Video shows modernised Ukrainian missile designs
A social post circulated footage of Ukrainian‑made missiles with modernised aerodynamic features for short‑range air‑defence systems and reportedly reverse‑engineered Osa missiles. The post credited Luch and highlighted updated design elements tied to flight stability and performance. (x.com)
Ukraine has publicly shown a new domestic surface-to-air missile that analysts say appears designed for the Soviet-era Osa-AKM launcher still used by Ukrainian forces. (president.gov.ua) (militarnyi.com) The footage appeared in material released on April 13, 2026, for Ukraine’s Arms Makers’ Day, when President Volodymyr Zelensky said the country had built “a new defense industry” over four years. (president.gov.ua 1) (president.gov.ua 2) A surface-to-air missile is the interceptor fired from the ground to hit aircraft, drones or cruise missiles. Militarnyi said the missile shown in the video has rear fins, front control surfaces and launch-rail geometry that closely match the 9M33M3 missile used by the 9K33M3 Osa-AKM system. (militarnyi.com) The Osa-AKM is a short-range air-defense vehicle that carries six missiles on one self-propelled launcher. Militarnyi lists the original 9M33M3 missile at 126.3 kilograms, 3,158 millimeters long, with radio-command guidance and an engagement range of 1.5 to 10 kilometers. (militarnyi.com) Ukraine has kept Osa systems in service because they were effective against Russian drones and cruise missiles in 2022 and 2023, but available stocks of the original missiles fell quickly. Militarnyi reported that the pace of Osa use dropped as ammunition ran short. (militarnyi.com) That shortage already pushed Ukraine toward one stopgap fix. In December 2024, the Come Back Alive foundation said it had financed upgrades so Ukrainian Osa-AKM launchers could also fire R-73 air-to-air missiles, with the project costing more than 14 million hryvnias. (milmag.pl) The new footage points to a second path: making fresh missiles for an old launcher instead of only adapting the launcher to a different missile. Militarnyi said it is still not confirmed whether the weapon is a direct copy of the Soviet 9M33 family built with new components or a broader redesign with better performance. (militarnyi.com) The social post that drew attention to the clip credited Luch, the Kyiv design bureau that says it develops guided weapons including anti-aircraft missiles and modernizes missile systems for Ukraine’s armed forces. Luch’s website lists anti-aircraft guided missiles among its product areas and says it works on modernization, repair and life extension for guided weapons. (luch.kiev.ua) Zelensky’s April 13 address placed the missile footage inside a wider production push that he said now includes interceptors, long-range missiles, drones, shells and robotic systems. The video did not include technical specifications for the newly shown missile, so the exact range, seeker and production status remain undisclosed. (president.gov.ua) (militarnyi.com) For now, the clearest fact is visual: Ukraine chose to show a missile that looks built for one of its legacy short-range air-defense systems at a moment when interceptor supply has become a central wartime problem. (president.gov.ua) (militarnyi.com)
