New 90-kg warheads installed on Russian Shahed drones – Defense Express

Russian long-range Shahed-136 drones are now being equipped with two new types of combined-effect warheads.

Source: Mezha.Media, a technology and IT news platform within Ukrainska Pravda's holding company, with reference to Defense Express, citing its own sources as well as photos and descriptions of the upgraded payloads

Details: One of the munition parts is manufactured in Russia and the other in Iran. Both reportedly weigh 90 kg, an increase from the standard 50 kg.

The Russian-made munition part is marked with the index KOFZBCh, which stands for cumulative-fragmentation-high explosive-incendiary. It uses the same explosive compound, TGF-35P2 (a mixture of TNT and phlegmatised RDX), as the 50-kg OFZBCh-50, though the earlier version lacked a cumulative effect. The incendiary effect in the new warhead is achieved with a powder mixture of metal hydrides.

The Iranian warhead also combines cumulative, fragmentation, and high-explosive effects but does not include incendiary components. It uses an explosive of the OLA type (a mixture of octane and aluminium) and features a booster charge consisting of RDX pellets.

Background: 

• Russia has been continuously upgrading the warheads used on its long-range drones.
• For instance, in 2024, Russian forces began using the TBBCh-50 – a 50-kg combined-effect warhead that integrates thermobaric and fragmentation effects. Its body is filled with 9-mm metal balls that serve as preformed fragmentation elements.

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