Ukrainian air defense fails to stop a Kh-555 missile over Nikolaev | Ukraine 2022

The Kh-555 (X-555) is a Russian subsonic cruise missile that was developed based on the Soviet Kh-55SM missile. The missile is 6 meters long and 3 meters in size. Its mass is about 400 kilograms. The Kh-555 can reach a speed of 800 km/h and cover a distance of about 2,000 Kilometers. It can be equipped with a high-explosive, penetrating or cluster warhead. The Kh-555 is launched from Tu-160 and Tu-95MS aircrafts flying at high speed at an altitude of up to 12 km. After separation from the carrier, the missile descends to 40-100 meters from the ground and continues its marching flight. At such low altitudes, it is almost impossible to intercept a missile with existing missile defense systems. The Kh-555 (X-555) is equipped with an RD95-TM300 turbojet unit with a thrust of 400 kg. In addition to the classic inertial system, it includes optical-electronic control, satellite navigation, and correction using a radio altimeter that compares altitude readings with reference data.