Russia starts hitting Ukraine with new version of Kh-101 missiles – with double warhead
Russia has begun producing and deploying a modernized version of the Kh-101 missile in Ukraine – it has a double warhead and is correspondingly more damaging, according to a British intelligence briefing and an article in Defense Express.
The additional warhead is designed to increase the fragmentation damage to the target. This is likely to make the missile more effective against unprotected targets, British intelligence says.
Defense Express notes that Russia began using such missiles at the end of March.
At least one of them was shot down during the repulse of a missile attack on the 8th of May.
The serial number on this cruise missile indicates that it was manufactured in the second quarter of 2024, i.e. the Russians literally took this Kh-101 off the assembly line for a strike on Ukraine.
In addition to the standard 450-kilogram warhead, there was also an additional 350-kilogram warhead, for a total of 800 kilograms. According to the publication, the Russians were able to install a second warhead on the Kh-101 by reducing the size of the fuel tank and reducing the flight range indicator from approximately 5,500 km to 2,250 km.
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