The Tupolev Tu-95 strategic bomber (Photo: Air Team Images / Artyom Anikeev)
On July 17, a video showing a Russian Kh-101 stealth cruise missile confusing Ukrainian air defenses surfaced online.
The video was taken a day earlier during a Russian missile strike on the southern Ukrainian city of Dnipro. The target of the missile strike was allegedly facilities of the Ukrainian state-owned aerospace manufacturer Yuzhmash.
In the video, a Ukrainian air defense missile, most likely a 9М38 launched from a Buk-M1 system, can be seen exploding on its own over Dnipor only for a Kh-101 missile to pass by a few seconds later. The air defense missile either failed to lock on the Russian stealth cruise missile or was jammed by it.
The Kh-101, which was developed by MKB Raduga, is said to has a maximum range of 4500–5500 kilometers and a variable flight profile at altitudes ranging from 30 – 70 meters to 6000 meters with a cruising speed of 190–200 meters per second and a maximum speed of 250–270 meters per second.
The air-launched missile is guided by a GLONASS-aided INS [inertial navigation system]. It is reportedly re-targetable, and can be also equipped with a radar or optical seeker for terminal guidance.
The Kh-101 is armed with a 400–450 kg conventional warhead. A nuclear armed version of the missile dubbed the Kh-102 was also developed.
Both the Kh-101 and Kh-102 can be launched from the Tu-160 strategic bomber as well as from the Tu-95MS and Tu-95MSM cruise missiles carriers.
The Kh-101 unique features, especially its stealth design, makes it the perfect weapon to strike high-value targets in advanced Anti-Access/Area Denial (A2/AD) arenas from a very long distance. The Russian military has been using the system since the beginning of its special operation in Ukraine.
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