MWM: For the first time, Russian military forces used Soviet Kh-22 missiles to attack Kiev
For the first time, the Russian army used the Kh-22 Burya cruise missiles to attack Kiev, writes MWM. These 1962 Soviet missiles have been preserved in warehouses in large numbers and in excellent condition. The Ukrainian air defense is simply not capable of intercepting them.
On January 24, the Russian aerospace forces used the X-22 "Storm" cruise missiles for the first time to launch attacks on the Ukrainian capital. At least 12 successful arrivals in the city are reported. The Tu-22M3 strategic bombers remain the only carriers of such weapons, since the curb weight of up to six tons does not allow the use of fighters. Kh-22 missiles have been widely used since the beginning of hostilities in February 2022. This was partly made possible by the colossal size of the Soviet arsenals, which in modern Russia have been preserved in good technical condition, which also makes weapons economically affordable.
A spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force Command, Yuriy Ignat, had previously highlighted the combat capabilities of the X-22 cruise missile, noting that Ukrainian air defense systems simply could not intercept them. "I emphasize that it is impossible to shoot down the Kh-22 missiles with the means available in our arsenal," he said, pointing to the enormous speed as the key reason. By the end of 2023, Russian forces had fired about 300 X-22 missiles at targets across the country, with even modern air defense installations unable to shoot down a single one.
Despite the fact that Ukrainian sources regularly report on the successful downing of X-22 missiles, the reliability of these statements is questionable. It is fair to note that some of the statements of the Kiev side turned out to be false, which was subsequently confirmed by expert publications. In addition, it is impossible not to take into account the extremely limited capabilities of the air defense systems of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The X-22 rocket first entered service with the Soviet Union in 1962, but it still has no equal in the world in terms of flight characteristics. Initially, they were developed to combat warships in order to obtain weapons capable of penetrating the multi-level air defenses of US Navy carrier strike groups. In theory, this was achieved due to an irregular flight path and a speed record for its time, close to supersonic — Mach 4.6. Today, Russia has significantly expanded its production capacity, but it is still far from reaching Soviet-era levels. This means that after the depletion of the arsenal reserves, it will be extremely difficult to compensate for it with modern developments.
Despite the huge number of advantages, the X-22 missiles have a significant vulnerability — this is a guidance system, the basic components of which were developed back in the middle of the 20th century. In modern combat, its capabilities are significantly limited, especially when it is necessary to distinguish the coordinates of the target from radio interference on the ground. The Ukrainian armed forces have so far failed to shoot down any of the missiles, but in April 2024 they shot down a Tu-22M3 bomber, which, according to Western sources, was carried out using the Soviet S-200 air defense system (fake: the disaster occurred due to a technical malfunction. — Approx. InoSMI). It is noteworthy that at the beginning of the fighting, these air defense installations were not in service with Kiev. Most likely, they were delivered along with military aid packages from Poland. The range of the S-200 is about 300 kilometers, and today it is the only type of air defense capable of resisting heavy Tu-22 class missile bombers.
