CIA-RDP84T00171R000301410001-3

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(c) NATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHIC INTERPRETATION CENTER

NPIC/IEG (01/84)
16 JANUARY 1984

SCALEBOARD ACTIVITY, PROBABLY ASSOCIATED WITH ATBM TESTING
KABANBAY, USSR (SWN)
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25X1

1. SIGNIFICANCE: SCALEBOARD SS-12/22 SHORT RANGE BALLISTIC MISSILES EQUIPMENT AT NEWLY IDENTIFIED FIELD SITES WEST OF THE ARAL SEA MAY BE LINKED TO ANTITACTICAL BALLISTIC MISSILE (ATBM) TESTS AT THE EMBA MISSILE TEST CENTER. (SWN)

2. REMARKS: BETWEEN JUNE 1982 AND SEPTEMBER 1983, THE SOVIETS CONSTRUCTED TWO SCALEBOARD SHORT-RANGE BALLISTIC MISSILE (SRBM) FIELD SITES IN A REMOTE AREA WEST OF THE ARAL SEA, APPROXIMATELY 300 NM SOUTH OF THE EMBA MISSILE TEST CENTER [----DELETED----] (GRAPHIC 1). BOTH SITES CONSISTING OF TENTS, BIVOUACS AND OTHER TEMPORARY STRUCTURES, WERE OCCUPIED WITH SCALEBOARD EQUIPMENT ON THE MOST RECENT IMAGERY OF [----DELETED----] THE LOCATION OF THE SITES RELATIVE TO OTHER MILITARY UNITS IN THE TURKESTAN MILITARY DISTRICT AND RECENT EVENTS AT EMBA SUGGEST THAT THIS SCALEBOARD ACTIVITY IS RELATED TO TESTING OF THE EMBA-04 SUBSYSTEM OF THE SA-X-12 AT EMBA RATHER THAN A TYPICAL MILITARY TRAINING EXERCISE. THE EMBA-04 IS ASSESSED TO HAVE AN ATBM CAPABILITY. [----DELETED----]

KABANBAY TAC SSM FIELD SITE 1 (GRAPHIC 2) WAS IDENTIFIED AT 440605N 0572931E ON [----DELETED----] TWO SCALEBOARD TRANSPORTER-ERECTOR-LAUNCHERS (TEL) AND ONE MAZ-535/537 HEAVY DUTY CRANE WERE WITH TECHNICAL SUPPORT VEHICLES IN A VEHICLE STORAGE AREA. OTHER NEARBY FACILITIES INCLUDE A PROBABLE HEADQUARTERS, A POL STORAGE AREA WITH MR-10 COLLAPSIBLE FUEL CONTAINERS, A PROBABLE METEOROLOGICAL STATION, AND A TROOP BIVOUAC AREA. (SWN)

KABANBAY TAC SSM FIELD SITE 2 (GRAPHIC 3) IS AT 440855N 0573814E. TWO PROBABLE SCALEBOARD TEL AND TWO PROBABLE SCALEBOARD RESUPPLY VEHICLES WERE PARKED UNDER CAMOUFLAGE NETTING IN A VEHICLE STORAGE PARK AT THIS FIELD SITE. THREE, POSSIBLY FOUR, MISSILE CANISTERS WERE ON THE GROUND ADJACENT TO THE VEHICLES. A FENCE-SECURED TECHNICAL SUPPORT AREA AND HELICOPTER LANDING PAD ARE NORTHWEST OF THE VEHICLE PARK. A POSSIBLE METEOROLOGICAL SUPPORT STATION IS SOUTHWEST OF THE VEHICLE PARK, AND OTHER BUNKERS AND PIECES OF EQUIPMENT ARE NORTH AND SOUTH OF THE VEHICLE PARK. THE TWO TACTICAL SSM FIELD SITES ARE APPROXIMATELY 7 NM APART. (SWN)

THE ONLY OTHER SCALEBOARD DEPLOYMENT IDENTIFIED IN THE TURKESTAN MILITARY DISTRICT WAS INITIALLY OBSERVED AT KURGANCHA LAUNCH POSITION 6 [----DELETED----] IN OCTOBER 1983 (NPIC IAC 445 FOR 12 OCTOBER 1983). (SWN)

ANALYST'S COMMENTS -- THESE SITES AT KABANBAY MAY BE LAUNCHING SCALEBOARD MISSILES TOWARD THE EMBA MISSILE TEST CENTER TO SERVE AS TARGET VEHICLES FOR THE EMBA-04 SUBSYSTEM OF THE SA-X-12 WHICH IS IN RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AT EMBA. USING THE SCALEBOARD AS A TARGET VEHICLE FOR THE EMBA-04 SUBSYSTEM COULD ALLOW THE SOVIETS TO BETTER ASSESS THE CAPABILITIES OF THE EMBA-04, ESPECIALLY THE ENGAGEMENT AND ACQUISITION RADARS, AGAINST A MISSILE SIMILAR TO THE PERSHING II (NPIC IAC 537 FOR 22 DECEMBER 1983). ACCORDING

[----SEVERAL PARAGRAPHS DELETED----]

1983 IMAGERY, FAILED TO DETECT ANY SCALEBOARD EQUIPMENT IN THAT AREA. EMBA IS APPROXIMATELY 270 NM NORTH OF KABANBAY AND WELL WITHIN THE 490 NM RANGE OF SCALEBOARD MISSILES. THE SCALEBOARD EQUIPMENT MAY HAVE COME BY RAIL FROM THE RECENTLY IDENTIFIED SCALEBOARD UNIT IN KURGANCHA, 360 NM SOUTHEAST OF KABANBAY, NEAR THE AFGHANISTAN BORDER. A RAIL LINE FROM KURGANCHA PASSES WITHIN 6 NM SOUTHWEST OF THE KABANBAY TAC SSM FIELD SITES. IF THESE SITES WERE ESTABLISHED TO PRIMARILY SUPPORT ATBM TESTING, THE MISSILES USED IN THESE TESTS PROBABLY CAME FROM EMBA AS THEY WOULD NEED SPECIALLY DESIGNED TELEMETRY PACKAGES INSTALLED AND EXTENSIVE CHECKOUT PROCEDURES. [----DELETED----]

3. [DELETED] COORDINATES 44-06-05N 057-29-31E (S)
    [DELETED] COORDINATES 44-08-55N 057-38-14E (S)

4. [SEVERAL PARAGRAPHS DELETED]

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