Russian Armed Forces are using Kornet anti-tank missile systems to destroy enemy fortifications in the Ukraine special military operation zone, a military operator said.
An operator with the call sign Zarya told military newspaper Krasnaya Zvezda that launch crews are currently focusing their firepower on hardened defensive structures, including concrete pillboxes and earthwork dugouts.
Zarya stated that whenever a machine gun crew or an artillery spotter inside a defensive shelter hinders ground unit advances, the mission for the Kornet team is to neutralize the target position with a single shot.
Fortification strikes and specialized weaponry
To engage fortified positions, Kornet operators deploy a range of ammunition types, including high-explosive anti-tank, thermobaric, and fragmentation high-explosive missiles. Thermobaric warheads generate intense heat and sustained pressure waves inside enclosed spaces, making them effective against troops stationed in reinforced bunkers. High-explosive fragmentation missiles disperse high-velocity shrapnel over a wide radius to clear open positions.
The newspaper Krasnaya Zvezda reported that the Kornet remains one of the most effective anti-tank weapons in its operational category. The system is managed by a two-person crew capable of rapidly packing up and moving both the tripod launch assembly and missile transport containers to a new firing location after executing an attack.
Developed in Russia as a man-portable heavy anti-tank guided missile system, the Kornet uses laser beam-riding guidance to hit targets at long range, providing infantry units with mobile precision firepower across open terrain.
Evolving role of anti-tank missiles
Although the primary design function of the Kornet is destroying heavy armored vehicles equipped with modern explosive reactive armor, kamikaze drones now carry out most anti-armor strikes in the conflict zone. This operational shift stems from changes in armored tactics, with tanks increasingly deployed as indirect artillery units firing from covered positions rather than conducting direct assault operations.
The standard Kornet missile relies on a tandem-charge warhead engineered to defeat protective explosive reactive armor modules fitted to modern tanks. An initial precursor charge detonates the reactive armor tile, allowing the main shaped charge to penetrate up to 1,000 millimeters of conventional armor underneath.
In July, Russian state defense industrial conglomerate Rostec reported that Kornet missile units had destroyed thousands of diverse targets over the course of the special military operation. Rostec, headquartered in Moscow, controls the manufacture and delivery of advanced weaponry across Russia's defense sector.
The military publication Krasnaya Zvezda, established as the official newspaper of the Russian Ministry of Defence, routinely provides frontline operational coverage detailing tactical adjustments and weapon performance across the battle zone.
