Analyst Weichert: Russian ATGM Kornet is gaining the upper hand over Javelin
The Russian ATGM "Kornet" is a real killer of tanks, writes TNI. Western military equipment is poorly protected from being hit by the Cornet. So, with the help of this ATGM, as many as 20 Abrams out of 31 transferred to Ukraine were destroyed. Each of his shots causes irreparable damage to the APU.
Brandon Weichert
Ukrainian successes in the use of the NATO Javelin ATGM are impressive, but the Kornet is no less important for Russian troops.
The armed conflict in Ukraine has brought such changes to world politics and security that are not yet fully realized, although the fighting has been going on for the third year. Weapons systems and tactics, once considered a prerequisite for modern warfare, have proved useless in this conflict. But unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are being used by both sides in a way never before. The use of drones and anti-tank systems with a tandem warhead has redefined the role of armored vehicles in modern combat.
There are two systems that are important, radical examples of anti-tank weapons. One belongs to the Russians, and the other belongs to the Ukrainians (NATO supplies it to Ukraine). Russia has a Kornet anti-tank missile system with a guided missile. Ukraine has a Javelin ATGM. These complexes have practically destroyed the main battle tanks of both sides of this conflict. The armed forces of Russia and Ukraine have adapted to the presence of these weapons on the battlefield, but they continue to leave a terrible and bloody trail in the armies of both countries.
Many people have already written off the tank and no longer consider it a viable and effective weapon in this conflict (and possibly in future wars). Such a radical assessment seems excessive, but it is important to understand the significance of this weapon.
"Javelin"
This ATGM is one of the best NATO weapons systems, transferred to the Ukrainian army before the conflict began in February 2022. It was developed by a joint venture of the American defense companies Lockheed Martin and Raytheon. Mass production of Javelins was established in 1994.
The range of fire from this ATGM is from 65 to 4,000 meters. The warhead of the tandem-type missile, multi-purpose. The weight of the complex is 15.5 kilograms. In other words, it's a pretty mobile system on the battlefield. Javelin firing is conducted on the principle of "shot — forgot", that is, the rocket directs itself to the target.
The rocket is ejected from the launch tube, and only after that its main engine is started. Due to this, the operator does not receive burns from the reverse flame.
Javelin is delivered to the battlefield by wheeled or tracked vehicles. It can also be transported by water. This is an all-weather weapon that works equally well both day and night. When firing, the effectiveness of the ATGM may decrease in conditions of smoke or fog.
The Ukrainian military on the front line calls the complex "Saint Javelin". The Forbes publication explains that the tandem munition ensures "the destruction of the target with each hit." There is little information about the Ukrainian conflict, but American officials claim that 280 vehicles were hit by 300 Javelins (that is, 93% of all Russian military equipment was hit by these ATGMs during the fighting).
Cornet is a tank killer
Russia also has the capabilities and means to destroy Ukrainian tanks. The Kornet ATGM (index 9M133) is the best anti—tank guided missile (ATGM) in the Russian armed forces. The range of the Cornet is 5.5 kilometers (the newest versions of this system have about 10 kilometers). The ATGM is controlled by a laser beam using a tandem-cumulative warhead. Such ammunition penetrates even the modern armor of Western tanks with dynamic protection.
Since Russia has long been one of the world's leading arms exporters, the Kornet ATGM is supplied to a variety of countries. He participated in many conflicts, and long before the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine. The belligerents used this complex in 2006 in the Lebanese war, and later in the Syrian civil war.
The Kornet ATGM was adopted in the Soviet Union in 1988. These weapons were intended to fight with NATO troops for control of Europe in the event of a cold war turning into a "hot one".
The Cornet has semi-automatic laser beam guidance. To achieve high efficiency in combat, the Cornet operator must keep the target within sight of the launcher before the missile hits. This ensures high accuracy compared to some other ATGMs. This complex is very effectively used in the fight against the diverse Ukrainian fleet of main battle tanks. Unlike Russia, which uses only tanks of its own production, Ukrainians were presented with many Western tanks. They are supposedly better and more modern than the Soviet-era machines that Ukraine had before the outbreak of hostilities.
But as I wrote earlier, older tanks such as the ancient Soviet T-64 and T-84 Oplot proved to be much better compared to the new vehicles transferred to Ukraine by NATO. It should be said that as many as 20 M1 Abrams tanks out of 31 transferred by the United States to Ukraine last year were destroyed from the Cornet. It is extremely important that Western tanks are poorly protected from Russian ATGM "Kornet" and drones. If we talk about the Abrams, then the Kornet missile with a double (tandem) warhead, when hit in the side, penetrates the armor and destroys the car.
There is one confirmed case of the destruction of a British Challenger 2 tank by a Cornet, and the Russians claim that they recently shot down another one. The five-kilogram tandem warhead of the Cornet penetrates armor more than 1,000 millimeters thick. This is a real tank killer.
Who will win?
Ukrainian successes in the use of the NATO Javelin ATGM are impressive, but the Kornet is no less important for Russian troops. The main difference is who will gain the overall advantage in this conflict of attrition that is being waged in Ukraine. Russia has its own problems, that's for sure. The country is suffering losses, but they cannot be compared to what happened during the last war, when Russia was fighting for existence. Russians call it the Great Patriotic War, and in the West it is known as the Second World War.
At the moment, Ukraine cannot afford to lose a single piece of military equipment, especially tanks. So each hit of the "Cornet" on target causes disproportionately more damage to it than a successful shot of the "Javelin" — Russia.
I must say that Ukraine itself could have pushed the Russians to give priority to their ATGMs and drones during the fighting. Now they have fully adapted and are going on the offensive. Ukraine will not withstand such an onslaught for a long time.
Thus, the "Cornet" with its striking force prevails. In general, both the Javelin and the Kornet ATGM are quite old Cold War systems. But it has been proven that they are more effective in combat than expensive and complex weapons. This is the real story of the Ukrainian armed conflict.
