000 Vulcan
Figure 1.30. The P-700 (4M45) Granit missile
Figure 1.31. The P-750 (3M25) Meteorit cruise missile
Figure 1.32. The space (top) and naval (bottom) Meteorit
Figure 1.33. The Alpha project missile (early 1990)
Figure 1.34. The P-800 Onyx/Yakhont missile and the Plamyia ramjet
Figure 1.35. Air-based variant of the Yakhont
Figure 1.36. Indian version, Brahmos
Figure 1.37. From left to right: G. A. Efremov, S. N. Khrushchev, A. I. Eidis, I. M. Chumilov, M. I. Lifchitz, V. A. Modestov and V. V. Satchkov
Figure 1.38. Socialist Labor Hero medalists in 1963: (from left to right) I. M. Chumilov, V. A. Kazakov, M. I. Lifchitz, A. A. Kobarev, V. N. Chelomey, V. F. Malikov, S. N. Khrushchev, V. V. Satchkov, G. A. Efremov and V. A. Modestov

2 Chelomey’s Subsidiaries

Figure 2.1. The KSCh Shuka missile derived from the German Hs-293A
Figure 2.2. V. M. Baryshev
Figure 2.3. Award ceremony at the Vympel factory (1970s). First row, center: V. M. Baryshev, V. N. Chelomey and S. A. Afanaseyev
Figure 2.4. V. M. Myasishchev
Figure 2.5. The M-40 Buran missile (source: Bruk, 2001*). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 2.6. Tsybin’s spaceplane project
Figure 2.7. The M-43 missile project (source: Bruk, 2001*). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 2.8. The M-44 missile project
Figure 2.9. The M-45 missile project
Figure 2.10. The M-46 Raketoplan project (1956) (source: Bruk, 2001*). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 2.11. The ICBM and M-47 space launch vehicle project (1959) (source: Bruk, 2001*). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 2.12. The M-48 Raketoplan project: top (from left to right) variants 48-I, 48-II, 48-IV; bottom (from left to right) variants VKA-23 from 1958, 1959 and 1960 (source: Bruk, 2001*). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 2.13. The Tu-130 project
Figure 2.14. The Tu-136 project (source: rights reserved). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 2.15. a) The Spiral project of OKB-155 and b) aircraft 105
Figure 2.16. V. N. Bugaisky
Figure 2.17. D. A. Polukhin
Figure 2.18. A. K. Nedaivoda
Figure 2.19. From top to bottom and left to right: V. K. Karrask, Yu. V. Diachenko, Ya. B. Nodelman, G. D. Dermichev, E. T. Radchenko, V. A. Vyrodov, D. F. Orochko, G. A. Khazanovitch, Yu. N. Trufanov and V. N. Ivanov
Figure 2.20. From left to right: S. M. Lechenko, D. N. Osipov, M. I. Ryjik and A. I. Kiselev
Figure 2.21. S. A. Afanaseyev, A. I. Kiselev and V. N. Chelomey
Figure 2.22. First row to center: N. D. Kokhlov, Chelomey, S. A. Afanaseyev and A. I. Kiselev
Figure 2.23. A. A. Medvedev
Figure 2.24. V. E. Nesterov
Figure 2.25. A. I. Selivestrov
Figure 2.26. A. V. Kalinovsky
Figure 2.27. a) The La-350 Burya missile and b) the La-400 DAL missile
Figure 2.28. M. M. Pashinin
Figure 2.29. N. S. Denisov
Figure 2.30. L. A. Guskov and D. A. Tarakov
Figure 2.31. V. G. Stepanov
Figure 2.32. 5D18 engine from the IS satellite
Figure 2.33. The 4E18 engine from the US satellite (source: rights reserved). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 2.34. A. S. Mevius and S. P. Izotov
Figure 2.35. The 15D13 engine
Figure 2.36. S. A. Kosberg, A. D. Konopatov and V. S. Ratchuk
Figure 2.37. a) The RD-0203 engine and b) the RD-0205 engine
Figure 2.38. V. P. Glushko
Figure 2.39. The RD-253 engine: a) initial version (source: rights reserved) and b) OKB-456 museum (source: Christian Lardier)
Figure 2.40. The RD-270 (OKB-456 museum)
Figure 2.41. Vulcan project

3 Intercontinental Missiles, Booster Rockets and Satellites

Figure 3.1. The RTch-500 ground-to-air missile
Figure 3.2. V. A. Polyachenko
Figure 3.3. The ballistic cruise missile
Figure 3.4. The 1960 A-300 launcher project (source: NPO Mash). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.5. The Raketoplan and Kosmoplan projects
Figure 3.6. The Kosmoplan project (source: NPO Mash). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.7. The Raketoplan project (source: NPO Mash). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.8. a) The hooded Raketoplan and b) the conic capsule
Figure 3.9. The UR-200 (source: Christian Lardier). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.10. The 8F144 warhead
Figure 3.11. The decrees from March 2 and April 16, 1962
Figure 3.12. The UR-200 launch
Figure 3.13. The IS a.k.a. Polyot satellite
Figure 3.14. Tyulpan
Figure 3.15. The 11K67
Figure 3.16. The 11K69 Cyclone-2
Figure 3.17. The US, US-A, US-AM, Plasma-A and US-PU (source: NPO Mash, KB Arsenal). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.18. a) The 8K69 (source: NPO Yuzhnoye) and b) R-36Orb (source: Christian Lardier)
Figure 3.19. The 8F673 FOBS warhead (source: NPO Yuzhnoye). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.20. An R-36Orb launch
Figure 3.21. The spaceplane project: a) R-1 and b) R-2
Figure 3.22. The MP-1 demonstrator with ring-cone breaks
Figure 3.23. a) The AB-200 and b) the M-12 on an R-12
Figure 3.24. a) The M-12 demonstrator of the UB maneuverable warhead and b) launch on an R-12
Figure 3.25. a) First UR-500 design (4 × UR-200) and b) second UR-500 design
Figure 3.26. a) The UR-500 with the KA-500 spacecraft and b) the ICBM UR-500
Figure 3.27. The Proton-1 satellite (N-4 no. 1)
Figure 3.28. The payload
Figure 3.29. The UR-500 in Baikonur
Figure 3.30. The decree from April 29, 1962
Figure 3.31. The UR-500-LK-1 project (source: NPO Mash). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.32. The LK-1 spacecraft
Figure 3.33. The TGR satellite project
Figure 3.34. The UR-100
Figure 3.35. The decree from March 30, 1963
Figure 3.36. a) Launch container and b) UR-100 and UR-100U silos (source: KBOM and NPO Mash). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.37. The silos from different versions of the UR-100 (source: KBOM and NPO Mash). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.38. Serial production of the UR-100
Figure 3.39. The Skat submarine project equipped with UR-100
Figure 3.40. Site no. 130 at Baikonur (source: KBOM). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 3.41. The first launch in April 1965
Figure 3.42. A UR-100N launch
Figure 3.43. The Breeze-KM stage
Figure 3.44. The Rockot launcher
Figure 3.45. The Strela launcher
Figure 3.46. a) The UR-700 launcher and b) the UR-700 with a RO-31 nuclear motor
Figure 3.47. The UR-700-LK-700 complex
Figure 3.48. The transport and launch table of the UR-700
Figure 3.49. The LK-700 lunar complex

4 Versions of the UR-500

Figure 4.1. UR-500K (source: Christian Lardier and Alexandre Chliadinsky). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.2. Proton-1 launch (July 16, 1965)
Figure 4.3. RD-275 motor
Figure 4.4. RD-0208 motor (source: all rights reserved). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.5. The PV-300 guidance system (source: all rights reserved). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.6. The West zone of Baikonur (source: all rights reserved, KBOM and Jacob Terweij). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.7. The 8U260 fixed erector
Figure 4.8. The 8U259 launch table
Figure 4.9. The 8T185 mobile service tower
Figure 4.10. a) Launcher in the mobile tower (source: all rights reserved) and b) the flue (source: Christian Lardier)
Figure 4.11. a) Integration building no. 92-1 (source: Christian Lardier), b) the MIK 92A-50, and (c) integration building no. 92A-50 (source: all rights reserved)
Figure 4.12. Proton assembly in the MIK
Figure 4.13. A. S. Shekhoyan and building 11G141
Figure 4.14. a) UR-500K (source: all rights reserved) and b) UR-500K-DOS-17K (source: Alexandre Chliadinsky). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.15. The UR-500LKS and the LKS spaceplane
Figure 4.16. a) UR-500K-7K-L1, b) UR-500K-E-8-5 and c) UR-500K-Raduga
Figure 4.17. a) The Bloc-D and b) the 11D58M motor
Figure 4.18. The Bloc-D and DM versions
Figure 4.19. Steps 1 and 2 of the Bloc-DM-03 stage (source: all rights reserved). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.20. The Breeze-M stage
Figure 4.21. a) The 14D30 engine (source: all rights reserved) and b) the RD-301 (OKB-456 Museum) (source: Christian Lardier). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.22. The 12KRB stage
Figure 4.23. The UR-500MK
Figure 4.24. The UR-530
Figure 4.25. Proton-M Breeze-M (source: Alexandre Chliadinsky). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.26. Every version of the UR-500K Proton rocket
Figure 4.27. Phase IV of the improvements to the Proton-M (source: Khrunichev Center). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.28. The medium and light versions
Figure 4.29. a) 1995 project (source: Khrunichev Center) and b) 1997 project (source: Christian Lardier). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.30. RD-191
Figure 4.31. a) RD-0146 and b) RD-0146D (source: all rights reserved). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 4.32. The reusable Baikal booster from 1999
Figure 4.33. The Angara with reusable boosters
Figure 4.34. The Angara family in 2011
Figure 4.35. Initial flight of Angara-1.2PP
Figure 4.36. Initial flight of the Angara-A5 on December 23, 2014
Figure 4.37. a) The cryogenic stage projects: Shtorm (1980s), heavy stage for Proton, 12KRB for GSLV, KVTK for Angara-5. b) The cryo stages of Angara A3, A5 and A7 (source: all rights reserved). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip

5 The Uses of the Proton

Figure 5.1. Almaz station project with a VA capsule
Figure 5.2. TKS project based on the 7K-VI vessel
Figure 5.3. UR-500-TKS (source: Alexandre Chliadinsky). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 5.4. The Almaz station with the TKS supply ship
Figure 5.5. The Agat-1 camera
Figure 5.6. The Almaz station with the Soyuz spacecraft
Figure 5.7. The Almaz cosmonauts
Figure 5.8. The Salyut-3 station (OPS no. 0101-2)
Figure 5.9. Popovich and Artiukhin in Salyut-3
Figure 5.10. The Soyuz-14 State Commission
Figure 5.11. a) UR-500-82LB72 (source: Alexandre Chliadinsky), b) the 82LB72 capsule test program, c) the VA capsule (source: Christian Lardier) and d) 82LB72 launch
Figure 5.12. Six-cosmonaut version
Figure 5.13. The KSI capsule (source: NPO Mash). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 5.14. Almaz station no. 104
Figure 5.15. The Almaz-N project
Figure 5.16. The Almaz-K project: variants from 1974 to 1975 and 1976
Figure 5.17. The Almaz-T station
Figure 5.18. Cosmos-1870 launch
Figure 5.19. The Zond spacecraft (7K-L1)
Figure 5.20. Zond launch
Figure 5.21. The DOS orbital station
Figure 5.22. The Salyut-1 Zarya station
Figure 5.23. The Salyut-2 station
Figure 5.24. The Salyut-6 station
Figure 5.25. Salyut-7 with Cosmos-1443
Figure 5.26. The Cosmos-1686 module
Figure 5.27. The Mir station with all its modules
Figure 5.28. a) The Kvant-1 module, b) the Kvant-2 module, and c) the Kristall module
Figure 5.29. Above: the Prioroda module; below: the Spectre module
Figure 5.30. The FGB Zarya and the Zvezda station
Figure 5.31. Zarya launch (1998) and Zvezda launch (2000)
Figure 5.32. Luna-15 was planned for November 1968
Figure 5.33. Luna-16 (E-8-5)
Figure 5.34. Lunakhod-1 and Luna-17
Figure 5.35. Lunakhod-2
Figure 5.36. Lunakhod-3
Figure 5.37. Luna-19
Figure 5.38. The LB-09 lunar system (left) and the Martian MB-01 (right)
Figure 5.39. The 1969 Martian mission
Figure 5.40. The 1971 Martian mission
Figure 5.41. The Mars-3’s capsule and PrOP mini-rover
Figure 5.42. Mars-4 and 5 (M73S) from 1973
Figure 5.43. Mars-6 and Mars-7 (M73P) from 1973
Figure 5.44. The 4NM probe (Marsokhod) and the 5NM probe (sample return)
Figure 5.45. The 5M probe (M-79) from 1974–1977
Figure 5.46. The 1F Phobos probe from 1988
Figure 5.47. The Phobos Proton from 1988
Figure 5.48. The Mars-96 probe
Figure 5.49. The Venera-9 probe and the landing capsule (NPO Lavochkin)
Figure 5.50. The Venera-15 probe
Figure 5.51. The VEGA probe and its 1984 launch
Figure 5.52. The Astron satellite
Figure 5.53. The Granat satellite and its 1989 launch
Figure 5.54. The US-K system of Chelomey in the 1960s
Figure 5.55. The Oko-1 (US-KS) and Oko-2 satellites (US-KMO)
Figure 5.56. The Arkon-1 satellite
Figure 5.57. The Raduga satellite and its launch
Figure 5.58. The 100th Proton with a Raduga in November 1982
Figure 5.59. The Ecran satellite
Figure 5.60. The Ecran-M satellite
Figure 5.61. The Gorizont satellite
Figure 5.62. The Luch-Altair and Potok-Geizer satellites
Figure 5.63. The Sesat-1 and Express-AM44 satellites (source: ISS Reshetnev). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 5.64. The Glonass and Glonass-M satellites (source: ISS Reshetnev). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 5.65. The Tselina-2 satellite
Figure 5.66. Keldysh and Chelomey
Figure 5.67. a) Vladimir and Ninel, b) Sergey and c) Evgenya
Figure 5.68. Obituary published in Pravda on December 12, 1984
Figure 5.69. Chlomey’s first appearance as the Proton and Polyot designer in the Encyclopedia of Moscow, published in 1980
Figure 5.70. Busts in Kiev, Baikonur, MVTU, NPO Mash, and tomb in Novodevichy
Figure 5.71. a) Order of Lenin awarded by N. S. Khrushchev to the OKB in 1959 and b) Order of the Red Banner awarded by P. V. Dementyev to the OKB in 1963
Figure 5.72. (a) Chelomey, Khrushchev, Korolev, Pilyugie, Barmin in Crimea in 1961 (source: all rights reserved) and (b) from left to right, Glushko, Trufanov, Tyulin, Kaidalov, Barmin, Pruglo, Konopatov, Kurushin, Chelomey, Druzhinin, 1965
Figure 5.73. a) Chelomey in Baikonur in 1970 (source: all rights reserved) and b) M. G. Grigoryev and V. N. Chelomey in 1974
Figure 5.74. a) I. S. Belussov, Chelomey, S. A. Afanaseyev, S. G. Gorshkov and P. G. Kotov, and b) V. S. Avduyevsky, V. P. Mishin, E. P. Velikhov, Chelomey, and A. P. Alexandrov

6 Saturn’s Rival

Figure 6.1. First concepts of the Juno 5
Figure 6.2. Launch of the Saturn SA-1
Figure 6.3. Launch of the Saturn SA-8
Figure 6.4. The barrel from the Saturn-1’s first stage
Figure 6.5. Without knowing it, the Americans were using the same barrel configuration as the Soviets
Figure 6.6. Proton-1 satellite in Le Bourget in 1967
Figure 6.7. First liftoff of the Saturn-5
Figure 6.8. The Soviet launchers known to the CIA in 1965
Figure 6.9. The Soviet launchers known to the CIA in 1967
Figure 6.10. The Tsar Bomba tested in 1961
Figure 6.11. N-1 preparations photographed by a KH-8 on September 19, 1968
Figure 6.12. Apollo-8 puts an end to the Soviets’ lunar aspirations

7 Commercial Prehistory

Figure 7.1. The Franco-German Symphonie satellite
Figure 7.2. First launch of an Intelsat satellite by Europe’s Ariane in 1983 (L7)
Figure 7.3. Marecs-B2 in preparation
Figure 7.4. Launch of the Salyut-1 in 1971
Figure 7.5. Launch of the Vega-2 in 1984
Figure 7.6. Orbite newspaper from January 1986, the AviMag reviews from February 1, 1986 to May 1, 1986
Figure 7.7. Inmarsat-2 (source: Airbus DS). For a color version of this figure, see www.iste.co.uk/lardier/proton.zip
Figure 7.8. Alexander Dunaev
Figure 7.9. Launch of the IRS-1A
Figure 7.10. Licensintorg ad
Figure 7.11. The first photographs of Proton published in 1986
Figure 7.12. a) Ill-fated Indonesian astronaut Pratiwi Sudarmono and b) Palapa-B2 and Westar-6 brought back to Earth by Discovery in 1984
Figure 7.13. Arthur M. Dula
Figure 7.14. Glavkosmos’ stand in Bourget in 1987
Figure 7.15. Advertising at the Phobos launch in 1988
Figure 7.16. Visit of the MIK 92 in Baikonur
Figure 7.17. MIK-92 visit in Baikonur
Figure 7.18. MIK-92 visit in Baikonur

8 Friends or Foes

Figure 8.1. Sergey Krikalev on STS-60 in February 1994 (second from the left) and Norman Thagard on Mir in March 1995 (left)
Figure 8.2. Khrunichev visit in 1991
Figure 8.3. Melvin Brashears and Anatoli Kiselev
Figure 8.4. From left to right, Vice President and President of Motorola, A. I. Kiselev, Minister of Science and Technology A. A. Kuzmitsky
Figure 8.5. Iridium on Proton
Figure 8.6. A. Kiselev with D. Tellep and N. Augustine in June 1995
Figure 8.7. Creation of ILS in Bourget in June 1995

9 The Transatlantic Alliance

Figure 9.1. Atlas-2AS
Figure 9.2. Yuri Koptev, Anatoli Kiselev and Al Gore at Khrunichev in 1995
Figure 9.3. Failure of Intelsat-708 on 2/14/1996
Figure 9.4. Vance Coffman, Anatoli Kiselev and Romain Bausch, head of SES
Figure 9.5. State Commission for the Astra-1F launch
Figure 9.6. Astra-1F launch on April 9, 1996
Figure 9.7. Inmarsat-3F2 on Proton
Figure 9.8. Commission of State for Inmarsat-3F2:Semenov–Kiselev–Shumilin
Figure 9.9. Charles H. Lloyd
Figure 9.10. ILS meeting in 1996 (Kiselev–McAnally)
Figure 9.11. Asiasat-3 launch on December 25, 1997
Figure 9.12. The Boeing-Kvaerner-Yuzhnoe, YuzhMash and Energiya Sea Launch
Figure 9.13. ILS meeting in 1999 (Kiselev-Trafton)

10 Standing the Test of the Market

Figure 10.1. Atlas-3A launch on May 24, 2000
Figure 10.2. The Delta-3 from 1997
Figure 10.3. Sea Launch liftoff
Figure 10.4. Mark Albrecht
Figure 10.5. Atlas-5
Figure 10.6. Astra-1K
Figure 10.7. Ariane-517 liftoff on December 11, 2002
Figure 10.8. Thor-5 launch
Figure 10.9. Failure of the NSS-8 launch on January 30, 2007
Figure 10.10. Frank McKenna and Mario Lemme
Figure 10.11. SES-3 and Kazsat-2 on July 15, 2011
Figure 10.12. Intelsat-23 launched on October 14, 2012
Figure 10.13. Phil Slack, Karen Monaghan, Janice Starzyk
Figure 10.14. Express-AM4R launch on May 15, 2014
Figure 10.15. The RD-0214’s Vernier engines
Figure 10.16. The failure on July 2, 2013
Figure 10.17. Space X’s Falcon-9
Figure 10.18. Kirk Pysher
Figure 10.19. The Angara-A5 on December 23, 2014
Figure 10.20. ExoMars launch on March 14, 2016

First published 2018 in Great Britain and the United States by ISTE Ltd and John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms and licenses issued by the CLA. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside these terms should be sent to the publishers at the undermentioned address:

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ISBN 978-1-78630-176-5

Foreword

The Proton rocket has played a formidable role in several key historic milestones in space history, marking some of the most complex scientific and technological achievements of mankind. Some notable examples include launching exploratory missions that produced the first samples of the lunar surface to be returned by an unmanned spacecraft and the first soft landing on the surface of Venus. The orbiting of the Salyut International Space Station (ISS) series and the MIR ISS modules were also enabled by Proton.

Over time, Proton has evolved to become one of the core heavy-lift vehicles for the Russian Federal space program as well as the global commercial satellite industry. The commercial missions are conducted under the auspices of International Launch Services, a US-based company.

On a bitterly cold day, on April 9, 1996, the first commercial launch of Proton was conducted with the Astra 1F satellite for Luxembourg-based SES. This launch is a memory that will be etched in the minds of those who witnessed it forever. For those viewing the launch at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, in the dessert steppes of Kazakhstan, in –30° F weather, the memory of the spectacular lift-off and successful mission for the first commercial satellite aboard a Russian launch vehicle far surpassed the icy chill in the air that night.

One of the most successful post-Cold War US–Russian cooperative efforts, the commercial Proton has launched some of the world’s most powerful communications satellites, providing critical connectivity around the globe via land sea or air with mobility services, video, data and broadband services, broadcasting, direct-to-home TV and satellite radio.

The lift capability of the workhorse Proton has increased – as of this writing – to 6.27 metric tons to reference Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) and 6.47 metric tons to Super Synchronous Transfer Orbit (SSTO) at 1,500 m/s. The Proton Breeze M vehicle’s restartable Breeze M upper stage allows each mission to be optimized and projected in orbit lifetime to be maximized for single or multiple satellites supporting missions to Low Earth Orbit (LEO), Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), Highly Elliptical Orbit (HEO), GTO, GSO and SSTO.

In the fall of 2016, the two-stage variants of Proton were unveiled, further supporting the proven heritage of the vehicle to adapt, change and compete in a highly competitive commercial marketplace. Driven by the influx of electric and hybrid propulsion satellites, the sleek two-stage Proton offers satellite operators a much-needed cost-effective and high-performing solution to orbit. This sort of “back to the future” design is reminiscent of the early Proton vehicle design, when it was a two-stage vehicle called the “UR-500”, launched in the early 1960s.

The concept for this book was born many years ago by one of the premiere space historians of our time, and author of this book, Mr. Christian Lardier. A true labor of love, Mr. Lardier was determined to write this powerful book about one of the world’s most intriguing Russian launch vehicles, despite some challenging circumstances and several stops and starts along the way. We owe much gratitude to Mr. Lardier for his tenacity and unwavering dedication to this very in-depth project which tells, in great detail, after countless interviews with Russian scientists and others, Proton’s unique story about its incredible journey to orbit. We also give our thanks to co-author, Stefan Barensky, for the second part of this work and the remarkable history of International Launch Services.

INTERNATIONAL LAUNCH SERVICES

Preface

July 16, 2015 marked the 50th anniversary of the heavy launch vehicle Proton’s first flight. Proton was designed and developed under the direction of Vladimir Chelomey, the main rival of Sergei Korolev, Soviet Wernher von Braun, designer of the R-7 “Semyorka”. In June 2013, Stefan Barensky and I published the The Soyuz Launch Vehicle (3 years after the original French title, Les deux vies de Soyouz, was published). It tells the story of the rocket with the world’s most launches out of Baikonur, Plesetsk and the Guiana Space Centre (GSC) since 2011, and from Vostochny as of December 2015.

June 30, 2014 also marked Chelomey’s 100th birthday. He was initially working for the Ministry of Aviation Industry (MAP), designing cruise missiles for the Navy, whereas Korolev was from the Ministry of Defense Industry (MOP) working on ballistic rockets for the artillery. In March 1965, they were brought together under the Ministry of General Machine Building (MOM). From 1960 to 1965, Chelomey completed the UR-200, UR-500 and UR-100 for the Ministry of Defense. At this time, strongly supported by Khrushchev, he built a true industrial empire. In 1965, the UR-500 then became Proton, whose name was taken from Chelomey’s first payload, the Proton-1 satellite designed for studying cosmic rays. It was the beginning of a long career for the heavy launch vehicle, the equivalent of the US Saturn-1B, which became the main competitor of the European rocket, Ariane, on the commercial market. In January 2016, it was launched 410 times, whereas Ariane had only taken 228 flights. The medium rocket, Soyuz, had already been launched 1,854 times. Since 1995 Proton has been marketed across the world by the American company International Launch Services (ILS). The launch system is predicted to remain in use until 2025, before being replaced by a new rocket, Angara.

Our second book is dedicated to the history of the Proton rocket, to its creator Vladimir Chelomey and his Reutov Design Office OKB-52, which celebrated its 60th birthday on August 8, 2015. Proton was designed and manufactured in the Khrunichev factory and the Salyut Design Office in Fili (former production plant and OKB no. 23). The two were officially merged together to become the Khrunichev Center on June 7, 1993 by order of decree no. 421-RP. Finally, March 2011 marked the OKB Design Office’s 60th birthday, while the factory celebrated its centenary on April 30, 2016.

The final book of the trilogy, which is scheduled for publication in 2017, focuses on the third Soviet/Russian space empire, that of designer Mikhail Yangel who created the OKB-586/NPO Youjnoe Design Office in Dniepropetrovsk (now Dnipro) in 1954. It was at this OKB that the R-12, R-14, R-16, R-36, R-36M and R-36M2/Dnepr missiles, the Cosmos-2, 3M, Cyclone-2, 3, 4 and Zenith launchers (Zenith-2, Energia Booster, Sea Launch, Land Launch), and a very large number of satellites were designed.

We offer our thanks to ILS (Mark Albrecht, Frank McKenna, Phil Slack, Jim Bonner, Karen Monaghan, James Youdale), the Khrunichev State Research & Production Space Center (Anatoly Kiselev, Vladimir Nesterov, Evgueny Koulaga, Grigori Khazanovitch, Sergei Chaevitch, Ines Glazkova), Vladimir Poliatchenko (NPO Mach), Alexandre Chliadinsky (Proton drawings), Igor Afanaseiev (Novosti Kosmonavtiki), Mikhail Pervov (Stolitchnaya Entsiklopedia) and others.

In order to obtain authorization rights for the publication of certain figures, we have agreed to cite the following publications from which they have been taken: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Aircraft of V.M. Myasischev, Volume 2 by A. A. Bruk, K. G. Oudalov, S. G. Smirnov, N. G. Brezginova, Avico Press 2001 (figures with symbol *); the article “35 ans du lanceur Proton” (35 Years of the Proton Launch Vehicle) no. 1/98 by Novosti Kosmonavtiki (figures with symbol **); and L’histoire du développement des satellites russes (History of the development of Russian Satellites), Stolitchnaya Entsiklopedia, Moscow, 2015 (figures with symbol ***).

Christian LARDIER
December 2017

The Proton Launcher

History and Developments

Foreword

Preface

PART 1
The Proton in the East