Russia’s cruise missiles Kh-22/Kh-32and hypersonic anti-ship missiles 3M22 Zirconattacked Ukraine.
This information was published on January 24 on the official Telegram channel of the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
According to the release, the Russian military fired 12 Kh-22/Kh-32 cruise missiles in the airspace of the Briansk region. At the same time, two 3M22 Zircon missiles were launched from the temporarily occupied Crimea. The Zircon missile launch platform has not been made public, and instances of its use in combat are still rare.
Ukrainian air defense succeeded in intercepting 9 out of 12 Kh-22/Kh-32 missiles. The Zircon missile was not intercepted.
The Kh-22 and Kh-32 are cruise missiles developed between the 1960s and 1980s that can be used to attack both anti-ship and land targets. Although it has high explosive power, it is evaluated in public data as having low precision and limited quantity.
Meanwhile, the 3M22 Zircon is a weapon of another generation. Although the program is shrouded in secrecy, it has been possible to analyze parts recovered from its use against Ukraine. Analysis results confirmed that Zircon is a follow-up development based on the Soviet supersonic anti-ship missile 3M55 Onyx, developed in the late 1970s.
According to a technical evaluation, Zircon’s increased speed appears to have been achieved through reduced weight including the warhead, use of high-performance fuel, and adoption of a new ramjet engine optimized for hypersonic operations.
The Ukrainian Air Force reported intercepting two Zircon missiles during a morning strike on Kiev on March 25, 2024. According to the monitoring channel at the time, the target traveled about 580 km in about 3 minutes, and its estimated speed reached about 11,600 km/h (above Mach 9). These numbers are consistent with Zircon’s published performance and exclude the use of other systems such as Iskander or Kinzhal.
In related circumstances, January 22nd The Russian Ministry of Defense released a video showing a Tu-22M3 strategic bomber flying over the Baltic Sea equipped with Kh-22/Kh-32 missiles.I did it. The aircraft were escorted by Su-35S and Su-30SM fighter jets and, according to Moscow, on some sections, fighter jets from other countries as well. The Russian government said all flights were in strict compliance with international aviation regulations.
Source and image: Telegram @zvezdanews | Ukrainian Armed Forces Air Force – Telegram @kpszsu. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by our editorial team.
@militaryanalyseOn January 22, the Ministry of Defense of Russia released a video showing a strategic Tu-22M3 bomber carrying a Kh-22/Kh-32 missile during a flight over the Baltic Sea. Sources and images: Telegram @zvezdanews
