Russia’s Kalashnikov To Double Production Of 9M33, Vikhr Missiles & Kitolov Shells

From left to right, the Krasnopol-M2, Kitolov-2M and Gran precision-guided rounds. Source: Sputnik.

Russia’s defense giant Kalashnikov announced on September 4 that it will double the production of 9M33 anti-aircraft missiles, Vikhr anti-tank guided missiles and Kitolov guided artillery shells.

“New facilities for the production of high-precision products [the 9M33 air-defense missile, the Vikhr-1 and the Kitolov-2M] are being built on the concern’s vacant premises. These are heat treatment areas, tooling, assembly and mechanical workshops and auxiliary administrative and amenity spaces. In the near future, two large workshops will be put into operation, which will allow more than double the production of high-precision ammunition,” the company said in a statement.

The company added that existing production facilities will continue to operate seamlessly, working to execute the government’s defense contracts to the full extent.

In addition, more than 40 new machine tools have already arrived at the production site as part of government-subsidized purchases, and another more than 100 are on the way. By the time the new production starts, the equipment will be fully in place.

“The demand for our products is consistently high, and feedback from the customer on their use in combat conditions is positive. The potential of the enterprise allows not only to increase technological capacity, but also to create new types of special products,” the statement quoted Alan Lushnikov, the president of the concern, as saying.

The 9M33 is the main armament of the Osa short-range air defense system. The newest version of the missile, the 9M33M3, is guided by radio command and has an engagement range of 12 kilometers.

Meanwhile, the Vikhr is guided by laser-beam riding. The missile has a range of up to 12 kilometers. It is armed with a 8–12 kg tandem HEAT [high-explosive anti-tank] charge that can defeat reactive protection and penetrate 1,000 mm of rolled homogeneous armor.

The Kilotov-2M is a 122 mm artillery shell that is guided by a semi-active laser. The shell has a range of 12 kilometers and a warhead weighing 5.3 kg.

Russia boosted the production of precision-guided weapons after following the start of the special military operation in Ukraine last year.

These weapons have already proven their worth in real combat conditions. Osa air defenses are protecting Russian troops from drones along the frontline, Ka-52 attack helicopters are successfully using Vikhr missiles to defeat Western-made armors and Gvozdika howitzers are carrying out pinpoint strikes with Kilotov shells.

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