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36-638: After analyzing World War II naval battles and encounters in the late 1940s and early 1950s, Soviet military thinkers concluded that the era of large seaborne battles was over, and that stand-off attacks would be the way to neutralize and incapacitate large battle groups without having to field a similar force against them. Substituting cruise missiles for air attacks, Soviet Air Forces and Soviet Naval Aviation commanders set about converting their heavy bombers to raketonosets , or missile carriers, which could be launched against approaching enemy fleets from coastal or island airfields. The Kh-22 (Complex 22) weapon

72-631: A 9-storey apartment building and a recreational center in Serhiivka , Ukraine, killing at least 21 people and wounding at least 39. On 14 September 2022, it was reported at least seven Kh-22 missiles were launched by Russia at various hydraulic structures in Kryvyi Rih , including a nearby dam. This caused the water level of the Inhulets river to increase by 2–3 metres (6 ft 7 in – 9 ft 10 in), or even 5–6 metres (16–20 ft). Previously,

108-472: A central residential area when there were a lot of people around as an intimidation tactic. On the day of the attack, Russian television did not report it until the Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed that it had happened. Pro-Russian Telegram channels have spread multiple conflicting theories about the missile strike, including the claim that the missile was aimed at a car factory near the mall, that

144-550: A different terminal guidance design to land-attack missiles, the missile locked on to the large radar return of the shopping centre's flat metal walls instead of the intended target. That a weapon poorly optimised for the mission was used may be due to Russia depleting its stockpile of more suitable munitions. Dmytro Lunin , Governor of Poltava Oblast , said 20 people were dead, and 59 people were injured. 36 people were reported missing. According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy , there were more than 1,000 people inside

180-502: A distance sufficient to allow attacking personnel to evade the effect of the weapon or defensive fire from the target area. Typically, they are used against land- and sea-based targets in an offensive operation. The name is derived from their ability to engage the target while standing off outside the range at which the defenders are likely to engage the attacker. Typical stand-off weapons include cruise missiles , glide bombs and short-range ballistic missiles . Standoff missiles belong to

216-486: A fire in a non-functioning shopping centre next to the factory." These statements have been debunked by the BBC and other media. A memorial to those who died in the attack and were wounded was quickly set up near the ruins of the buildings. Residents left items such as lit candles and flowers at the memorial, while others prayed or waited to hear about those still missing from the attack. A three-day period of official mourning

252-411: A high-speed dive into the target, with a terminal speed of about Mach 4.6. In low-altitude mode, it climbs to 12,000 m (39,000 ft) and makes a shallow dive at about Mach 3.5. The missile is guided by a gyroscope -stabilized autopilot in conjunction with a radio altimeter . Soviet tests revealed that when a shaped charge warhead weighing 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) was used in the missile,

288-590: A speed of at least 5,000 km/h (3,100 mph; Mach 4.1). Apparently the missile entered service in the same year. Thirty-two Kh-22 missiles will be modernized to the Kh-32 level in 2018–2020. The first Kh-22PG missile was fired in 1963. The Kh-22 entered service in 1968, along with its missile carrier, the Tu-22K. The missiles were used by Soviet and then Russian Air Forces on the Тu-22 K ('Blinder-B') and Tu-95 K22 ('Bear-G') strategic bombers in patrol mission. Later,

324-417: A steep dive to the target. The cruise missile version is also designed to target enemy ships, as well as radars, and "radio-contrast targets" like bridges, military bases, electric power plants, and others. The Kh-32 has an inertial navigation system and radar homing head, making it independent of GPS / GLONASS navigation satellites. Presumably, it has a range of 1,000 km (620 mi; 540 nmi) and

360-506: Is possibly using anti-ship missiles, like the Kh-22, against ground targets and claimed that such missiles "are highly inaccurate and therefore can cause severe collateral damage and casualties". On 9 May 2022, 13 Kh-22 missiles were reportedly fired by the Russian Air Force : seven at Fontanka, a coastal village about 15 km (9.3 mi) north of Odesa , where at least one smashed into

396-405: The 29 December 2023 Russian strikes on Ukraine and other attacks, eight X-22/Kh-22s have been fired at Ukraine by Russian forces. None have been shot down by Ukrainian forces. Although it is suggested that Russia has been targeting areas where there are no Patriot missile batteries, of which Ukraine has three, or one SAMP/T . On 19 April 2024, Ukraine claimed to have shot down two Kh-22/32s for

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432-573: The Russian Armed Forces fired two Kh-22 cruise missiles into central Kremenchuk , Poltava Oblast , hitting the Kredmash road machinery plant and the immediately adjacent Amstor shopping mall . A fire broke out and the attack killed at least 20 people and injured at least 59. Russian media and officials carried conflicting stories about the attack. The explosion at the Amstor shopping center

468-513: The UK Ministry of Defence said, "There is a realistic possibility the missile strike on the Kremenchuk shopping centre on 27 June 2022 was intended to hit a nearby infrastructure target." It added, "Russian planners highly likely remain willing to accept a high level of collateral damage when they perceive military necessity in striking a target." A possibility is that, as anti-ship missiles have

504-452: The 52nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment, of the 22nd Guards Heavy Bomber Aviation Division , commanded by Colonel Oleg Timoshin. Ukrainian Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky said that the missile hit the far end of the shopping mall. The area of the resulting fire was more than 10,000 square metres (110,000 sq ft) and up to 115 firefighters and 20 fire-fighting appliances were involved in extinguishing it. A second missile struck

540-564: The Inhulets was too shallow, allowing the Ukrainian army to build pontoon bridges during its southern counteroffensive . However, Ukrainian MoD claimed that Kh-101 missiles were used in the strike. On 14 January 2023, a Russian missile strike , possibly using a Kh-22, demolished a 9-storey apartment building in Dnipro and started a large fire. At least 44 civilians were killed and 73 were wounded in

576-595: The Kh-22 with a large conventional warhead and the Kh-22N with a 350–1000-kiloton nuclear warhead. In the mid-1970s, this was supplemented by the Kh-22P, an anti-radiation missile for the destruction of radar installations. In the 1970s, the Kh-22 was upgraded to Kh-22M and Kh-22MA standard, with new attack profiles, somewhat longer range, and a datalink allowing mid-course updates. Standoff (missile) Standoff weapons are missiles or bombs which may be launched from

612-407: The Kredmash road machinery plant, located about 300 m (980 ft) north of the mall. The Kredmash plant had been involved in the repair of three armoured personnel carriers ( BTR-70s ) eight years earlier. Both missiles fell about 450 m (1,480 ft) apart and may have been aimed at the same target, since such distance is within the known limited accuracy of Kh-22 missiles (according to

648-721: The Riviera shopping mall around 10:35 PM (after curfew), killing one, and six at targets in the Donetsk Oblast . Between 12 May and 25 June 2022, at least 10 other Russian Kh-22 strikes in Ukraine, involving at least 44 missiles in total, were reported in the media. On 27 June 2022, two Kh-22 or Kh-32 missiles, launched by Russian Tupolev Tu-22M3 bombers, were reportedly used in the Kremenchuk shopping mall attack , killing at least 21 people and injuring at least 59. One missile smashed directly into

684-410: The attack an "atrocity" and said, "The world is horrified by Russia's missile strike today, which hit a crowded Ukrainian shopping mall". British Prime Minister Boris Johnson condemned the "cruelty and barbarism" of the attack and conveyed condolences to the civilians affected, also reaffirming support for Ukraine. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his address that the attack targeted

720-489: The attack. On 8 May 2023, Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Colonel Yurii Ihnat said that "seven aircraft and up to eight launches of Kh-22 cruise missiles" at Odesa Oblast. Many of the missiles are believed to have self-destructed due to their age. Only one is believed to have hit a food storage warehouse in Odesa. The missiles were fired from Tu-22 bombers. Three nights of attacks on Odesa , 17–20 July, had been successful due to

756-601: The first time during the war. Pictures were later released showing the Kh-32 was manufactured in 2023. On 20 August 2024, at the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi for the first time announced data on how many weapons Russia has used since 2022, as well as how many were intercepted. The report said that only 2/362 (0.55%) of Kh-22/32s were intercepted by Ukraine’s air defense Two initial versions were built,

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792-483: The international security expert Sebastien Roblin, "only half of the shots land within 600 meters of the aiming point"). An employee in the mall told reporters that many felt they were safe at the mall as they were not a place of danger for the Russians and away from front lines. Similar comments were echoed by a shopper who expressed shock that the mall was hit, calling it a safe place with women and children. According to

828-599: The larger class of ranged weapons . This article relating to missiles is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kremenchuk shopping mall attack Eastern Ukraine campaign Southern Ukraine campaign Other regions Naval operations Spillover & related incidents Eastern Ukraine campaign Southern Ukraine campaign Other regions Spillover & related incidents Eastern Ukraine campaign Southern Ukraine campaign Other regions Naval operations Spillover & related incidents On 27 June 2022,

864-479: The main launch platform is currently the Tupolev Tu-22M3 ('Backfire') long-range strategic bomber. The first combat use of the missile was reported during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine . On 11 May 2022, a video emerged on internet showing a Russian Air Force Tu-22M3 strategic bomber launching a pair of Kh-22 or Kh-32 missiles at targets somewhere in Ukraine. The UK Ministry of Defence stated that Russia

900-456: The mall themselves. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said that " Russian Aerospace Forces delivered a strike by air-launched high-precision weapons against hangars of weapons and ammunition from the United States and European countries in the area of the Kremenchuk road machinery factory" He also said: "The detonation of the munitions for western weaponry in storage led to

936-493: The mall to prove that the mall had been open prior to the attack. The leaders of the G7 nations described the missile strike as an "abominable attack". "We stand united with Ukraine in mourning the innocent victims", they said in a joint statement. " Indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians constitute a war crime . Russian President Putin and those responsible will be held to account." US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called

972-542: The mall was being used as a military equipment warehouse, or as a base of the Territorial Defense Forces , and that the missile strike is a Ukrainian provocation involving the use of "canned bodies". On the day after the attack, Russian authorities and state-controlled media issued a number of contradictory statements about the attack, including claims that the attack was "fake" and that the Ukrainians had bombed

1008-529: The mall when the strike occurred. Per reports from independent military experts and researchers with Molfar, a global open sourced intelligence community, the factory and mall were too far apart from one another to cause any fires or explosions. Additional phone messages, which were reportedly from local management of the shopping mall, were found by investigators, which told employees to stay working through air raid alarms. The non-profit online journalism collective Bellingcat used receipts from recent purchases at

1044-510: The mall while the other fell about 450 meters away, into the edge of the Kredmash Road Machinery Plant, which primarily manufactures asphalt and concrete mixers, where it injured two of the 100 employees present. Both missiles might have been aimed at the same target since such distance is within the limited accuracy of Kh-22 missiles. In the night between 30 June and 1 July 2022, three Kh-22 missiles were fired from Tu-22M3s into

1080-663: The mall. The shopping mall that was struck, located in the city center, covered an area of about 1 hectare (10,000 m ). According to the Armed Forces of Ukraine , the attack was carried out by Kh-22 anti-ship missiles launched from Russian Tu-22M3 strategic bombers that took off from the Shaykovka air base in the Kaluga region . The missiles were launched over the territory of the Kursk region . According to Ukrainian media, they belong to

1116-531: The resulting hole measured 5 m (16 ft) in diameter, 19.6 m (210 sq ft) in area, and was 12 m (40 ft) deep. By August 2016, Russia was finalizing the trials of the Kh-32 cruise missile, a derivative of the Kh-22. Designed for use by the Tu-22M3 bomber, the missile is designed to climb to 40 km (130,000 ft) to the stratosphere after launch, transition to level flight, then perform

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1152-465: The shopping centre intentionally. Ukraine's Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba tweeted that "The attack was a disgrace to humanity and that Russia must face consequences in the form of more heavy arms to Ukraine and more sanctions against Russia." Mayor Vitalii Maletskyi stated the attack hit an area that was "100% certain not to have any links to the armed forces." He called the attack a crime against humanity , and accused Russia of intentionally shelling

1188-406: The survivors, an air raid alert sounded several minutes before the strike. Russia's defence ministry later officially admitted responsibility for the attack, saying that it hit a weapons depot in a nearby factory and that the detonation of munitions caused the fire to spread to the "non-functioning" shopping centre. Those claims were found to be false by multiple organizations. On 29 June,

1224-544: The then less advanced systems protecting the city compared to those in Kyiv . Out of nineteen cruise missiles fired, Ukraine only intercepted five on 20 July. The Kh-22 missiles cannot be shot down due to their speed. Yurii Ihnat, spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, said that “What could be shot down is being shot down,” They required either Patriot missiles or SAMP-T to protect the region from missiles like Kh-22. During

1260-566: Was developed by the Raduga design bureau and used to arm the Tupolev Tu-22 . The Kh-22 uses a Tumansky liquid-fuel rocket engine , fueled with TG-02 ( Tonka-250 ) and IRFNA (inhibited red fuming nitric acid ), giving it a maximum speed of Mach 4.6 and a range of up to 600 km (320 nmi). It can be launched in either high-altitude or low-altitude mode. In high-altitude mode, it climbs to an altitude of 27,000 m (89,000 ft) and makes

1296-565: Was the fifth attack on Kremenchuk since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022. The attack on 27 June caused the largest number of casualties. The previous attacks had taken place on 2 and 24 April, 12 May and 18 June. Prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kremenchuk was an industrial city of about 217,000 inhabitants and the location of the country's largest oil refinery , located some 10 km (6.2 mi) from

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