What is this?

[Destroyer37]

Any one have any idea what this is? Its in eastern Russia at 50.2803020, 137.4743880. I thought it may have been a new over the horizon radar complex since the nearby DUGA is out of commission by the looks of it. Second thought is a Moble ICBM storage facility, third thought are ELF transmission station however the lack of aerials doesn't really support that.Thoughts?

[joey45]

Got a link or a pic??

[Destroyer37]

You should be able to copy and paste the chords into Google Earth to see it. I'm not sure how to get you a link.

[VZ_342]

50°16'49.1"N 137°28'27.8"E

https://goo.gl/maps/qrfBiXTeRxD2

[Sweep]

Some kinda unpopulated SA-__ site?

[VZ_342]

If you zoom out a bit, you can see an overall view of the location.

[Bushmanni]

It seems to be pretty well fenced in. Double fences around the complex and and another set of double fences around each individual compound. Each of the big compounds seems to have a building that's partly under ground facing a hill slope suggesting they are entrances to dug in storage buildings or tunnel system. There's also some kind of complex with living quarters and manufacturing/production buildings south of the fenced in complex that has it's own high voltage power line leading to it.

 

 

Maybe munitions factory and accompanied storage site?

[Destroyer37]

Some kinda unpopulated SA-__ site?

 

I thought that initially aswell but I think it's to big for that?

[DarkFire]

Very interesting. Firstly, when looking at the map neither the installation to the north nor the small "town" to the south even appear. That suggests military. Looking at the large northern installation, the layout immediately says "airfield" to me (1st attached screenshot). The length of the single NE-SW track is roughly 5Km which would be perfect for very large aircraft such as bombers or large transports. The supposition that the wide straight SW-NE track used to be a runway is also supported by the fact that though overgrown it's clearly significantly wider than the rest of the dirt track around the entire installation. I think that when the facility changed from an airfield to whatever it is now, the runway was abandoned, turned in to a dirt track which was then extended around the entire site.

 

Looking south at the small "town", there's a just about visible overgrown rectangle, about half of which is totally overgrown. I think the length is approximately 1.5-2 Km in length. This southern "town" suggests to me a smaller airfield with associated areas for all the admin stuff associated with a fighter base. (2nd attachment).

 

I think this entire installation used to be a bomber base with an associated interceptor base for defensive purposes. The interceptor base would also have serviced the nearby Duga radar which appears to have been long since decommissioned.

 

As for the arrangement of tracks in the middle? If we assume that within a reasonable distance we have the city of Komsomolsk-on-amur, the Duga radar and potentially a strategic bomber base, the arrangement of roads in the middle could have been a site for an early strategic SAM system like an SA-3 or maybe even an SA-5.

 

As for what the site is now, hard to say. There's obviously no usable runway any more and road access seems mediocre at best. Each individual area of the northern installation appears to have it's own security and what may be guard towers. As Bushmanni pointed out there are also a serious set of fences. The main entrance also appears to have quite a serious guard house.

 

What needs that much protection? What do you keep in bunkers that needs guarding to that extent, but which doesn't need a runway to transport?

 

Road mobile ICBM storage? Strategic warhead decommissioning? I'd wager something along those lines. I think the "town" slightly to the south is an accommodation village for the site.

[Destroyer37]

Very interesting. Firstly, when looking at the map neither the installation to the north nor the small "town" to the south even appear. That suggests military. Looking at the large northern installation, the layout immediately says "airfield" to me (1st attached screenshot). The length of the single NE-SW track is roughly 5Km which would be perfect for very large aircraft such as bombers or large transports. The supposition that the wide straight SW-NE track used to be a runway is also supported by the fact that though overgrown it's clearly significantly wider than the rest of the dirt track around the entire installation. I think that when the facility changed from an airfield to whatever it is now, the runway was abandoned, turned in to a dirt track which was then extended around the entire site.

 

Looking south at the small "town", there's a just about visible overgrown rectangle, about half of which is totally overgrown. I think the length is approximately 1.5-2 Km in length. This southern "town" suggests to me a smaller airfield with associated areas for all the admin stuff associated with a fighter base. (2nd attachment).

 

I think this entire installation used to be a bomber base with an associated interceptor base for defensive purposes. The interceptor base would also have serviced the nearby Duga radar which appears to have been long since decommissioned.

 

As for the arrangement of tracks in the middle? If we assume that within a reasonable distance we have the city of Komsomolsk-on-amur, the Duga radar and potentially a strategic bomber base, the arrangement of roads in the middle could have been a site for an early strategic SAM system like an SA-3 or maybe even an SA-5.

 

As for what the site is now, hard to say. There's obviously no usable runway any more and road access seems mediocre at best. Each individual area of the northern installation appears to have it's own security and what may be guard towers. As Bushmanni pointed out there are also a serious set of fences. The main entrance also appears to have quite a serious guard house.

 

What needs that much protection? What do you keep in bunkers that needs guarding to that extent, but which doesn't need a runway to transport?

 

Road mobile ICBM storage? Strategic warhead decommissioning? I'd wager something along those lines. I think the "town" slightly to the south is an accommodation village for the site.

 

This site is definitely worth some kind of strategic importance, looking back at imagery from 2002 you can see that it is constantly expanding through at least 2016. And after research on the area just to the north as mentioned previously there is a decommissioned DUGA radar, twenty five miles north west in Khurba you have a Sukhoi aircraft factory, where conveniently enough the first Su-57 flew. You also have near Komsomolsk-on-amur two S-300P Garrison's, and active batterys and all kinds of EW sites and indications of former SA-2 sites (no surprise, most soviet city's were covered as we all know.) These are obviously there to protect the city and surroundings as well as to block the approach to Ukrina Airbase, (One of the Russian Far East Strategic bomber bases). The more I look at it the more I think its a larger replacement to the DUGA. Is this some kind of new OTH radar? It will be interesting to find out. Having said all that, the small complexes on the 5km stretch to the north very closely resemble the storage and launching areas of the SS-25 sickle...There is also an OKO satellite (RU Space Force, ballistic missle launch detecting) control station 20km north west. Lots going on here.

Edited July 24, 2018 by Destroyer37

[Destroyer37]

It's a large in Ground missle silo and launching / storage facility with support units and housing.

 

http://wikimapia.org/m/#lat=50.2812895&lon=137.4642877&z=13&l=0&m=b

[DarkFire]

It's a large in Ground missle silo and launching / storage facility with support units and housing.

 

http://wikimapia.org/m/#lat=50.2812895&lon=137.4642877&z=13&l=0&m=b

 

Not bad, we were pretty close then :thumbup:

[Destroyer37]

Thanks for your help!

[Mars Exulte]

Interesting. I was going to say there is a helipad and large landscaped star with some writing under it between the the larger northern facility and the "town" to the south of that little lake. Can't really tell what it says, though, last three letters look like СОМ to me (SOM)

[DarkFire]

Interesting. I was going to say there is a helipad and large landscaped star with some writing under it between the the larger northern facility and the "town" to the south of that little lake. Can't really tell what it says, though, last three letters look like СОМ to me (SOM)

 

Well spotted, I hadn't noticed that. Helipad for visiting senior officers maybe? I can imagine a scenario whereby a senior officer would be deployed to the launch complex in times of heightened alert posture to take command in case of actual war.

[Mars Exulte]

Probably something like that. I haven't noticed any other dedicated helipads. I only really noticed that one because the link initially posted is in the middle of a forest and I was panning around like "what am I supposed to be looking at?" It wasn't until I zoomed out that the "item of interest" became obvious :P