Ukrainian air defense fails to stop a Kh-555 missile over the Dnieper | Ukraine 2022

Witnesses watch in disbelief. A missile from the ukrainian air defense system exploded in the air when it missed a russian Kh-555 missile due to the use of a proximity fuze. The fuze is supossed to detect the target's presence and detonate the missile, causing it to explode in the air and potentially damage the target with shrapnel or other debris. The Kh-555 (X-555) is a Russian subsonic cruise missile that was developed based on the Soviet Kh-55SM missile. The missile is 6 meters long and 3 meters in size. Its mass is about 400 kilograms. The Kh-555 can reach a speed of 800 km/h and cover a distance of about 2,000 Kilometers. It can be equipped with a high-explosive, penetrating or cluster warhead. The Kh-555 is launched from Tu-160 and Tu-95MS aircrafts flying at high speed at an altitude of up to 12 km. After separation from the carrier, the missile descends to 40-100 meters from the ground and continues its marching flight. At such low altitudes, it is almost impossible to intercept a missile with existing missile defense systems. The Kh-555 (X-555) is equipped with an RD95-TM300 turbojet unit with a thrust of 400 kg. In addition to the classic inertial system, it includes optical-electronic control, satellite navigation, and correction using a radio altimeter that compares altitude readings with reference data.