Russia uses $3 million Iskander missiles against its own territory

Ukrainians are advancing further into the territory of the Russian Federation. In response to the audacious attacks by the defending army, the Russians are deploying their heaviest artillery. In a desperate move, they are shelling their own country with Iskander missiles, each costing about $3 million.

The ongoing Ukrainian assault on the Kursk region has been taking a toll on the Russian army. The military is unsure how to defend against the advancing Ukrainian soldiers, resulting in continued reports from the front. These reports indicate that the aggressor's army is retreating its convoys, suffering significant losses in equipment and personnel.

The Russian Federation is trying to halt the raid in the Kursk region from a safe distance, deciding to use some of the most valuable missiles in its arsenal—the Iskanders. The army is shelling its own territory with these missiles and—what's more—is using cluster warhead missiles to do so. This means that Russian Iskanders are becoming a threat to the surrounding civilian population.

Cluster warheads operate on the principle that the hull opens in the final phase of flight, scattering smaller submunitions over a large area. However, these submunitions do not always detonate, meaning that the small missiles scattered over Russia can be like "ticking bombs."

It is worth noting that Iskanders are not only expensive, costing about $3 million apiece, but also increasingly complex to come by. According to recent calculations by analyst Oleksandr Musiienko, Russians are currently producing about 85-90 Iskander and Kinjal missiles combined. The production of Iskanders alone is estimated at around 40 units.

The mentioned ballistic missiles come in several variants. The most popular, designated Iskander-M, weighs about 11,000 lbs. Its maximum range during firing reaches about 310 miles. However, the critical parameter of this weapon remains its maximum speed, making the Iskander challenging to shoot down. After leaving the launcher, the missile accelerates to 7 Mach, or about 5,343 mph. The ammunition, measuring over 23 feet in length, hits the selected target with great accuracy – its CEP accuracy is around 98 feet.

In addition to the Iskander-M, the Russians also produce two other versions of this weapon. The first (Iskander-E) is an export variant using the 9M720-E missile with a range of almost 186 miles. The second, Iskander-K, is a complex for the Russian armed forces equipped with the 9M729 and 9M728 cruise missiles with a range of over 310 miles, which the USA claims violates the INF Treaty.