KTRV finalises development of Grom air-to-surface munition variants

Russia’s Tactical Missiles Corporation (KTRV) has finalised development of new guided air-to-surface weapon system variants, designated Grom-E1 and Grom-E2.

Grom-E1 is a guided cruise missile and Grom-E2 is a guided glide weapon; both weapons feature a normal aerodynamic configuration and a common cylindrical body with an ogive nose cone, folding swept-back mid-body wing, and an aft actuator assembly. The weapons can be mounted either on external weapons stores or in an internal weapons bay of fourth- and fifth-generation air-combat platforms

The Grom-E1 weighs 594 kg, is 4.2 m in length, 0.31 m in diameter, and has a wingspan of 1.9 m. The missile is furnished with a 315 kg high-explosive (HE) fragmentation (frag) warhead coupled with an impact fuze. A 161 kg powerplant combines two solid-fuel engines, a booster, and a sustained motor. Inbuilt modularity with other KTRV weapon systems enables the Grom-E1 to integrate the solid-fuel engine from the Kh-38ME family of short-range air-to-surface missiles, a company representative told Jane’s .

The KTRV Grom E-1 guided cruise missile displayed at the Army 2019 exhibition in Kubinka, Russia. ( N Novichkov)

A combat aircraft flying at an altitude between 500 m and 12,000 m at a speed of 140–445 m/s can release the Grom-E1 at a distance of 10–120 km, with a target engagement angle of between -180° and +180°. The missile’s average flight speed under initial launch conditions (height: 12,000 m, speed: 445 m/s, range: 120 km) is 300 m/s, with a g -load force on the missile reaching 4 g . The weapon is fitted with a combined guidance system that integrates an inertial measurement unit and a GPS/Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) satellite navigation receiver, the representative said.