Kh-59ME: Su-30MK[1] Kh-59: Su-24M, MiG-27, Su-17M3/22M4, HAL Tejas, Su-30 MKI Su-25 and Su-30[5] Kh-59MK2: Su-57[6]
The Kh-59 Ovod (Russian: Х-59 Овод 'Gadfly'; AS-13 'Kingbolt') is a Russian cruise missile with a two-stage solid-fuel propulsion system and 200 km range. The Kh-59M Ovod-M (AS-18 'Kazoo') is a variant with a bigger warhead and turbojet engine. It is primarily a land-attack missile; the Kh-59MK variant targets ships.[4]
Development
The initial design was based on the Raduga Kh-58 (AS-11 'Kilter'), but it had to be abandoned[citation needed] because the missile speed was too high for visual target acquisition.
Raduga OKB developed the Kh-59 in the 1970s as a longer ranged version of the Kh-25 (AS-10 'Karen'),[7] as a precision stand-off weapon for the Su-24M and late-model MiG-27's.[5] The electro-optical sensors for this and other weapons such as the Kh-29 (AS-14 'Kedge') and KAB-500KR bombs were developed by S. A. Zverev NPO in Krasnogorsk.[7]
It is believed that development of the Kh-59M started in the 1980s.[4] Details of the Kh-59M were first revealed in the early 1990s.[4]
Design
The original Kh-59 is propelled by a solid fuel engine, and incorporates a solid fuel accelerator in the tail. The folding stabilizers are located in the front of the missile, with wings and rudder in the rear. The Kh-59 cruises at an altitude of about 7 metres above water or 100–1,000 metres (330–3,280 ft) above ground with the help of a radar altimeter. It can be launched at speeds of 600 to 1,000 km/h (370 to 620 mph) at altitudes of 0.2 to 11 kilometres (660 to 36,090 ft) and has a CEP of 2 to 3 metres.[2] It is carried on an AKU-58-1 launch pylon.[5]
The Kh-59ME has an external turbofan engine below the body just forward of the rear wings, but retains the powder-fuel accelerator. It also has a dual guidance system consisting of an inertial guidance system to guide it into the target area and a television system to guide it to the target itself.[1]
The 36MT turbofan engine developed for the Kh-59M class of missiles is manufactured by NPO Saturn of Russia.[8]
Target coordinates are fed into the missile before launch, and the initial flight phase is conducted under inertial guidance. At a distance of 10 km (6.2 mi) from the target the television guidance system is activated. An operator aboard the aircraft visually identifies the target and locks the missile onto it.
Operational history
Kh-59MEKh-59MK2
Although the original Kh-59 could be carried by the MiG-27, Su-17M3, Su-22M4, Su-24M, Su-25 and Su-30 family if they carried an APK-9 datalink pod, it was only fielded on the Su-24M in Russian service.[5] From 2008–2015, Russia delivered some 200 Kh-59 missiles to China for use on the Su-30MK2; deliveries may have included both Kh-59MK and Kh-59MK2 versions.[9] The Kh-59MK2 has been test-fired by a Su-57 stealth fighter, during its 2018 Syrian deployment.[6]
On 4 April 2022, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, photographic evidence was published on Telegram channels that a Kh-59M missile was launched by the Russian Aerospace Forces at a grain silo near Mykolaiv, Ukraine. The missile was captured on CCTV as it was traveling to the target area.[10]
On 16 August 2022, the Ukrainian Air Force confirmed over Social Media that Kh-59 missiles were used to strike an airbase in the Zhytomyr Oblast, the missiles being fired towards the Belarusian border from what was believed to be Su-34 jets. By November 2024 missiles launched were found to be lacking the active radar homing head ARGSN U559 and the "Comet" satellite communication module implying that Russia is unable to produce them in adequate numbers making the missiles less effective and more vulnerable to Ukrainian electronic warfare. Russia has also struggled to substitute the P95-300 engine manufactured by the Ukrainian company Motor Sich forcing them to rely on Soviet-era stocks or cannibalizing the Kh-55(SM) missiles.[11]
Variants
Kh-59 model
Kh-59 (AS-13 'Kingbolt') – original version with dual solid-fuel rocket engines. First shown in 1991; exported as Kh-59 or Kh-59E.[7]
Kh-59M (AS-18 'Kazoo') – adds turbojet engine and larger warhead. Range 115 km.[1]
Kh-59ME – 200 km-range variant offered for export in 1999.[4]
Kh-59MK – 285 km-range anti-shipping variant with turbofan engine and ARGS-59 active radar seeker.[4][12]
Kh-59MK2 (AS-22) – land attack variant of Kh-59MK (fire-and-forget),[4] equipped with either a 320 kg penetrating or 285 kg (628 lb) pellet warhead.[9][13] First unveiled at MAKS 2015.[14][15]
Kh-59M2 – Kh-59M/Kh-59MK with new TV/IIR seekers, reported in 2004.[4]
Kh-20 – possible name for nuclear-tipped variant carried by Su-27 family.[4]
Kh-59L – laser-guided variant that was developed.[5]
Kh-59T – TV guided instead of laser guidance variant.
Kh-59MKM – penetrator version that eliminated the seeker section and fitted a 360 kg (790 lb) warhead, able to penetrate 3 m of reinforced concrete.[16]
Proposed development options for the Kh-59M/ME have included alternative payloads (including cluster munitions) but their current development status is unclear.[5][17]
^Wiebe, Virgil; Peachey, Titus (2000). "Chapter 2: Cluster Munitions in the Russian Arsenal". Clusters of Death: The Mennonite Central Committee Global Report on Cluster Bomb Production and Use (Report). Mennonite Central Committee. Archived from the original on 17 February 2001. Retrieved 28 April 2011. Also known as the Kh-59M Ovod-M, the AS-18 is 'modernized version of AS-13 Kingbolt.['] [...] The warhead can be either a 705-lb high explosive or 617-lb cluster submunitions.
