Russian President Putin announced the start of a "special military operation" in Ukraine with the goal of achieving its demilitarization. Subsequently, the Russian military used a large number of long-range precision weapons to strike Ukrainian air bases, air defense facilities, and targetsUtilize facilities and other purposesBiao caused the Ukrainian air defense system to lose combat effectiveness and quickly become paralyzed.During this period, it was reported that Russia used a 3M14 cruise missile to attack Ukraine's UAV base and destroy several TB-2 UAVs purchased by Ukraine from Türkiye.

3M14 "caliber" cruise missile: Russia's vanguard in attacking Ukraine. In this military operation, Russia extensively used long-range precision ammunition for strikes, with the aim of using non-contact warfare and surgical strikes in the first stage of the operation to suppress Ukraine's air defense and command system with minimal losses, paving the way for subsequent military actions. We all know that the United States often uses "Tomahawk" cruise missiles to launch the first wave of attacks in actual combat. The biggest feature of this weapon is that it hits far and accurately, which is of great significance for suppressing the enemy's military system at the beginning of the war.

The picture shows a small missile ship 21631 launching 3M14 cruise missiles. This time, Russia extensively used 3M14 cruise missiles in its combat against Ukraine. The missile is called the "Caliber" cruise missile and is the highly acclaimed Russian version of the "Tomahawk" missile in recent years. This missile shone brightly on the Syrian battlefield in 2015, when several small missile ships of the Russian Caspian Fleet launched several 3M14 cruise missiles and attacked extremist armed targets in Syria, attracting worldwide attention. In this special military operation by Russia, the 3M14 cruise missile launched another attack and achieved many results.

The development of the 3M14 cruise missile began in the 1980s, when the United States had already developed the Tomahawk cruise missile. The Soviet Union decided to develop a cruise missile that could counter it. So the code name was developedThe "Garnet" cruise missile of the Tsar 55, developed by the Soviet "Innovator" Design Bureau, weighs 1.7 tons, is 8.09 meters long, has a diameter of 0.51 meters, and has a maximum range of 3000 kilometers. The missile is designed to be launched by submarines and land launch vehicles and can be loaded into the 533 millimeter torpedo launch hole of submarines. This missile uses a nuclear warhead and primarily carries out strategic strike missions.

Afterwards, the Soviet Union realized that the practicality of using only nuclear warheads for the cruise missile, the Tsar 55, was insufficient and needed further improvement to enable it to play a role in conventional warfare. The improvement work was still carried out by the "Innovators" Design Bureau, but it was not completed until the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In the Russian era, Russia first developed a sub super combined anti-ship missile called 3M54E based on the foundation of the Tsar 55 missile, and then developed the extended range 3M54E1 anti-ship missile. This anti-ship missile uses the basic shape of the Tsar 55 cruise missile, but uses a split body structure, with wings and body divided into two parts. In the subsonic stage, it can cruise over the sea, and at the end, it can launch the body for supersonic penetration. The maximum flight speed is 2.2 Mach and the cruising speed is 0.9 Mach.

The picture shows the 11356 missile frigate, the most advanced warship of the Black Sea Fleet, which can launch 3M14 cruise missiles. The development of this missile paved the way for the subsequent emergence of the 3M14 cruise missile. Afterwards, Russia developed the 3M14 cruise missile by replacing lightweight materials, installing new ТパДД -50 БМ small turbofan engines, installing new satellite guidance components, and a 450 kilogram conventional warhead on the basis of the Tsar 55 "Garnet" cruise missile. The basic shape and size of this missile are the same as the Tsar 55 "Garnet" missile, with a range of about 3000 kilometers. However, the accuracy of the missile's strike, the setting of its path, and the power of its warhead have all been qualitatively improved compared to the "Garnet" missile. This missile can also be launched from underwater submarines.

In addition, the 3M14 cruise missile can also be launched by various new types of ships of the Russian Navy. He can be loaded into the 3S14U1 cold and hot universal vertical launch system, which is equipped on Russia's new 22350 class frigates, 11356 class frigates, 21631 class small missile ships, 22800 class small missile ships, and can also be loaded on the Russian nuclear powered cruiser "Naximov" that is currently undergoing renovation. Among them, the 22350 and 11356 frigates both have 16 unit 3S14U1 vertical launchers, while the 21631 and 22800 small missile ships have 8 unit vertical launchers.

That is to say, the 3M14 cruise missile can almost adapt to all types of Russian water combat platforms. In the current Black Sea Fleet, there are equipped 11356 missile frigates, 21631 small missile ships, and 22800 small missile ships, all of which can vertically launch 3M14 cruise missiles. In addition, the 06363 "Kilo" class conventional submarine of the Black Sea Fleet can also launch 3M14 cruise missiles. This time, Russia used long-range precision weapons to strike military targets in Ukraine. Although the vehicle models for launching missiles have not been announced, they should be among these warships and submarines, as Russia currently has no other platform to launch 3M14 cruise missiles besides them. This missile has become the true "vanguard" of the Russian military.

Although the 3M14 is advanced, it is not Russia's strongest missile. The 3M14 cruise missile widely used by Russia this time has advanced performance, such as accuracy of up to 5 meters, range of over 3000 kilometers, and the ability to set multiple waypoints. However, it is not Russia's strongest conventional attack missile. Russia has not yet used its strongest weapon in this attack. In Russia, the most powerful conventional attack missiles should be the "Dagger" hypersonic missile, the "Iskander" ballistic missile, and the "Haiyan" nuclear powered cruise missile.

Among them, besides the well-known Iskander missile, the Dagger missile and Haiyan missile are both new concept missiles. For example, the "Dagger" missile is an air launched ballistic missile that is mounted on a MiG-31K heavy interceptor. It belongs to the category of hypersonic missiles, with a maximum flight speed exceeding 7 Mach (Russian media reports say it exceeds 10 Mach), a maximum range expected to exceed 1000 kilometers, and a strike accuracy within a circular error of 10 meters. The warhead is both nuclear and conventional, and can not only strike fixed targets but also mobile targets such as large ships at sea. This missile not only has a shorter range than the 3M14 cruise missile, but also has stronger penetration capability and strike power than the 3M14 missile.

For example, the "Haiyan" nuclear powered cruise missile, like the 3M14 missile, is a subsonic cruise missile. However, the "Haiyan" missile is powered by nuclear power and has a range of over 20000 kilometers, far exceeding the 3000 kilometer range of the 3M14 cruise missile. This means that the "Haiyan" missile can perform large-scale maneuvers to bypass the enemy's pre deployed anti missile interception system, or launch unexpected strikes directly from the enemy's unexpected back and weak defense direction. The power of the Haiyan missile is similar to that of the 3M14 missile, but it can also use a nuclear warhead.

In the first stage of Russia's attack on Ukraine, the "Dagger" hypersonic missile and the "Haiyan" nuclear powered cruise missile were not used, indicating that Ukraine's military power is not too strong in Russia's eyes, and Russia can completely defeat its system with the 3M14 missile. Of course, Russia may also use strategic bombers such as Tu-22M3, Tu-160, and Tu-95 to launch cruise missiles. If so, Russia can also use the air launched KH-101 stealth cruise missile, which has a range of 1500 kilometers. Although the range is short, it can stealthily penetrate defenses and is difficult to intercept.

In summary, Russia has demonstrated its powerful long-range precision strike capability beyond its defense zone in this special military operation, as well as its cruise missile precision attack capability that is no less than that of the United States. With Russia's military power, whether or not ground forces are deployed, as long as Russia has such advanced missiles in hand, no country in Europe can compete with the Russian military. After all, they can defeat the other party's military system without actual military contact.

Source: Military of Strong Countries