РЗ-25 «Даль» (5В11) / RZ-25 “Dal” (5V11)
(SA-5 GRIFFON)

Development of the “Dal” began in 1955 with OBK Lavochkin as lead on a stationary air defense system capable of engaging various types of aerial targets at ranges of up to 160 km, at altitudes of 5–20 km, and at target speeds of 1,000–2,000 km/h.

The system's radar and computing capabilities were to ensure target detection at ranges of approximately 300-400 km and missile guidance to a distance of 12-15 km from the target. Missile guidance was to be radio-command for ascent, with an active radar head for terminal homing. Up to 10 targets could be engaged simultaneously with 10 missiles.

1956 Radar Specs:

Detection of targets such as the Il-28 at an altitude of 20 km and a range of 200-220 km, targets such as the Tu-16 at an altitude of 20 km and a range of 260-280 km, and targets at an altitude of 5 km and a range of 190-200 km.

1957 Specs:

Detect aerial targets with an effective reflective surface equivalent to that of an Il-28 frontline bomber, flying at speeds of up to 3,000 km/h at a range of up to 400 km. The missile was to engage targets at ranges of 150-160 km and altitudes of up to 30 km, with a launch weight of 6,150-6,700 kg and a warhead weighing 200 kg.

First Tests

30 December 1958 saw the first missile test, followed by 12 more in 1959.

Improved Versions Proposed

A decree of 4 July 1959 called for development of the Dal-M system with the V-420 rocket and the Dal-2 system with the V-500 rocket. These were to have a radar range of 500 to 600 km, and a missile range of 300 to 400 km against an Il-28 target. A new Raduga homing system would be developed by NII-17 for these missiles. Again alternate cruise stages were planned, either a Bondaryuk ramjet-powered stage or a solid propellant stage powered by a motor by OKB-16 Zuba. The requirement was that a 4000 kph target would have an 80 to 85% probability of being shot down at altitudes from 200 m up to 30 km. Planned trials of the alternate versions of the missile were to be conducted in 1962, of the complete missile system, in 1962, and the all-up missile, including warhead and tracking radars, by the second quarter of 1964.

By 1961, Dal-M's specifications were that targets similar to the MiG-17, flying at an altitude of 5 km at a speed of 1,500 km / h, had to be detected and destroyed at a range of 100 km, at an altitude of 20 km (2,500 km / h) - 160-180 km, at an altitude of 30 km (3,000 km / h) - 160 km.

Lavochkin's Death

On 9 July 1960, Lavochkin suddenly died at the Sary-Shagan test site, only a few months after the cancellation of the “Burya” intercontinental cruise missile on 5 February 1960, which allowed OKB-301 Lavochkin to concentrate all remaining resources onto the “Dal” system; which saw four test launches in 1960 with the Zenit-1 radar seeker head.

Work Continues

In parallel with the design, development, and field testing of missile designs, work began on the construction of permanent structures for the Dal combat system near Leningrad, designed by the Leningrad branch of TsPI-20. Construction was carried out near the villages of Pervomayskoye, Kornevo, and Lopukhinka. Each of the three sites under construction was intended to house a regiment of anti-aircraft missile systems consisting of five fire battalions. Similar sites were also being built near Kingisepp and Tikhvin in the Leningrad Region.

Testing of the full “Dal” system, including its full complement of ground-based electronic equipment (KO, SAZO, and UMN radars) and its individual components, began in January 1962; followed shortly by cancellation.

Confusion with S-200 System

Because some Dal sites (Kingisepp/Tikhvin) were halted at an early stage of construction and finished as S-200 sites; along with the Soviets parading “Dal” missiles in Red Square for the May Day parades, the two SAM systems with the NATO "SA-5" designation (GRIFFON and GAMMON) remained confusingly mixed up by Western Analysts until the fall of the Soviet Union.

Sources:

CIA-RDP02T06408R000100010014-4 (Soviet-Type SAM Installations of the World – August 1965) (32~ MB PDF)
https://hfunderground.com/wiki/index.php/V-400_Dal/SA-5_Griffon
https://pvo.guns.ru/dal/dal.htm

CIA/NPIC Commentary (Soviet-type SAM Installations of the World – Aug 1965) regarding D34/B05/D25:

“Construction at this complex was suspended early in 1963, following a probable change in concept, probably based on a decision to modify radically the associated electronic facilities. The original concept was a probable dual-function AMM/SAM defensive system. The major change in electronic facilities possibly indicates a switch to primary emphasis on a long range SAM role against air-breathing vehicles. Since this is not a unanimous conclusion of the intelligence community, and because the original AMM role cannot be ruled out, the complex is being carried as an AMM/SAM installation.”

CIA Site Designations for the three sites that got far along enough to be noticed by intelligence photography were:

• Leningrad NW Probable AMM Launch Complex D34
• Leningrad NE Probable AMM Launch Complex B05
• Leningrad SW Probable AMM Launch Complex D25