Kh-55
Sign in to saveThe Kh-55 (, also known as RKV-500; NATO reporting name: AS-15 "Kent") is a Soviet/Russian subsonic air-launched cruise missile, designed by MKB Raduga in the 1970s. It has a range of up to and can carry nuclear warheads. Kh-55 is launched exclusively from bomber aircraft and has spawned a number of conventionally armed variants mainly for tactical use, such as the Kh-65SE and Kh-SD, but only the Kh-555 appears to have been put into service. The Kh-55 was not the basis of the submarine and ground-launched S-10 Granat or RK-55 Relief (SS-N-21"Sampson" and SSC-X-4"Slingshot") designed by NPO Nov
Key facts
- Weapon.is_missile
- yes
- Weapon.name
- Kh-55/65/555AS-15 Kent
- Weapon.image
- H-55 AS-15 Kent 2008 G1.jpg
- Weapon.image_size
- 300px
- Weapon.caption
- Kh-55 in the Ukrainian Air Force Museum
- Weapon.origin
- Soviet Union
- Weapon.type
- Air-launched cruise missile
- Weapon.used_by
- Soviet Union, Russia, China, Iran
- Weapon.wars
- Syrian Civil WarRusso-Ukrainian war
- Weapon.design_date
- 1971–1981
- Weapon.manufacturer
- Raduga OKB, KhAZ (Kharkiv), Novator (MZiK) & NPP Temp (Eka) NPO Strela (Oren), else
- Weapon.propellant
- jet fuel
- Weapon.production_date
- 1981
- Weapon.service
- 1983–present
- Weapon.engine
- R95TP-300 Turbofan/turbofan (Kh-55/Kh-55SM)
- Weapon.engine_power
- 360-400 kgf (Kh-55/Kh-55SM)
- Weapon.weight
- (Kh-65SE) (Kh-101)
- Weapon.length
- (Kh-65SE) (Kh-101)
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
14 sectionsContents
- Development
- Design
- Operational history
- Syrian Civil War
- 2022 invasion of Ukraine
- Variants
- Operators
- Current operators
- Former operators
- See also
- Notes
- References
- Bibliography
- External links
The Kh-55 (, also known as RKV-500; NATO reporting name: AS-15 "Kent") is a Soviet/Russian subsonic air-launched cruise missile, designed by MKB Raduga in the 1970s. It has a range of up to and can carry nuclear warheads. Kh-55 is launched exclusively from bomber aircraft and has spawned a number of conventionally armed variants mainly for tactical use, such as the Kh-65SE and Kh-SD, but only the Kh-555 appears to have been put into service. The Kh-55 was not the basis of the submarine and ground-launched S-10 Granat or RK-55 Relief (SS-N-21"Sampson" and SSC-X-4"Slingshot") designed by NPO Novator. The RK-55 is very similar to the air-launched Kh-55 (AS-15 "Kent") but the Kh-55 has a drop-down turbofan engine and was designed by MKB Raduga.
==Development== In the late 1960s, the "Ekho" study conducted by the GosNIIAS institute concluded that it would be more effective to deploy many small, subsonic cruise missiles than the much more expensive supersonic missiles then in favour. Work started at the Raduga bureau on an air-launched cruise missile in 1971, with a first test flight in 1976. The appearance of the US Air Force's AGM-86 ALCM in that year gave further impetus to the programme, with the Soviet Air Force issuing a formal requirement for a new air-launched cruise missile in December 1976. The longer-range Kh-55SM was developed a few years after the original went into service.