The Russian military industry continues to increase the production of missiles for the war in Ukraine, but Some models are having problems that require them to stop production or return them to the factory.. According to Ukrainian military intelligence, whose information is collected by Militarnyi, the cases affect Kh-47M2 Kinzhal, Kh-32 and Kh-101.
The suspension of the Kinzhal and Kh-32 took place last April, although it was announced by Vadym Skibitskyideputy director of Ukrainian military intelligence, in August. We are talking about a stoppage of mass production, not a definitive cancellation of both programs.
He Kh-47M2 Kinzhal it’s a air-launched ballistic missilerelated to him Iskander-M and transported by interceptors MiG-31 modified. Its penetrating warhead is designed to penetrate protected structures, a type of mission in which precision hitting is especially important.
According to Skibitskyi, The Kinzhals recorded deviations of 30 meters or more from the targetwhich would have led to the suspension. Ukrainian intelligence also notes that Russia continues to modernize them and that the limited availability of aircraft from which it can launch them influences the decision to prioritize other missiles.
He Kh-32 it’s a cruise missile developed from the Soviet Kh-22designed as anti-ship, which equips bombers Tu-22M3 and which has been used against Ukrainian ground targets. In this case, Skibitskyi explained in an interview with RBC-Ukraine that attempts to improve accuracy did not give the expected results in combat tests, so manufacturing was suspended and the design was returned for adjustments.
He Kh-101however, continues to be manufactured and constitutes one of the main Russian weapons for long-range attacks. It’s a cruise missile that flies below the speed of sound, can travel thousands of kilometers and is launched from bombers Tu-95MS and Tu-160.
The malfunctions affect certain batches that are returned to the manufacturer, the state-owned company Radugato repair them. Among the problems are failures to separate from the plane during launchalthough the published information does not identify the responsible component or quantify how many missiles are affected.
Other models have also shown limitations. Skibitskyi has explained that the Oniks antiship they had difficulties in identifying ground targets and were modernized to improve that capabilityin addition to increasing its range and warhead.
These weapons are part of the Russian campaign of attacks against Ukrainian military industry, logistics and energy infrastructure that has also hit civilian facilities. Its problems reduce the effectiveness of missions and force resources to be dedicated to repairs and redesigns.
Moscow has transferred the resources it allocated to manufacturing the Kinzhal and Kh-32 to other missiles, especially the Iskander-Mand maintains a monthly target higher than 80 Kh-101 despite its problems.