9K720 Iskander


The 9K720 Iskander is a family of Russian mobile short-range ballistic missile systems. The basic M model has a range of. It was intended to replace the OTR-21 Tochka in the Russian military by 2020.
The Iskander has several different conventional warheads, including a cluster munitions warhead, a fuel–air explosive enhanced-blast warhead, a high-explosive fragmentation warhead, an earth penetrator for bunker busting and an electromagnetic pulse device for anti-radar missions. The missile can also carry nuclear warheads. In September 2017, the KB Mashinostroyeniya general designer Valery M. Kashin said that there were at least seven types of missiles for Iskander, including one cruise missile.

History

The road-mobile Iskander was the second attempt by Russia to replace the Scud missile. The first attempt, the OTR-23 Oka, was eliminated under the INF Treaty. The design work on Iskander was begun in December 1988, initially directed by the KBM rocket weaponry designer Sergey Nepobedimy, and was not significantly affected by the dissolution of the USSR in 1991.
The first successful launch occurred in 1996.
In September 2004, at a meeting with senior defense officials reporting to President Vladimir Putin on the drafting of a defense budget for 2005, the Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov spoke about the completion of static tests of a new tactical missile system called the Iskander. He said that the system would go into quantity production in 2005 and toward the end of that year, Russia would have a brigade armed with it. In March 2005, a source in the Russian defence industry told Interfax-AVN the development of new missiles with a range of, based on existing Iskander-E tactical missile systems, was a possibility. He said, however, that it "may take up to five or six years".
In 2006, serial production of the Iskander-M tactical ballistic missile system was launched, and the system was adopted by the Russian army. The production cost of the missile system was reported in 2014 to have been slashed by a third by cutting the 20% markup applied by the missile manufacturer at each stage of the components supply chain from a cumulative 810% to markup of 21% applied only to the finished product.
There was a report by GosNIIP, the design bureau that builds guidance for cruise missiles, that Russia completed state acceptance trials of the "ground-based 9M728/9M729 missiles and their modernized version."
In November 2016, the Russian military announced that the modernization of the Iskander-M system was underway. A number of countries were reported to have shown interest in purchasing the export version of Iskander, but such possibility was only announced in early February 2017.
The United States has argued that the 9M728/9M729 cruise missiles used by Iskander-K violates the INF Treaty because their estimated range is beyond.
The general director of the company-developer of the system said in April 2024 that the precision of the missile has been improved since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Design

The Iskander-M system is equipped with two solid-propellant single-stage guided missiles, model 9M723K1. The missiles are controlled throughout the entire flight path and fitted with an inseparable warhead. Both missiles in the launch carrier vehicle can be independently targeted in a matter of seconds. The mobility of the Iskander launch platform makes a launch difficult to prevent.
The missiles can reportedly be re-targeted during flight in the case of engaging mobile targets. Another unique feature of Iskander-M is the optically guided warhead, which can also be controlled by encrypted radio transmission, including such as those from AWACS or UAV. The electro-optical guidance system provides a self-homing capability. The missile's on-board computer receives images of the target, then locks onto the target with its sight and descends towards it at supersonic speed.
During boost phase, thrust vector control is accomplished by graphite vanes similar in layout to the V-2 and Scud series tactical ballistic missiles. The missile is reportedly controlled during the whole flight with gas-dynamic and aerodynamic control surfaces, using small fins to reduce its radar signature. According to some rumors, in flight, the missile follows a quasi-ballistic path, performing evasive maneuvers in the terminal phase of flight. At least some versions are equipped with decoys in order to aid in penetrating missile defense systems. The missile never leaves the atmosphere as it follows a relatively flat trajectory.
The Iskander-M travels at a hypersonic speed of 2100–2600 m/s and an altitude of 50 km. The Iskander-M weighs 4,615 kg, carries a warhead of 710–800 kg, has a range of 500 km and achieves a circular error probable of 5–7 meters ; 30–70 m in autonomous application.
Iskander is a tactical missile system designed to be used in theater level conflicts. It is intended to use conventional or thermonuclear weapon warheads for the engagement of small and area targets, such as hostile fire weapons, air and anti-missile defenses, command posts and communications nodes and troops in concentration areas, among others.
In 2007, a new missile for the system was test fired, the cruise missile, with a range of applications up to 2000 km or more. In 2018, the Iskander missile reportedly gained the capability to strike static sea targets.
In 2020 it was said that the MAZ was the primary supplier for the chassis of the launchers for the Iskander-M because the domestic Russian products are of comparatively low quality.
The system can be transported by various vehicles, including airplanes.
When nuclear armed, the warhead is estimated to have a yield of .

Variants

Iskander-M

Variant for the Russian Armed Forces with two 9M723 quasi-ballistic missiles with a confirmed range of, published range of, and rumored range of. Speed Mach 6–7, flight altitude up to 6–50 km, nuclear capable missile, controlled at all stages, not ballistic flight path. Immediately after the launch and upon approach to the target, the missile can perform maneuvering to evade anti-ballistic missiles.

Iskander-K

"K" for Krylataya . Variant intended to carry various types of cruise missiles. At present, it includes:
  • 9M728 also known as R-500 – flight altitude up to 6 km, published range up to 500 km and automatic adjustment in the way, follow of terrain relief in flight. It is reportedly a variant of the 3M-54 Kalibr.
  • 9M729 – new long-range missile that is reportedly a land-based version of the 3M14 Kalibr-NK missile complex with a range between and may be based even on the air-launched -range Kh-101 cruise missile. According to RF, its range is only 480 km and its specially developed self-propelled launcher can carry 4 missiles. The 9M729 missile has a higher yield warhead and a new control system for greater accuracy.

    Iskander-E

"E" for Eksport. The director of the state corporation Rostec Sergey Chemezov commented that the Iskander missile complex is a serious offensive weapon capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.
In 2016, Armenia, a Russian ally and a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization became the first foreign country to operate the system. Iskander-E has a maximum range up to 280 km, to comply with Missile Technology Control Regime restrictions for export, and is fitted with a simplified inertial guidance system. It flies on a flattened trajectory under 50 km altitude, allowing aerodynamic steering using tail fins, permitting a less predictable flight path and accurate delivery. The system can also use missiles carrying warheads with cluster munitions.

Operational history

Russia

The first documented use of the Iskander was in the Russo-Georgian War in which Dutch journalist Stan Storimans was killed on 12 August 2008 in Gori. An investigation by the Dutch government revealed that a single, 5 mm fragment from an anti-personnel sub-munition, carried by an Iskander missile, killed the Dutch journalist.
In September 2009, the Russian military announced plans to deploy Iskander missiles in all the military districts of Russia "in a short time".
According to the Stratfor report in 2010 there were five Iskander brigades stationed and operational in Russia, namely the 26th Rocket Brigade in the town of Luga, Leningrad Oblast, south of St. Petersburg; 92nd Rocket Brigade at Kamenka, near Penza in the Volga region; 103rd Rocket Brigade at Ulan-Ude, north of Mongolia; 107th Rocket Brigade at, in the Far East; and the 114th Rocket Brigade at Znamensk, in the northern Caucasus.
In June 2013, it was revealed that Russia had deployed several Iskander-M ballistic missile systems in Armenia at undisclosed locations. In 2016, it was reported by media that Armenia had received a divizion of Iskander missiles.
In November 2014, US General Breedlove stated that Russian forces "capable of being nuclear" had been moved into Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula which the Russian Federation had annexed in March, and the following month Ukrainian Armed Forces announced that Russia had deployed a nuclear-capable Iskander division in the territory. Russian Foreign Ministry officials declared the right to deploy nuclear weapons in the peninsula, which is generally recognized as part of Ukraine, in December 2014 and June 2015.
In March 2016, at least one Iskander system was reportedly deployed at Russia's Hmeimim airbase in Syria. In January 2017 an Israeli company claimed satellite photography confirmed the Syrian deployment.
According to a Fox News report in early February 2017, four Iskander missiles had been fired at opposition targets in the Idlib province in Syria.

Russo-Ukrainian war

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russia launched several Iskander missiles over their border into Ukraine as part of their assault. These missiles demonstrated a previously unknown capability that employed decoys to confuse air defense systems. It is believed this technology was kept a closely guarded secret, and not included on Iskander missiles exported outside of Russia. From 23 April 2022, Russia deployed more units equipped with Iskander-M to the Belgorod Oblast, as close as 60 km from the border of Ukraine.
In March 2023, Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuri Ihnat reported that Ukraine was unable to shoot down Iskander ballistic missiles. However, on 29 May, Ukraine claimed to have destroyed 11 Iskander missiles of both the ballistic and cruise missile variants.
On 5 March 2024, it was confirmed that a M142 HIMARS was destroyed by an Iskander ballistic missile near Nykanorivka in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast. It was the first time a HIMARS system was destroyed in Ukraine.
On 9 March 2024, it was confirmed that an Iskander ballistic missile was used to destroy two German-supplied M901 launchers for the MIM-104 Patriot air defence system near Pokrovsk. It was the first time components of a Patriot were destroyed in Ukraine.
On 14 March 2024, an Iskander strike destroyed two Ukrainian Mi-8/17 helicopters from the 12th Army Aviation Brigade that were rearming in an open field in Novopavlivka, next to Avdiivka.
In early July 2024, Russian forces launched a wave of attacks using Iskander missiles at Ukrainian airbases, after first using drones for aerial reconnaissance:
On 22 November 2024, another MiG-29 was destroyed in Aviatorskoe-Dnipro air base by an Iskander missiles attack guided by a Russian drone.
On 23 February 2025, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed that it has hit over 1,400 targets with the Iskander system during the war.
On 1 March 2025, Russian forces attacked a Ukrainian military training site in Cherkaske, leaving scores of Ukrainian soldiers killed and wounded.
On 5 June 2025, Ukrainian military claimed that their missiles struck a base in the city of Klintsy Bryansk Oblast, destroying one Iskander missile launcher and damaged two more.
According to a report by the US Defense Intelligence Agency, Russia upgraded 9K720 Iskander and Kh-47M2 Kinzhal missiles with a terminal phase maneuvering capability in spring 2025 in order to bypass Ukraine's Patriot systems. A Financial Times article from October 2025 said, citing current and former Ukrainian and Western officials, that interception rates dropped from 37% in August to 6% in September, allowing Russia to seriously damage key military sites, four drone plants, and critical infrastructure ahead of the winter.
According to the French Army, Ukrainian SAMP/T air defence systems have outperformed Patriot missiles in intercepting Iskander missile, after Russia modified the flight profiles of Iskanders.