The missile model can help North Korean aircraft strike from hundreds of kilometers away

During the celebration of the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Korean Air Force, held at Wonsan Kalma Airport in Kangwon Province late last month, Pyongyang displayed a series of domestically developed and manufactured weapons.

In addition to systems that have long been publicized such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) Saetbyol-4 and Saetbyol-9, shaped like the US RQ-4 Global Hawk and MQ-9 Reaper, the North Korean air force also launched Su-25K attack aircraft carrying new types of guided missiles.

It is unclear the development progress of these weapons, as well as whether they have been commissioned or not, but Western military experts believe that the launch of this series of missiles is an important move in the effort to modernize the North Korean air force, helping to significantly improve the power of the outdated Su-25K line.

“Weapons developed by North Korea under leader Kim Jong-un often have to reach a certain level of performance or have undergone testing before being displayed,” said editor Thomas Newdick of the US military website. War Zone Evaluate.

North Korea uses the Su-25K for attack and ground support missions, being the first Asian country to buy this type of aircraft from the Soviet Union in the period 1987-1989.

Pyongyang is operating 45 Su-25K attack attacks and the Su-25UBK training version, carrying a variety of weapons such as FAB-500 bombs, rockets with calibers from 57 to 330 mm, as well as smart weapons, using laser or optical television probes such as KAB-500 bombs, Kh-25ML and Kh-29 missiles.

However, the Kh-25ML and Kh-29 missiles have a range of no more than 15 km, while the KAB-500 bomb can only fly about 40 km in optimal conditions. This will force North Korean Su-25Ks to penetrate deep into enemy air defense zones to be able to deploy weapons, as well as limit the number of targets they can target.

In the photo published by North Korea’s central news agency KCNA, a large missile, most likely a long-range air-to-ground weapon, is installed on a pylon close to the fuselage.

It has a boxy body design and an angular nose, which are characteristics of many types of stealthy tactical cruise missiles being produced by powers such as the US, Russia, UK, France and Germany. “This missile uses a small jet engine with an air intake under the belly or on the rear sides, with a folding wing cluster in the middle of the body,” Newdick said.

North Korea does not release missile specifications. Some Korean experts estimate it can reach a flight range of 200-500 km, equivalent to the German Taurus KEPD 350 series.

It is unclear what guidance mechanisms the missile uses. Newdick believes that the projectile could be equipped with an inertial navigation system combined with satellite positioning. The fire arrow has a round glass cluster, most likely an optical-electronic or infrared detector, allowing the use of terrain image matching or target identification during the descent process, helping to increase accuracy for long-range attacks.

Long-range cruise missiles will allow North Korea to attack fortified targets whose locations are known. The Su-25K aircraft can operate in North Korean airspace, outside the interception zone of US and South Korean air defenses, significantly increasing survivability in conflict. In addition, North Korea can also equip this missile model to MiG-29 fighters in service.

“The new long-range cruise missile, although its operational status is unknown, is still an important development for the North Korean air force, especially when their arsenal of precision-guided weapons is still limited,” Newdick stated.

The three pylons in the middle are equipped with clusters of three smaller missiles, which also appear to be precision-guided weapons. According to Newdick, these shells are similar to the British-developed Brimstone anti-tank missile, with a range of 12-60 km depending on variant and launch conditions.

The missile’s head has a transparent glass dome, indicating that the projectile may be equipped with an electro-optical probe, a semi-active laser, or both. The Su-25K attack has a rangefinder and laser target indicator, specializing in guiding missiles equipped with semi-active laser probes.

“Adding precision-guided anti-tank missiles is a big step forward for North Korea’s Su-25K fleet. Each Su-25K previously could only carry a maximum of 2 Kh-29L missiles and 4 Kh-25ML missiles, while the new missile model will theoretically allow the aircraft to mount up to 18 anti-tank missiles,” Newdick said.

A projectile suspected to be a short-range air-to-air missile was installed on the outermost pylon under the Su-25K wing, the position where R-60M air-to-air missiles with infrared probes are usually installed. Newdick estimates that the new ammunition is about the same size as the R-60, but the design is similar to the European-made IRIS-T model.

“The size of the air-to-air missile on the North Korean Su-25K shows that this is a weapon with significantly improved performance, especially compared to old ammunition from the Soviet era. It is large enough to be classified in the same group as IRIS-T,” Newdick said.

Newdick believes that the series of missiles mounted on the Su-25K attack is not the new generation strategic weapon that Kim Jong-un once mentioned. However, American experts do not rule out the possibility that long-range cruise missile models could be equipped with small-sized nuclear warheads in the future.

“Importantly, these missiles reflect North Korea’s efforts to increase the combat capabilities of its conventional weapons, in addition to its much more famous nuclear weapons program,” Newdick assessed.