Russia unveils 'Night Hunter' with advanced long-range missile
Russian media have showcased the Mi-28N helicopter equipped with a new long-range missile, conceptually similar to the British Brimstone and newer versions of the AGM-114 Hellfire. Here is what is known about its Russian counterpart.
The footage shows the Mi-28N helicopter, also known as the Night Hunter, carrying the latest Kh-39 missile, which has a range of 15 kilometres, a significant improvement compared to earlier Russian solutions.
Kh-39 - a revolution for Russians, existing in the West for decades
The new missile, in addition to having an increased range, is reported to feature an optoelectronic sensor with both a daytime and thermal camera that can lock onto the target's thermal image.
This makes it a "fire-and-forget" design, which will be revolutionary for the Russians, whose older solutions relied on laser beam guidance, requiring the target to be illuminated with a laser designator until impact.
Additionally, the missile is supposed to have a communication link that allows it to fly over a designated area without selecting a target, which the pilot can designate later. Inertial and satellite navigation modules facilitate this mode.
As a result, the new design is expected to weigh 105 kilograms, which is a significant increase in weight compared to, for example, the 9M120 Ataka missile, which weighs 49 kilograms, including the launch tube. For this reason, the Mi-28N will only be able to carry a maximum of eight missiles instead of sixteen, as in older versions. As for the warhead, the high-explosive version is estimated to weigh 25 kilograms, but a tandem cumulative version is also possible.
On paper, this appears to be the Russian equivalent of the Brimstone or new versions of the AGM-114 Hellfire missiles, but the question remains whether the Russians have the capability to mass-produce such a complex missile when they are having difficulties with much simpler equipment.
Mi-28N - Russian Night Hunter, the equivalent of AH-64 Apache
The Mi-28N is one of three modern combat helicopters produced by Russia, alongside models such as the Ka-52 Alligator and the Mi-35, an upgraded version of the Mi-24. Work on the Mi-28N began in the 1980s, but the first units did not reach the Russian Air Force until 2006, and they were officially introduced into service only in 2009.
The Mi-28N helicopter features a classic narrow fuselage design with one large main rotor and a smaller tail rotor. Its crew consists of two pilots seated one above the other, a configuration popularised by the American AH-1 Cobra.
According to Russian assurances, the crew cabin is armoured and can withstand fire from large-calibre machine guns of 12.7 mm calibre and shrapnel. The helicopter is also equipped for night flying, and the pilots have helmet-mounted sights, which speed up target neutralisation.
The Mi-28N's main armament is a 30 mm 2A42 cannon mounted at the front of the helicopter. The magazine holds 250 rounds of ammunition, and four pylons on the stub wings allow for carrying additional weaponry.
For target tracking, the Mi-28N uses an optoelectronic head with a thermal camera and laser rangefinder mounted on the helicopter's nose, as well as an N025 radar mounted above the main rotor, allowing it to monitor ten objects simultaneously and engage two of them at the same time. Additionally, onboard detectors detect laser beams and radar waves, warning the pilot of attempts to target the enemy.
