The Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense has released detailed information about a new Russian air-launched cruise missile, the S-71K “Kover,” developed by the United Aircraft Corporation.
In the “Components in Weapons” section of the War & Sanctions portal, an interactive 3D model has been published, along with information on the components and electronic base of the new S-71K “Kover” cruise missile.
Following the publication of the cooperation structure of enterprises involved in the production of Su-57 fighter jets, Ukraine’s military intelligence is now revealing details of a new strike system developed by the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) specifically for this platform.
According to Ukrainian military intelligence, the new missile was first used by the Russian forces late last year and appears to be among UAC’s first attempts at missile development.
“The warhead uses a 250 kg high-explosive fragmentation aerial bomb OFAB-250-270, integrated into the structural frame of the missile’s nose section. The body is made of multilayer fiberglass-based material with additional reinforcement, while the internal elements are made of aluminum alloys,” the Main Intelligence Directorate noted.
In addition, the missile’s onboard control system includes a flight controller, an inertial navigation system based on simple sensors, as well as a power supply system.
“The vast majority of the electronic component base is of foreign origin: American, Chinese, Swiss, Japanese, German, Taiwanese, and Irish,” Ukrainian military intelligence emphasized.
It is also noted that the missile is equipped with an R500 turbojet engine manufactured by Reynolds LLC, which is part of the United Aircraft Corporation.
Thanks to a main and two auxiliary fuel tanks, the S-71K’s estimated range is up to 300 km. In the future, the Russian forces are considering the possibility of launching the missile from the S-70 “Okhotnik” unmanned aerial vehicle.
“Maintaining access to foreign technologies and components allows the aggressor state to develop new strike systems and scale up their use in the war against Ukraine,” the Main Intelligence Directorate stressed.
