NEWEST DELT SUB PIVOTAL IN LATEST SALT VIOLATION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79M00467A002400040011-0
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 22, 2005
• Sequence Number: 11
• Content Type: NSPR

ON If . -
an.ewest
H
In Latest SALT Vi
Washington-Soviet Union is conducting
sea trials with four enlarged Delta 2-class
submarines armed with 16 SS-N-8 sub-
marine-launched ballistic missiles before
dismantling older SS-7 or SS-8 inter-
continental ballistic missile launchers as
required by the present Strategic Arms
Limitation Agreement.
The move raises the number of SLBMs
deployed to above the 744 maximum
level established for the USSR in the in-
terim SALT 1 accord under which both
the U. S. and Soviet Union now operate
in the absence of a SALT-2 agreement.
U. S. observers have detected the
SALT violation but are now unable to
continue surveillance because the last
Lockheed Big Bird close-look photo-re-
connaissance satellite covering that area-
of the USSR decayed Apr. I after 118
days in orbit.
There is normally a two-to-three-
month delay between decay and launch
of another Big Bird satellite. .
The four new Soviet Delta 2-class
boats now at sea are larger than the 450-
ft., 8,000-ton surface displacement Delta
boats that have been operating with 12 S-
N-8 SLBMs. The S-N-8 has a range of
more than 4,300 naut. mi. with its nuclear
-warhead. The 12-launcher Delta boat was
the largest submarine ever built by any
navy until the new 16-launcher Delta put
to sea.
An even larger version of the Delta
boat designed to carry more than the 16
SLBMs is under development.
Under the terms of SALT-1, the So-
viets are limited to deployment of 744
SLBMs unless they first phase out older
ICBMs to compensate for adding new
SLBMs to the fleet. They are permitted to
deploy up to a total of 950 SLBMs on 62
operational submarines by mid-1977 as
replacements of 200 ICBMs.
When U. S. officials approached the
Russians about the deployment of the ad-
ditional Delta submarines without dis-
mantling the older ICBM launchers, So-
viet officials said that older ICBM silos
have not been closed out because of
"construction problems," according to
one U. S. official, "and the U. S. seems
now willing to wait and see just what the
next move will be."
The sea trials of the new Delta 2 boats
come as no real surprise, according to one
senior U. S. official, who cited "alleged
violations" in concealing SS-N-8 missiles
and component assembly of Delta boats.
Late last year, the Sovi~ )fit s r
and way for launching De su marines
at the Severomorsk shipyard, near Mur-
Gigps7zmo
s~pyyddt4 y?,Gg
tr
Ia tion
mansk, while the number of covers to
conceal construction facilities at that lo-
cation increased greatly.to prevent U. S.
satellite observation (Aw&ST Dec. 8, 1975,
p. 12).
The first Delta boats went to sea in
1973 after the Soviets completed a pro-
duction run of 34 nuclear-propelled
SLBM-armed Yankee-class boats. The
Delta replaces the Yankee.
U. S. officials said that 18 or 19 Delta
boats have been launched or are being
assembled. Although the USSR still has
the freedom to mix the number of strate-
gic delivery vehicles under the terms bf
the Vladivostok understanding, it has be-
come clear that it is going beyond the 740
baseline ceiling for SLBM launch tubes
agreed on in SALT-1.
Until recent months, the Soviets have
had the capability. to build about 12 Aiu-
clear-propelled ballistic missile subma-
rines per year, plus eight other nuclear-
powered submarines. That rate is being
increased, officials said. Some experts be-
lieve the maximum capacity could be in-
creased tows many as 30 boats per year.
systems in development-a tactical anti-
ballistic missile, and a "high accelerator
interceptor system."
This new hypersonic interceptor system
is being tested at Emba, northwest of the
Aral Sea (Aw&ST Apr. 7, 1975, p. 12).
The Soviets are labeling, this system an.
anti-tactical ballistic missile defense
weapon for use against shorter-range tac-
tical nuclear missiles to protect the field
army. It has inherent anti-ballistic missile
application against U. S. ICBMs.
Aviation Week & Space Technology, May 24, 1976
U. S. has 10 Polaris subs armed with 16 ' I
Polaris A-3 missiles each, and 3 i. subma-
rines armed with Poseidon. C-3 SLBMs
totaling 496 missiles. About half this
SLBM fleet is at sea at any one time. In addition to SLBM developments,
the USSR is continuing development of
nuclear-armed, anti-ship missiles,, new
anti-submarine warfare detection meth-
ods and anti-ballistic-missile weapons
systems.
The S-NX-13 subsurface-launched nu-
clear-armed missile, with a range of
about 600 naut. mi., was designed origi-
nally to be used against surface ships.
Later versions are for use against subma-
rines. The ballistic anti-ship missile
reaches an apogee of about 150 naut. mi.,
where its sensor system locks on to the L
target. The new ASW variant in develop-
ment could, along with new AS\V tech-
nology, make the U. S. SLBM fleet vul-
nerable in the 1980s, according to senior
Navy officials. Senior Defense Dept. offi-
cials testified to Congress this year that
the Soviets are continuing their acceler-
ated program in anti-ballistic missile de-
velopments at the same time the U. S. has
scaled its program down drastically.
The Soviet Union has an intensive of--_ ,
fort in ABM research with two new ABM