Russians start installing outdated engines on Kh-101 missiles

The invaders began using Kh-101 cruise missiles with outdated Soviet R-95-300 engines.

A photo of the wreckage of a missile with this engine was posted on the War_home Telegram channel.

Only some of the Kh-101 missiles used in the November 17 missile strike were equipped with R-95-300 engines.

The fuselages were marked with a mark indicating the installation of the R-95-300 engine.

These missiles are usually equipped with Russian TRDD-50A engines.

This is the first recorded case of such a symbiosis between a modern Russian cruise missile and an outdated Soviet engine.

Given that Russia does not produce them, it is likely that they are taken from old Soviet stockpiles or disassembled from the remains of Kh-55 cruise missiles.

The production of subsonic rocket engines in Russia is a weak point in the entire production chain.

Previously, the R-95-300 engines, in addition to the “native” Kh-55 (SM) cruise missiles, were found in almost all detected Kh-59 (MK, MK2) guided missiles.

The R-95-300 engine was produced in a large series: in some years, the production volume reached 1500 units.

After the collapse of the USSR, Russia was tasked with import substitution of engines for strategic cruise missiles. At that time, the development of serial production of Omsk-designed TRDD-50 engines began.

Recently it became known that the Ukrainian military-industrial complex had produced more than a hundred missile weapons in 2024.