Introduction

The Kh-35 Uran is a modern anti-ship missile of Russian origin. The Kh-35 is a subsonic sea skimming missile, more akin to the US Harpoon than contemporary Soviet supersonic anti-ship missiles. Most of the development took place in the 1980's in the Soviet Union. The subsonic sea skimming design was mainly chosen in order to reduce size and weight, since fighter and strike aircraft were to be the main launch platform. In practice the Kh-35 is now predominantly used as a naval anti-ship missile.

Design

The Kh-35 Uran has a similar design pattern as the US Harpoon and French Exocet. As such it was also nicknamed "Harpoonski" in the West. Despite the similar design pattern the Kh-35 is a domestic design. The long cylindrical body houses the seeker and warhead in the nose. The flight control systems are located in the center, with the liquid fuel and turbojet engine located at the rear. There are four large folding wings in the center and four control fins at the rear. The solid propellant booster section has four long folding fins. For use on fast moving aircraft the booster section is omitted.

Guidance

The Kh-35 uses an inertial navigation system and active radar homing in the terminal phase. The active radar in the Kh-35 has a seeker range of 20 km. This is improved to 50 km on the Kh-35U, possibly including the passive radar mode. The Kh-35U also adds satellite navigation to augment the inertial navigation system. Possibly the satellite navigation allows for a land attack capability.

Firepower

The Kh-35 Uran has a HE-Fragmentation warhead that is fitted with a delayed impact fuse. The warhead is reportedly effective against vessels with up to a 5.000 t displacement. The Kh-35 has a sea skimming flight profile of 10 to 15 m above sea level, dropping down to 4 m in the terminal phase. Maximum range is 130 km with a speed of about Mach 0.8. The Kh-35U carries more fuel and adds a high-low flight pattern extending the maximum range up to 260 km.

Users

The Kh-35 is a cost-effective and versatile anti-ship missile. Russia acquired it in large numbers. Mostly for use on vessels ranging from fast missile boats to frigates. In Russia it is also used in coastal defense systems and on strike aircraft. Large numbers of Kh-35 have been exported to nations that often acquire Soviet military equipment.

The first generation of Kh-35 was produced in many models for specific launch platforms. Each of those has an export counterpart. For some export customers specific modifications were offered. This resulted in a wide range of models with roughly similar characteristics.

Kh-35U is a deep modernization of the Kh-35 and can be considered a new generation. Kh-35U is no longer offered as a myriad of versions for different launch platforms. Instead it is a unified design which is used with or without booster section.

Combat effectiveness has been significantly improved with a nearly double maximum range and improved guidance. Satellite navigation aids the inertial navigation system and possibly adds a limited land attack capability. The active radar seeker now also has a passive mode, postponing detection by going active.