RT-15
Encyclopedia
The RT-15 was a mobile theatre ballistic missile
deployed by the Soviet Union
during the Cold War
. It was assigned the NATO reporting name
SS-14 Scamp (alternately the SS-14 Scapegoat) and carried the industry designation 8K96.
The RT-15 was an early Soviet attempt to develop a road-mobile theatre ballistic missile
. It was intended to be capable of being launched from both sea and ground sites and had a maximum range of 2000–2500 km. The weapon's 'reaction time' in the normal readiness condition after its arrival at the launch site would have been 20 to 30 minutes and the 'holding time' at peak readiness (with a time of two to ten minutes before the missile could be launched) would be about a day.
The missile was developed in the early 1960s
and was first seen on a mobile land launcher during May of 1965. Despite having completed its development, the system was refused for service soon after it had begun deployment; it was withdrawn and the project cancelled before it could become a major component of the Soviet forces. The missiles were decommissioned and replaced during March 1970.
Theatre ballistic missile
A theatre ballistic missile is any ballistic missile with a range between and , used against targets "in-theatre". Its range is thus between that of tactical and intercontinental ballistic missiles. The term is a relatively new one, encompassing the former categories of short-range ballistic...
deployed by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. It was assigned the NATO reporting name
NATO reporting name
NATO reporting names are classified code names for military equipment of the Eastern Bloc...
SS-14 Scamp (alternately the SS-14 Scapegoat) and carried the industry designation 8K96.
The RT-15 was an early Soviet attempt to develop a road-mobile theatre ballistic missile
Theatre ballistic missile
A theatre ballistic missile is any ballistic missile with a range between and , used against targets "in-theatre". Its range is thus between that of tactical and intercontinental ballistic missiles. The term is a relatively new one, encompassing the former categories of short-range ballistic...
. It was intended to be capable of being launched from both sea and ground sites and had a maximum range of 2000–2500 km. The weapon's 'reaction time' in the normal readiness condition after its arrival at the launch site would have been 20 to 30 minutes and the 'holding time' at peak readiness (with a time of two to ten minutes before the missile could be launched) would be about a day.
The missile was developed in the early 1960s
1960s
The 1960s was the decade that started on January 1, 1960, and ended on December 31, 1969. It was the seventh decade of the 20th century.The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends across the globe...
and was first seen on a mobile land launcher during May of 1965. Despite having completed its development, the system was refused for service soon after it had begun deployment; it was withdrawn and the project cancelled before it could become a major component of the Soviet forces. The missiles were decommissioned and replaced during March 1970.