Key Points – Russia has unveiled its new TOS-3 “Dragon” tank-based thermobaric rocket launcher, a system reportedly offering significantly longer engagement ranges (15-24 kilometers) for its unguided thermobaric rockets compared to the older TOS-1A Solntsepyok (<10 km).
-First publicly shown in summer 2024, the TOS-3 launcher, derived from the TOS-2 Tosochka but with 15 guides, is mounted on a tank chassis for enhanced crew protection. It also features an anti-drone “grill” and a Volnorez electronic warfare system.
-The somewhat unusual and potentially rushed nature of its development and presentation suggests an urgent effort to field longer-range, more survivable thermobaric capabilities.
TOS-3: The Ultimate Russian Thermobaric Killer
The first public demonstration of the latest in the series of Russian thermobaric weapons mounted on an armored chassis is the new TOS-3 Dragon tank-based self-propelled flamethrower system. The system was first seen in the summer of 2024 in a public presentation.
The Russian state enterprise “Omsktransmash” developed the TOS-3, which also served as the design and production center for the latest version of the T-80BVM Main Battle Tank (MBT).
Previous information released in Russian regarding the TOS-3 development and testing discusses the evaluation phase, which began last Spring and had its first public outing in June 2024. According to the claims of the experts and officials quoted, one of the main features of the TOS-3 system is a longer range for the thermobaric unguided rockets in comparison with the TOS-1A Solntsepyok MLRS.
A Ukrainian publication that covered this first public showing of the TOS-3 remarked on the unusual nature in which this newest thermobaric battlefield platform was presented. It was held commensurate with a public celebration of the 45th anniversary of the first Mobile NBC Protection Brigade of the Russian army.
It is quite unusual for the Russians to conflate two such events and, in the process, dilute the significance of a new weapon system that they are revealing to work for the first time.
The rollout of a new weapon system—particularly in Putin’s Russia—is almost always a standalone event. Its emergence from under is also almost always accompanied by a description of its performance numbers as being “unparalleled anywhere else in the whole world.”
Why The Time Lag – A Cobbled Together System
What is also unusual was the time lag between the release of the first information about the development of the TOS-3 at the beginning of 2024 and the statement about the availability of a prototype—in April.
Reaching the point where there could be an actual demonstration of the system “took quite a bit of time,” said the Ukrainian publication. The suggestion, therefore, is that the TOS-3 was not just an evolutionary development based on existing hardware or an improvement of the TOS-2.
Instead, it may be that the TOS-3 variant was assembled using some existing individual modules and components and then rearranging these “ready-made nodes and aggregates” to create a new design.
The photos of the first TOS-3 public showing reveal that the new launcher is derived from the TOS-2 Tosochka, but it has 15 guides instead of 18. The launcher is also equipped with a protective anti-shrapnel and anti-drone cage (the so-called “grill”), as well as a Volnorez EW (electronic warfare) system that is specifically designed to protect the system against drones.
Basis of System Concept
The idea behind the TOS-3 heavy flamethrower system was to integrate longer-range unguided rockets, which require greater accuracy through the platform’s guidance systems and stability of launching guides, into the platform. According to information circulating on Russian military sites, the range of these projectiles is from 15 to 24 kilometers, compared with the published numbers of 6-10 km for the TOS-1A, which in practice has often turned out to be less than 5 km.
The fact is that TOS-1A, according to its original design concept, should always have a direct line of sight to the target and then measure the distance to the target with a laser range finder. After target acquisition is conducted, an automatic ballistic calculation is performed, and the launcher then adjusts to the optimal launch angle.
At the same time, it continues the concept behind the longer-range TOS-2 Tosochka heavy flamethrower system, based on a Ural wheeled all-wheel drive chassis, which was designed to ensure accurate firing from closed positions.
However, the range of the TOS-2 Tosochka still required the system to be near the line of combat, which means the possibility of falling under the range of counter-battery fire. This was part of the reason for designing the TOS-3 flamethrower system based on a tank chassis. The idea was to provide better protection for the crew and the vehicle over the previous TOS-1/1A and TOS-2 designs.
About the Author:
Reuben F. Johnson is a survivor of the February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and is an Expert on Foreign Military Affairs with the Fundacja im. Kazimierza Pułaskiego in Warsaw. He has been a consultant to the Pentagon, several NATO governments and the Australian government in the fields of defense technology and weapon systems design. Over the past 30 years he has resided in and reported from Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Brazil, the People’s Republic of China and Australia.
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