MOSCOW, October 27. /TASS/. Khrizantema extended-range anti-tank missiles enable army aviation helicopters to wipe out enemy targets without entering the area of adversary air defenses, Chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces’ Army Aviation Igor Romanov told the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper on Friday.
Upgraded Ka-52M and Mi-28NM combat helicopters have been arriving for the Russian Aerospace Forces for several years now and these gunships feature the potential that allows them to conduct combat operations in present-day military conflicts, the army aviation chief pointed out.
"The combat use of new armaments, particularly, the light multipurpose missile, the Khrizantema anti-tank missile and the Verba missile, considering their characteristics, makes it possible to strike targets without entering the area of enemy air defenses. Pilots have already highly valued the upgraded helicopters’ combat capabilities that have increased substantially," he said.
High Precision Systems Holding Company within the state tech corporation Rostec reported in August that the striking range of the 9M123M Khrizantema helicopter-launched missile had been extended to 10 km.
The Khrizantema missile engineered by the Kolomna-based Design Bureau of Machine-Building (part of High Precision Systems Holding Company) is one of the most powerful Russian-made anti-tank guided munitions. The missile makes part of the Khrizantema-S self-propelled anti-tank missile system and has also been adapted for the latest combat helicopters Mi-28NM and Ka-52M. It is designed to destroy existing and future enemy armored vehicles with reactive armor, adversary fortifications and engineering structures, naval and low-speed aerial targets and manpower.