Putin’s Daggers; Russian President Inspects Lethal Kh-47M2 Hypersonic Missile Armed MiG-31 Jets

Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly personally inspected some of the Air Force’s newest and most capable long range strike platforms - MiG-31K interceptors armed with Kh-47M2 Kinzhal hypersonic ballistic missiles. The MiG-31K is a modification of the MiG-31 Foxhound, the Soviet Union’s first combat jet to integrate fourth generation capabilities and long range air to air missiles and the fastest aircraft of its generation. While the Foxhound was initially highly specialised in air to air combat, with most of the fleet today equipped with 300km range R-33 and 400km range R-37 hypersonic air to air missiles alongside lighter armaments such as the 110km range R-77, new variants for both satellite hunting and ballistic missile strikes have since been developed. The MiG-31K was developed specifically as a launch platform for the Kh-47M2, a missile announced by President Putin in March 2018 which entered service just a few weeks later. The aircraft is a modified variant of the MiG-31BM, a modernised variant of the Foxhound which is reportedly 2.6 times more efficient than the original. Some of its upgrades include integration of new electronic warfare systems and a new Baget 55-06 computer, a longer detection range of 320km for fighter sized targets and compatibility with the R-37 missile.

The Kizhal’s high mobility and speed, estimated at between Mach 8 and Mach 10, allows it to evade all known existing air defence systems to carry out precision strikes using either nuclear or specialised conventional warheads. The missile retains a 2000km range, and has been touted as quite possibly the world’s most lethal ‘carrier killer’ weapon - with its payload combined with sheer impact speed and precision allowing it to very likely disable any serving warships with a single direct hit. While the missile is also deployed by Russian Tu-22M theatre bombers, the MiG-31’s unmatched speed and altitude allow it to impart considerably more energy to the Kinzhal upon launch. As Russia’s defence budget continues to contract and funds are refocused towards stimulating growth in the civilian economy, Russia’s armed forces are increasingly forced to reply on sopyhciated asymmetric systems such as the Kinzhal. These are highly cost effective considering their game changing capabilities and thus seen as a more urgent investment than many more conventional assets such as fourth generation battle tanks and fifth generation fighter jets.