RUSSIAN/SOVIET ANTI-TANK WEAPONS

The 3K11 Falanga (AT-2 SWATTER) is a radio-guided ATGM with a HEAT warhead. The missile exists in three versions, designated A, B, and C. The A and B versions differ in weight. They both use manual command-to-line-of-sight (MCLOS) guidance. However, the AT-2c SWATTER C has semiautomatic command-to-line-of-sight (SACLOS) guidance. The SWATTER is mounted on BRDM/BRDM-2 scout vehicles with four launch rails on a traversable mount. When the launcher is raised for firing, armor plates on the BRDM move to the sides, while the launcher on the BRDM-2 attaches to the underside of a flat, retractable, armored cover. The Mi-8T/HIP E can mount two SWATTERs above each of its two external weapons racks. The Mi-24/HIND A and D mount two SWATTERs on wingtip launch rails on each of their two stub wings. The SWATTER A can engage targets at ranges between 500 and 2,500 meters. SWATTER B and C have maximum ranges of 3,500 and 4,000 meters, respectively. Armor penetration capability is over 500 millimeters, and the probability of first-round hit is 67 percent for SWATTER A and B and over 90 percent for the SWATTER C.

The 9K11 Malyutka (AT-3 SAGGER) is a wire-guided ATGM with a HEAT warhead. It has several launch configurations: man-pack, armored vehicle, and even helicopter. With the man-pack version, the operator carries the SAGGER missile in a fiberglass "suitcase." He attaches it by a hinged support to the lid of the case. From that position, he launches the missile by means of a firing button on the control box. He then uses the control box's periscope sight and control stick to guide the missile to the target. On BRDM/BRDM-2 scout vehicles, six launch rails are mounted on the underside of a retractable armored cover, with eight additional missiles carried inside the vehicle. The BMP-1 and BMD-1 combat vehicles have single launch rails mounted above the 73-mm main gun and carry a total of four and three missiles, respectively. The Mi-2/HOPLITE helicopter can carry two SAGGERs on each side of its cabin. The Mi-8TB/HIP F carries six SAGGERs. The SAGGER can engage targets at ranges of 500 to 3,000 meters and penetrate over 400 millimeters of armor. It employs an MCLOS guidance system in which the operator must observe both missile and target and guide the one towards the other. The wire-guided missile is invulnerable to electronic countermeasures and has a very small percentage of malfunctions. The AT-3c/SAGGER C variant employs SACLOS guidance. It is mounted primarily on the BRDM-2, but it may also be mounted on the HIP F and HOPLITE helicopters. These heliborne systems provide greater flexibility to the ground command but at a greater vulnerability cost to the launch platform.

The 9K111 Fagot (AT-4 SPIGOT) is a tube-launched, wire-guided, SACLOS, ATGM system, similar in many respects to the US TOW system. The AT-4 system consists of three major components: the SPIGOT missile, the launch tube, and the missile launcher. The tripod-mounted launcher for ground-launched employment has a periscope sight attached to its left side. The sight and the missile tracker comprise a single unit, which is mechanically attached to the launch-tube connecting rail so both move together in elevation. The crew loads the SPIGOT missile by sliding the tube onto the launch supports from the rear until the electrical contacts and a mechanical catch engage; then the system is ready for launch. The Soviets originally designed the AT-4 as a ground-launched weapon system. However, turrets of the BMP-1 and BMD-1 combat vehicles can mount the AT-4 launcher. The BRDM-2 launcher vehicle of the AT-5 system and the launcher on the BMP-2 can fire the SPIGOT missile. The SPIGOT has a minimum range of only 70 meters and a maximum range of 2000-2500 meters. There are two types of missile, SPIGOT-A and SPIGOT-B, the latter having an improved sustainer motor which increases the maximum range from 2000 m to 2500 m and an improved warhead which increases the penetration from 400 mm to 460 mm. The AT-4 tracker is adequate, simple, and in-expensive. Its extremely narrow field of view makes it more difficult to decoy, since the decoy source must be inside the field of view.

The 9K113 Konkurs (AT-5 SPANDREL) is a wire-guided, SACLOS, ATGM system mounted on various armored vehicles. The Russian nomenclature for this system is 9K113 for the system, and 9M113 for the missile. The dimensions and shape of the launch tube are similar to those of the AT-4 SPIGOT, but the SPANDREL missile is considerably heavier. The SPANDREL launch tube has a blow-out cap at the front, and it is flared at the rear. The AT-5 system can launch either the SPIGOT or SPANDREL missile. The SPANDREL has a maximum range of 4,000 meters and a minimum range of 100 meters. Other capabilities are essentially the same as those listed above for the AT-4 SPIGOT, except for the time of flight. The basic 9M113 missile is capable of penetrating about 600 mm of RHAe. An improved model, the 9M113-M, uses a tandem warhead with an extensible stand-off probe for dealing with ERA, and can penetrate 750-800 mm of RHAe.

The 9K114 Shturm (AT-6 SPIRAL) is a tube-launched, SACLOS, radio-command guided ATGM mounted on both heliborne and ground platforms. The industrial designation is 9K114, Shturm (Storm). It was primarily designed as a helicopter-based anti-armor missile, and is called the Shturm-V in the helicopter version, and Shturm-S in the ground-launched version. In the helicopter-mounted role it is found on Mi-24 E/F and the Kamov Ka-29 HORMONE naval helicopter. The AT-6 is also found on the 9P149 tank destroyer, which is based on the MT-LB tracked multi-purpose vehicle. As with many contemporary Russian tactical missiles, the 9M114 missile is transported and launched from a glass-reinforced plastic tube. There are at least four versions of the 9M114 missile. The basic 9M114 has a conventional shaped-charge anti-armor warhead capable of defeating 600-mm of armor. A special bunker-buster missile is in service which uses an enhanced blast warhead similar to a fuel-air explosive. These two variants have a 400 meter minimum range and a 5000 meter maximum range. Two advanced anti-armor warheads are also available, which have been developed to defeat explosive reactive armor. These two missiles differ in the length of the missile and the maximum range: 6 km for the 9M114M1 and 7 km for the 9M114M2.

The 9K115 Metis (AT-7 SAXHORN) is a lightweight, man-portable, tube-launched, SACLOS, ATGM system with a wire command link. One man can carry and operate it, but its crew normally consists of two men. The gunner carries the 9P151 firing post and one missile, and the assistant gunner carries three additional 9M115 missile canisters. The SAXHORN missile, with a HEAT warhead, has a minimum range of 40 meters, and maximum range of 1,000 meters. The operator tracks the target visually using a monocular scope. The missile is guided automatically to the target on which the operator keeps the cross-hairs of his sight. The basic 9M115 missile has a unitary shaped-charge warhead and is capable of penetrating 460-mm of armor. The AT-7 can be fired from the shoulder as well as from the tripod but this requires a great deal more skill. It can be fired from an enclosed space, such as a building, although it requires at least 6 meters of clear space behind and an internal volume of 100 m3.

The 9K112 Kobra (AT-8 SONGSTER) is a tank-gun-launched ATGM system with SACLOS guidance and a radio-frequency guidance link. It is known to be fired by the T-64B and T-80 medium tanks. The SONGSTER missile has a maximum range of 4,000 meters. Its HEAT warhead has an armor penetration capability of 700 to 800 mm of RHA. The missile is fired through the main gun tube like a normal tank round; after launch, however, it uses a sustain or boost/sustain motor to propel it to the target. The tank gunner tracks the target visually using a monocular periscope; the missile is guided automatically to the target on which he keeps the cross-hairs of his sight. The missile has a primary antitank role, but it also has a secondary anti-helicopter role.

The AT-9 Ataka is an improved version of the AT-6 Shturm-V system, designed for use on the Mi-28 HAVOC attack helicopter and Kamov naval helicopters. This system essentially is an AT-6 Shturm-V, with an improved guidance system and the 9M114M1 and 9M114M2 missiles described in the AT-6 section. The Ataka system on the Mi-28 HAVOC carries double the number of missiles as the earlier Shturm-V system.

The 9K116 Bastion (AT-10 STABBER) is a laser-beam riding, antitank missile launched from the main gun of a T-55AM2B main battle tank, BMP-3 Infantry Fighting Vehicle, and the MT-12 antitank gun. The 9K116 system uses beam-riding laser guidance. The 9K116 uses the 9M117 missile. The ammunition for this system is designated 3UBK10 for the T-55, and 3UBK12 for the BMP-3. This ammunition consists of the 9M117 missile and a propellant sleeve which fits over the rear end of the missile. As a result, the complete 3UBK10 resembles a normal round of 100-mm ammunition. The 9M117 missile has two sets of pop-out fins, a rear set for stability and a front set for steering. For the MT-12, the missile is called the Kastet, and requires that the MT-12 have a special laser designator mounted nearby to provide the necessary guidance. The missile has a 80% probability of hit at 4000 meters. Armor penetration is 550-600 mm of RHA, and the projectile has an effective envelope of 100 to 5000 meters.

The 9K120 Svir/Refleks (AT-11 SNIPER) is a laser-beam riding, antitank missile launched from the main gun of a tank or antitank gun. It is the successor to the earlier radio-command guidance AT-8 SONGSTER. The AT-11 can be fired by the T-72B, T-72S, T-80B, T-80U, and T-90 main battle tanks, and the 2A45M antitank gun. The 9K120 system uses beam-riding laser guidance. The tank directs a coded beam from a special gunner's sight, which creates a laser "funnel" with the missile riding in the center. The 9K120 uses the 9M119 missile. The ammunition nomenclature is 3UBK14 and consists of the 9M119 missile, a reduced charge propellant casing, and a spacer plug which seats the missile properly into the main gun. The 3UBK14 ammunition fits into the normal autoloader on the tank, and the normal load is 6 missiles. The 9M119 missile comes in two variants: the Svir, which is fired by the T-72B, T-72S, and 2A45M antitank gun; and the Refleks, which is fired by the T-80B, T-80U, and T-90 main battle tank. The Refleks round is 4 kg heavier and has a 5000 meter maximum range, whereas the Svir has a 4000 meter maximum range. The 4.2 kg, shaped charge found on both variants can penetrate 650-700 mm of RHA.

The 9K118(?) Sheksna (AT-12) is a laser-beam riding, antitank missile launched from the main gun of an improved T-62 main battle tank. The 9K118 system, which is essentially a 9K116 system modified to be fired through the 115-mm gun of the T-62 instead of the 100-mm of the T-55, uses beam-riding laser guidance. The 9K118 uses the 9M118 missile. The ammunition for this system is designated 3UBK13. This ammunition consists of the 9M118 missile and a propellant sleeve which fits over the rear end of the missile. The 9M118 missile has two sets of pop-out fins, a rear set for stability and a front set for steering. The missile has a 80% probability of hit at 4000 meters. Armor penetration is 550-600 mm of RHA, and the projectile has an effective envelope of 100 to 5000 meters. Flight time at 4000 meters is about 12 seconds. The projectile has a maximum endurance of 26-41 seconds, at which point it self-detonates.

The 9K131 Metis-M (AT-13) is an improved version of the 9K115 Metis (AT-7 SAXHORN). This improved missile has two alternate warheads: a 4.6-kg tandem shaped-charge with a precursor charge for overcoming ERA with a penetration of 800-900 mm of RHA; and a 4.95 kg fuel-air explosive warhead for attacking bunkers and similar targets. This improved missile has a maximum range of 1500 meters.

AT-X-14 Kornet Antitank Guided Missile

The AT-X-14 Kornet (the X designated that it is not yet in production) is a tripod mounted laser-beam riding antitank guided missile. The AT-X-14 is a laser beam riding missile with a semi-automatic command line of sight (SACLOS) guidance system. The Maximum range of the AT-X-14 is 5000 to 5500 meters. The minimum range is 100 meters. There are two types of warheads available for the AT-X-14, a tandem high explosive anti-tank (HEAT) warhead, and a blast enhanced fuel-air-explosives (FAE) warhead. The HEAT warhead is claimed to be able to penetrate up to 1200-mm of RHAe protected by explosive reactive armor (ERA). FAE warheads are effective against not only buildings but also against troops in the open and various types of armored vehicles. While the FAE will not penetrate the armor, it will create a massive overpressure which will cause injury to the troops inside the vehicle. The basic system has a day sight but a thermal night sight has been developed which enables targets to be recognized at a range of up to 3500 meters depending on conditions. The thermal sight is clipped onto the right side of the launcher with the bottle at the rear.

AT-X-15 Krizantema Antitank Guided Missile

The AT-X-15 Krizantema (the X designated that it is not yet in production) is a heavy vehicle-mounted laser-beam riding antitank guided missile. The AT-X-15 has a range of 5000 meters, a speed of 170 m/s, and its 150-mm warhead can penetrate up to 800 mm of RHA. Other details are not currently available.

AT-X-16 Vikhr Antitank Guided Missile

The 9M120 Vikhr (AT-X-16) (the X designated that it is not yet in production) is a aircraft-mounted semi-active laser guided antitank guided missile. It has been demonstrated on the Ka-50 HOKUM attack helicopter and can also be launched from fixed-wing aircraft such as the SU-25 FROGFOOT. The AT-X-16 resembles a lengthened 9M114 (AT-6 or AT-9) but employs semi-active laser guidance. The missile is about 1.5 meters long, and the launch canister appears to be fitted with a small optical port to allow the laser seeker to lock-on before launch. the missile has a maximum range of about 8 km and weighs about 60 kg.

The SPG-9 is a tripod-mounted, recoilless anti-tank gun that fires a 73-mm fin-stabilized, rocket-assisted HEAT projectile. The projectile weighs 3.5 kilograms. The SPG-9 can also fire a 4-kg rocket-assisted HE round. The SPG-9 is man-portable, but a truck or APC normally carries it. It must be dismounted and placed on its tripod for firing. It normally has a crew of three. Both IR and passive night sights are available. The rocket-assisted HEAT projectile has an effective range of 1,000 meters and can penetrate 400 millimeters of armor. It has a high muzzle velocity which is increased to 700 meters per second by rocket assist.

The T-12 is a 100-mm smoothbore antitank gun mounted on a two-wheeled, split-trail carriage, with a single caster wheel near the trail ends. The long (8,484-mm) gun tube has a cylindrical, multi-perforated muzzle brake which is only fractionally larger in diameter than the thin barrel. The MT-12 variant has a winged shield angled to the rear on both sides and an additional recoil cylinder above the breech on the right. Both versions frequently mount infrared night sighting equipment. The T-12 and MT-12 fire fin-stabilized, non-rotating rounds similar to those of the 115-mm gun of the T-62 tank. Muzzle velocity is 900 meters per second for HE and HEAT rounds or 1,500 meters per second for HVAPFSDS rounds. Maximum indirect fire range is 8,200 meters (Frag-HE). The effective direct fire range is approximately 1,000 meters (HEAT) or 2,000 meters (HVAPFSDS). The HEAT round can penetrate about 400 millimeters of armor at any range. The HVAPFSDS round can penetrate about 225 millimeters at 1,000 meters. The theoretical rate of fire is reportedly 14 rounds per minute; however, rate for aimed fire is only 6 rounds per minute, and the maximum practical rate is 10 rounds per minute.

The 2A45M shares similar ordnance to that of the T-72/T-80 MBTs. The 2A45M is mounted on a three trail carriage similar to that of the 122-mm D-30M towed howitzer, which enables it to be quickly traversed and laid onto a new target. The ordnance is fitted with a distinctive single baffle muzzle brake. The gun crew is protected by a shield which slopes to the rear and axis of fire 0.925 m. The 2A45M weighs 6300 kg when deployed in firing position and maximum range in the direct fire mode is quoted as 2100 meters. While maximum range of the conventional artillery mode firing a high explosive fragmentation round is 12,200 meters, this is limited by the maximum elevation of the ordnance. The 2A45M fires the same family of ammunition as the T-72/T-80 MBTs. This ammunition is of the separate-loading type (for example projectile and charge), but a dedicated round for the 2A45M may have been developed. The 2A45M is believed to be capable of firing the AT-11 SNIPER (Svir) laser beam riding, antitank guided missile which has a maximum range of 4000 meters. The 2A45M is fitted with an 20 kW auxiliary propulsion unit which provides it with limited battlefield mobility. It has two small wheels on the closed trails for steering purposes. It can be towed by a truck up to a maximum road speed of 80 km/h.