(Dan Tri) – The Kinzhal hypersonic missile that Russia describes as `invincible` is not as effective as expected, according to some Chinese defense experts.
The Kh-47M2 Kinzhal missile was displayed during the 2018 Victory Day Parade in Moscow (Photo: Kremlin).
Since Kinzhal appeared on the Ukrainian battlefield, Chinese defense analysts appear to have closely monitored the weapon’s effectiveness against Western technology to improve its own hypersonic Dongfeng missile.
However, according to information from the West, Kinzhal – described by Russia as an `invincible` hypersonic weapon – was intercepted or missed by the Patriot system.
`There is more and more evidence that what the US and Ukraine say about this is correct,` Chinese defense analyst Yin Jie wrote in November 2023 in the journal Military Industry Science and Technology.
According to expert Yin, the Kinzhal missile is `unlikely to have a significant impact` on the battlefield.
`Short-term, hasty` project
Yin describes Kinzhal as an improved version of Russia’s ground-launched Iskander missile that was born out of a `hasty, short-term project` to quickly respond to the pressure the West exerted on Moscow in the pre-war years.
`Developed based on the technical framework of the 1980s, this missile may not have amazing battlefield performance,` the analyst added.
Photo that Ukraine says is a Kinzhal missile warhead falling in Kiev.
Kinzhal’s maneuverability `cannot be compared with that of a true hypersonic missile,` Yin wrote.
Another article titled `Confrontation between Dagger and Patriot in Ukraine` published in July 2023 in Military Arms – Beijing’s famous science and defense magazine – also had a similar assessment.
`Russia calls `Dagger` a hypersonic missile, but analysts from other countries generally believe that the so-called hypersonic missile `Dagger` is actually an air-launched version of a tactical ballistic missile
The above assessments are consistent with Western experts’ assessment that Kinzhal is not a `real` hypersonic missile.
`The ‘Dagger’ missile is very ambitious but not powerful enough,` the July analysis said.
Insufficient accuracy
In a November 2023 article, analyst Yin also said that the way the Russian military uses Kinzhal is also problematic.
According to Yin, Russia no longer uses Mig-31 aircraft to launch Kinzhal but uses Su-34 jets to fire safely from outside Ukraine’s defense range.
Dongfeng-17 hypersonic missile in Beijing in October 2019 (Photo: Chinese Army).
But analyst Yin said that the Su-34 is too slow and cannot fire the Kinzhal at optimal speed.
Yin’s article also did not appreciate the missile guidance capabilities of the Russian satellite system, saying that the country does not have enough satellites so accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
`Accuracy is unsatisfactory,` the analyst wrote.
Finally, Yin points out the problem is that Russia does not have enough Kinzhal.
`’Daggers’ are not produced and equipped in large quantities. After 1.5 years of use, there may be very little left in stock,` analyst Yin wrote.
The above statement is consistent with the December 2023 findings of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a research organization in the US.
Citing information from Ukrainian intelligence, ISW said Russia currently only produces 4 Kinzhal missiles per month.
Samuel 
Caroline