Koral
ЗРК «Корал»
Overview
Koral is a Ukrainian medium-range surface-to-air missile system developed by the Luch State Kyiv Design Bureau since 2016. Originally designed for warships, it later received a self-propelled ground launcher on a Tatra chassis, first shown on 8 September 2026 at the MSPO exhibition in Poland. According to the developer, its 450 kg missile with an active radar seeker is designed to engage both aircraft-type and ballistic targets.
History
Work on Koral began in 2016 on the decision of then Defence Minister Stepan Poltorak. The system was originally developed as a medium-range naval air defence system for ships with vertical launch installations. In June 2021 the Luch Design Bureau defended the system's preliminary design at the Ministry of Defence, and a full-scale missile mock-up was first shown at the Arms and Security 2021 exhibition in Kyiv. At that time the bureau's general designer Oleh Korostelov estimated the project to be about 70% complete.
According to Korostelov, the missile can be based on ground and naval platforms and also carried by aircraft as an air-to-air missile. The developers saw Koral as the middle tier of a future layered Ukrainian air defence, between short-range systems (about 10 km) and long-range systems (over 100 km).
Design and specifications
In the 2021 design the missile weighed about 300 kg, was 4.33 m long with a 25 kg warhead, and its range was estimated at 30 km with an engagement altitude of up to 10 km. It was designed for vertical launch, with a solid-fuel motor and a belt of impulse thrusters for manoeuvring after launch and in the terminal phase. The developers described two interchangeable seekers — active radar or imaging infrared — and the use of already proven components: the motor, seeker, impulse correction system and inertial navigation.
The version shown in 2026 has grown noticeably: the missile weighs 450 kg, with a 36 kg warhead, a length of 4.8 m, a diameter of 230/300 mm, a wingspan of 835 mm and a control fin span of 685 mm. Guidance combines inertial navigation, radio course updates and an active radar seeker in the terminal phase. According to the developer, the system is designed to engage aircraft-type and ballistic targets and, in exceptional cases, radar-visible ground and surface targets. The range and altitude of the new version have not been officially disclosed.
Launcher
On 8 September 2026, at the MSPO defence exhibition in Kielce, Poland, Ukraine showed the self-propelled Koral launcher for the first time, mounted on a Czech Tatra T815-7 8×8 truck chassis. Other Luch systems were displayed alongside it on the bureau's stand. The number of missiles per launcher and the system's radar components have not been disclosed.
Status
As of September 2026 Koral is still in development; no test launches or service-entry dates have been officially published. In April 2026 Luch, Fire Point and Germany's Diehl Defence signed a technology cooperation agreement in air and missile defence; Defense Express suggested it could also involve Koral, but the parties have not named specific projects.
Sources
Militarnyi — КБ «Луч» захистило аванпроєкт по комплексу «Корал» (27.06.2021) ↗
Defense Express — Деталі зенітної ракети «Корал» від ДККБ «Луч» (04.07.2021) ↗
Militarnyi — Ukraine Unveils Coral Air Defense System Launcher for the First Time (08.09.2026) ↗
OBOZ.UA — Україна вперше показала пускову установку ЗРК «Корал» (08.09.2026) ↗
Focus — ЗРК «Корал»: Україна вперше показала пускову (08.09.2026) ↗