MSPO 2023: Luch Design Bureau confirms use of Skif-M by Ukrainian forces

The Skif-M ATGM. (Janes/Amael Kotlarski)

The Ukrainian armed forces have received the Skif-M anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) system, a spokesperson for the Luch Design Bureau told Janes at the MSPO 2023 defence exhibition in Kielce, Poland.

The Skif-M was unveiled in 2022 and is an upgraded version of the Skif system. Known as the Stugna-P in Ukrainian service, the Skif ATGM has been in use with the Ukrainian armed forces since 2018, and has also been exported to eight countries.

Improvements brought to the Skif-M include a lighter-weight tripod, a revised traverse and elevation housing, a new lightweight remote-control panel, new batteries to power the launcher and remote-control panel, and the new PN-U sighting and guidance unit (SGU). The SGU includes a laser rangefinder, which was incorporated following requests from Ukrainian forces. Experience from combat in Ukraine demonstrated that the risk of the laser unit being detected was low, as Russian forces did not seem to equip many of their vehicles with laser warning receivers.

The Skif-M employs the same 130 mm or 152 mm R-2 series missiles as the Skif, available with either tandem high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) or high-explosive fragmentation (HE-Frag) warheads. Currently, the Ukrainian military uses only the 130 mm calibre missiles. The 152 mm missiles were designed for the export market to compete against the Russian Kornet-E/EM system.

The Luch Design Bureau spokesperson confirmed to Janes