A video has appeared online showing the firing of decoy flares from a russian Kh-101 cruise missile during a massive strike on Ukraine on Friday, December 29, 2023. This is the first recorded case in the history of wars when a cruise missile launched flares to counter anti-aircraft means.
In their turn, social networks immediately began to express assumptions that the russians carried out such an "upgrade" of their Kh-101 missiles in the last few months, when they were stockpiling missiles and preparing for a new campaign of attacks on Ukraine. But the video included a serial modification of the X-101 cruise missile, which was created before February 2022. What is more important, Ukrainian air defense has shot down such missiles more than once.
Read more: Upgraded russian Kh-101 Cruise Missile: New Guidance System, Electronics and Radio Traps
This is the russian Kh-101 cruise missile in the Izdelie 504AP modification, which Defense Express wrote about earlier.
The Izdelye 504AP differs from the base version of the X-101 missile in two important details – first of all the presence of a SP-504 active jamming station (the production of such a station started in 2017). In addition, the Izdelie 504AP is distinguished by the presence of the the Otblesk-U navigation system, with the principle of operation similar to the Western TERCOM and DSMAC systems used on the American Tomahawk cruise missiles.
According to some data, for the first time in the war against Ukraine, the russian federation used modified Kh-101 missiles capable of firing decoy flares back in November 2022. The first downing of a modified Kh-101 missile in the Izdelye 504AP version by Ukrainian air defense was recorded in January 2023.
Already in February of this year, the Center for research of trophies and prospective weapons and military equipment at Ukraine's General Staff officially recognized that the russians were using modified X-101 missiles. It is known that the fact of using such missiles did not help the russian federation to counter Ukrainian air defense.
According to Polish researcher Petr Butovsky, russian industry produced approximately 111 Kh-101 missiles in the Izdelie 504AP version during 2021-2022. According to the plan for 2024, the strategic aviation of russian Aerospace Forces should receive at least 167 missiles of this type.
From the above, it can be concluded that the russians currently consider it expedient to use the X-101 cruise missiles in the Izdelye 504AP version, despite the fact that this missile has never shown its effectiveness in countering the Ukrainian air defense system.
Read more: Non-Standard Kh-101 Missile Was Launched by russians on Ukraine, Shot Down by Air Defense
