MOSCOW, April 25. /TASS/. Russia’s Almaz-Antey defense manufacturer is working on the improved version of the Kalibr cruise missile that will feature better performance and higher combat efficiency, Company CEO Yan Novikov said on Monday.

"Naturally, the work on improving the Kalibr missiles is ongoing and the Defense Ministry displays high interest in this type of weapons. We are planning to boost its performance characteristics and raise the efficiency of its combat employment. We are set to get a weapon that will considerably surpass the current generation," the chief executive said in an interview with the National Defense magazine on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the company’s creation.

Back in the Soviet period, specialists always integrated high upgrade potential in new weapons. Engineers begin thinking about weapon further development already at the stage of creating its prototype, he emphasized.

The Kalibr is a Russian cruise missile developed and produced by the Yekaterinburg-based Novator design bureau (part of the Almaz-Antey Group). Currently, the Russian troops use two modifications of Kalibr cruise missiles: the shipborne Kalibr-NK and the submarine-launched Kalibr-PL. The cruise missile became operational in the Russian Navy in 2012. Russia employed Kalibr cruise missiles for the first time during its military operation in Syria. As follows from reports by Russia’s Defense Ministry, Russian forces employed Kalibr cruise missiles 13 times, launching at least 99 munitions against terrorist targets.

The Almaz-Antey Aerospace Defense Group is a Russian conglomerate of enterprises engaged in developing and producing air and anti-missile defense systems and also other output. The defense manufacturer is headquartered in Moscow, with 100% of its stock owned by the Russian state (represented by the Federal Agency for State Property Management). Weapons produced by Almaz-Antey are operational in the Russian Army and in over 50 other countries.