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| Russian military's P-800 Oniks supersonic cruise missile. (Source: TASS) |
The P-800 Oniks missile began development in 1987 under the Soviet Union, when the manufacturer set the goal of creating an advanced missile capable of neutralizing aircraft carriers and heavily defended warships of the enemy army.
Designed to perform a variety of missions, the Oniks can attack warships and land targets. The integration of advanced guidance systems, hypersonic engines and compatibility with flexible launchers increase its versatility.
Developed by NPO Mashinostroyeniya, the P-800 Oniks missile is still in production today. Its combat effectiveness has been demonstrated in numerous conflicts, including the Syrian civil war and the Russia-Ukraine conflict. With the ability to be deployed from ships, submarines, coastal systems and aircraft, the P-800 Oniks is a core component of Russia's missile arsenal.
Sputnik news agency quoted a source from the Russian Military Industrial Complex as revealing: It has a powerful aerodynamic design, with a length of 8.3 meters, a diameter of 67cm and a launch weight of about 3,000 kg with stabilizing wings and a booster engine for initial acceleration.
Operates in two separate flight modes: at high altitude, the missile reaches an altitude of up to 14 km, and at low altitude, maintains an altitude of about 10-15 meters during the target approach phase, to avoid detection.
The P-800 Oniks has a variety of warheads to adapt to different mission requirements. Domestic versions are equipped with a 250 kg armor-piercing warhead, capable of penetrating heavily armored targets such as the hull of a warship. Export versions usually use a 200 kg high-explosive warhead. Both types of warheads ensure high destructive efficiency against sea and ground targets.
The missile is equipped with a kerosene-fueled scramjet engine that operates after the solid-fuel engine's initial acceleration phase is complete, allowing the missile to reach speeds of up to 750 m/s at high altitudes. At low altitudes or in the terminal phase, the missile reaches a maximum speed of 680 m/s.
According to Sputnik, the missile's range depends on its flight trajectory. When flying at high altitude, it can fly up to 300 km, while at low altitude the range drops to 120 km.
This weapon is a real threat to enemy warships when combining supersonic speed with extremely low flight altitude.
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