According to Bill Gertz's report in Free Beacon, Russia conducted its fifth test of the Nudol ASAT interceptor, now designated PL-19, on December 16, 2016. The Pentagon believes that it was the third successful test of the system.
Previous successful tests of the interceptor took place in November 2015 and in May 2016. So far, the tests did not seem to include an actual or attempted intercept.
UPDATE: I missed what's probably the most important part of the test - the interceptor was launched "from a base in central Russia" and not from Plesetsk. Is that Kapustin Yar? I'm not sure it would qualify as "central Russia." But there are few other options.
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I think it was last year that Almaz published this illustration
http://up.picr.de/27787178ri.jpg
There was many talks whether this is S-500 or Nudol.
Are there more informations now available about PL-19 concept?
I think it was identified as Nudol at the time - http://militaryrussia.ru/blog/topic-806.html
Thanks..does that mean PL-19 = A-235?
It's possible, I guess, but I have my doubts
Isn't PL-19 an American designation for the Nudol? Which is a separate OKR from the Samolyot-M OKR for the A-235? I mean there's nothing impossible about it but it seems to me that online commentators have conflated the two programs without sufficient evidence. Could you comment on this Pavel?
I agree - at this point it is not clear if PL-19 is related to A-235.
to Feanor:
I think PL-19 is an US code. PL stands for Plesetsk...
now they have to change it because the recent test was at Kapustin Yar :-) I think the Russian designation is 14Tsh033 Nudol.
I have to be honest, I don't really care about the PL designation. What it comes down to is a question whether Nudol and Samolyot-M are related, and if they are, how much.
Also, Pavel, I have to wonder; if the Nudol and A-235 programs are linked, could an ABM site near Moscow have been used for the recent test? That would certainly qualify as central Russia.
PL comes from the place where the missile was tested first, which is Plesetsk in this case. Moving it to other locations would not change the designation.
Moscow as a test site is very much out of the question - it's more or less a space launcher, so the fist stage would have to fall somewhere (it was in Nenets Okrug for launches from Plesetsk).
I agree - Moscow is out of the question.
Long range component of A-235 sometimes was shown as 51T6 with a stretched upper stage which should be based at existing 51T6 sites.
The fact is that both the silos at Sary Shagan (site 52) and the two silo sites around Moscow are out of action for a long time now. No construction work is visible.
I would bet that a huge mobile launcher is either located at Plestesk or at Kapustin Yar