Russia unveils Kh-59MKM upgrade variant air-to-surface missile

The Raduga Design Bureau, a subsidiary of Russia's state-owned JSC Tactical Missiles Corporation (KTRV), unveiled an upgraded derivative of the TV-guided Kh-59MK extended-range air-to-surface missile at the MAKS 2021 International Aviation and Space Salon, held in Zhukovsky on 20–25 July.

With an all-up weight of 930 kg, the new Kh-59MKM is 5.7 m in length, 380 mm in diameter (with a slightly larger nose section diameter of 420 mm), and a has wingspan of 1.3 m. While the Kh-59MKM airframe retains the same airframe dimensions as the earlier Kh-59MK, the absence of a seeker section has enabled the inclusion of a heavier warhead, a KTRV spokesperson told Janes .

Designed to penetrate static hardened and buried targets, the missile is equipped with a 360 kg lethality package comprising a 40 kg array of four shaped pre-charges with a contact delayed-action fuse mounted under the radome, and an organic 320 kg penetrating tandem warhead. The KTRV spokesperson said that Kh-59MKM is able to penetrate up to 3 m of reinforced concrete.

Model of the new Raduga Design Bureau Kh-59MKM air-to-surface missile shown at the MAKS 2021 exhibition in Zhukovsky on 20-25 July. Note the four pre-charges under the radome. (N.Novichkov)