Russian missile mishaps continue as Kh‑101 crashes again in Volgograd
The series of Russian mishaps continues as their missiles still fall on Russian territory. In one of the latest attacks directed towards Ukraine, a Kh-101 missile launched from a Tu-95 bomber did not reach its target and crashed within the Russian Federation.
This is another instance where a Russian missile has fallen on Russian territory. In recent months, such incidents have repeatedly occurred, with one of the most recent being the crash of an Iranian-made drone, Mohajer-6, in the Kursk Oblast.
Previously, the Russians lost, among other things, an anti-ship Kh-35 missile due to unknown malfunctions, which crashed in the Krasnodar Krai, as well as Kh-55 and Kh-101 missiles, which fell in similar locations—in the Volgograd Oblast.
The list compromising the world's second-largest army now includes another Kh-101 missile, one of the most popular and latest weapons currently in the Russian Federation's arsenal. The rocket launched during one of the recent attacks again crashed in the Volgograd Oblast, which is at least 150 kilometres from the Ukrainian border. This area likely lies in the flight path of many Russian missiles, as the latest incident is not isolated.
Another russian missile falls in russia
The Kh-101's wreckage in an unspecified location in the Volgograd Oblast contains ammunition serially produced by the Russian defence industry from 2010-2011. Thus, it is one of the newer constructs the Russian Federation's army regularly uses to conduct attacks against Ukraine.
The Kh-101's greatest asset is its stealth characteristic, i.e., its design with reduced detectability. This is due to the flattened fuselage, which makes the missile difficult to identify during flight and allows it to achieve a high maximum speed of around 1,000 kilometres per hour.
The mass of the mentioned ammunition is approximately 2,400 kilograms, of which nearly 500 kilograms is the warhead alone. The total length of the construct is 7 metres. Such a large missile can reach a distance of up to 4,500 kilometres when launched from an aircraft, enabling the Russian Federation's army to attack virtually any target in Ukraine from a safe position.
A crucial addition influencing the Kh-101's usability during shelling is the Otblesk-U guidance module, whose "eye" is directed downward. During the flight, the camera captures the terrain image beneath the missile and simultaneously verifies if the image the missile sees matches the pattern recorded before launch. This allows for exact strikes with an accuracy of a few metres. In newer versions, the Kh-101 features a triple-lens Otblesk-U system – earlier generations used only one lens for observation.
