CHINA IMPORTS THE SA15 GROUND-TO-AIR MISSILE SYSTEM.
<Kanwea news March 31, 1999> The source of the Russian KUPOL Electronic Machinery Factory revealed to the Kanwa that China purchased the SA15 air defense systems in 1997. The factory does not make more SA15s for China this year. With SA15 as the NATO code name, this system includes four major series, namely Tor-M1, Tor-M1TA, Tor-M1TB, and Tor-M1TS. The Tor-M1 is a caterpillar type with the missiles and the search and tracking radar all on one launching vehicle. The Tor-M1TA is a wheeled one. The Tor-M1TS uses a fixed launching stand. As the designer indicated to the KWIC reporter, though the Tor-M1 is designed to be compact with the whole system on a caterpillar vehicle, its disadvantage is that once it is attacked by the enemy’s anti-radiation missile, the whole crew of operators will get killed. Therefore, Tor-M1TA Tor-M1TB the upgraded models separate the missiles and the radar from the operators’ vehicle in order to improve the chance of survival.

According to the same source, the model China imported was the basic Tor-M1. At present, this system is only used by China and Greece. Greece has already signed a purchase agreement and is planning to import 21 sets this year. According to the information from the other sources, China has now received 15 sets of Tor-M1 ground-to-air missile defense systems, including at least 120 missiles.

In July 1996, it was for the first time that an official in charge of the Rosvoorouzhenie revealed to the Kanwa the information that China negotiated with Russia over the purchase of the SA15. This information was published in the September 1996 issue of the British Jane’s IDR Monthly.

The Tor-M1 system can attack two objects simultaneously. Launched vertically, the missile travels at a speed of 700 meters per second and covers a maximum range of 12 kilometers. It can be used to attack the cruise missiles that fly at a low altitude.

In the meantime, the source also indicated that China had purchased the Tor-M1 simulators for the training purpose and sent 50 people to Orenburg of Ular in 1997 for a half-year training on how to operate this system. Now, the whole system is totally run by the Chinese with a one-year warranty. The KUPOL Factory has a technician stationed in China to help solve the technical problems that may appear within the warranty period. The source especially emphasized that the same system was sold to both China and Greece and the only difference was that the one sold to Greece had the IFF system which is compatible with the NATO system. The price for the Tor-M1 system Russia sold to China is basically the same as that of the Marine Rattle Snake air defense system France sold to the Chinese navy( Andrei Pinkov).