Kornet

Russia's primary heavy anti-tank guided missile — a SACLOS laser-beam-rider with tandem-HEAT warheads, fielded since 1998 and exported to over 20 countries, from Moscow to Hezbollah.

Overview

The 9M133 Kornet (NATO designation AT-14 Spriggan) is a man-portable anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) that uses semi-automatic command to line-of-sight (SACLOS) laser beam-rider guidance. Developed by the Tula-based KBP Instrument Design Bureau, the Kornet fires a large tandem high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) warhead capable of defeating modern explosive reactive armor, and can also be fitted with a thermobaric warhead for anti-personnel and bunker work. Its baseline range of 5.5 km (extended to 10 km on later variants) makes it a stand-off threat far beyond a tank’s main gun, and it has been one of the most widely disseminated Russian anti-armor weapons of the 21st century, exported to over 20 state and non-state operators.

Development

KBP Tula began work on a new heavy ATGM to succeed the wire-guided 9M113 Konkurs in the late Soviet period, and the 9M133 Kornet was formally introduced into Russian service in 1998, according to the U.S. Army ODIN/WEG database. Unlike many contemporary Western programs, KBP opted to retain a SACLOS laser-beam-rider architecture rather than move to fire-and-forget imaging infrared, prioritizing engagement range, warhead size, and simplicity over “lock-on-before-launch” autonomy.

Design & capabilities

The Kornet missile rides a laser beam pointed by a tripod-mounted sight unit. The operator must keep the crosshairs on the target throughout flight, and the missile’s rear-facing sensor tracks the beam, automatically correcting its course. This SACLOS architecture avoids the flare and chaff countermeasures that can decoy wire-guidance or IR seekers, though it leaves the gunner exposed. The baseline round has a penetration of 1,000–1,200 mm of rolled homogeneous armor (RHA) after explosive reactive armor, and the thermobaric variant delivers a blast equivalent to roughly 10 kg of TNT. Range starts at 100 m and reaches 5,500 m on the original Kornet; the advanced Kornet-EM extends the envelope to 8 km for the HEAT round and up to 10 km for the thermobaric variant. The missile can be launched from a standard ground tripod or integrated onto vehicle platforms, notably the 9P163M-1 system on a BMP-3 chassis.

Variants

The family spans the baseline 9M133 Kornet, the export Kornet-E (with a slightly reduced warhead sensitivity suite), and the Kornet-EM — a modernized, longer-range system with an improved sight unit, automatic target tracking, and the ability to engage targets at up to 10 km. A command-launch unit that permits remote operation of the tripod via cable has also been fielded.

Combat record / operational use

The Kornet has been a fixture of asymmetric and conventional battlefields for two decades. Hezbollah used it heavily in the 2006 Lebanon War, where its tandem warheads pierced the hull of Israeli Merkava tanks. In Syria, a Kornet famously downed an Mi-8 helicopter in 2014, and the system appeared on both sides of the conflict. Since 2022, Kornet missiles have been employed extensively in the Russia-Ukraine war. Trade-press accounts describe its use against infantry positions, armored vehicles, and — anecdotally — against Western-supplied M1 Abrams tanks, though such kills have not been independently verified by primary-source material.

Advantages

• Very high armor penetration (1,000–1,200 mm RHA after ERA) defeats nearly all contemporary main battle tanks.
• Long engagement range (5.5–10 km) allows shots from outside the effective range of tank main guns.
• Thermobaric warhead option gives significant effect against troops in buildings and fortifications.
• Light and man-portable or vehicle-mountable, requiring only a two-person crew.
• Simple laser-beam-rider guidance is resistant to smoke, flares, and most soft-kill countermeasures.

Drawbacks / limitations

• SACLOS guidance forces the gunner to stay exposed on the sight throughout the missile’s flight, increasing vulnerability.
• Relatively slow flight speed (~250–300 m/s) means a 5.5 km engagement may take over 18 seconds.
• Cannot perform top-attack; the direct-flight profile is less effective against overhead armor.
• The laser designator can be detected by laser warning receivers on modern armored vehicles.
• Large launch signature and backblast reveal the firing position.

Counterparts

• Javelin (USA) — fire-and-forget top-attack ATGM, the Western standard.
• HJ-12 (China) — man-portable fire-and-forget top-attack ATGM, Javelin-class.

Outlook

Kornet remains in serial production and is likely to serve for years alongside newer Russian missiles. The Kornet-EM upgrade has addressed some limitations — notably range and target tracking — without abandoning the core SACLOS philosophy that keeps the system cheap and easy to operate. Exports continue, and the missile will almost certainly remain a prominent threat on battlefields where Russian-origin weapons flow.

Key specifications

Sources

1. Army Recognition — 9M133 Kornet-E/EM (AT-14 Spriggan) profile. https://armyrecognition.com/military-products/army/anti-tank-systems-and-vehicles/anti-tank-guided-missiles/9m133-kornet-e
2. Wikipedia — 9M133 Kornet. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9M133_Kornet
3. U.S. Army ODIN/WEG — 9M133 Kornet (AT-14 Spriggan) ATGM. https://odin.t2com.army.mil/WEG/Asset/9M133_Kornet_(AT-14_Spriggan)_Russian_Man-Portable_Anti-Tank_Guided_Missile_(ATGM)