Matrix Games

Hello everyone, after a short hiatus welcome back to The Armory. We figured it would be good to go back to basics by taking a look at the 9M14 Malyutka ATGM. The Malyutka is an essential piece of Soviet kit for the Cold War and features prominently in our new release, Armored Brigade II. With battles set from 1965-1991, this early ATGM will show up again and again in the Soviet and Warsaw Pact arsenal.

Most of the research for this article came from three books - Vietnam Tracks: Armor in Battle 1945-75 by Simon Dunstan, Jane’s Infantry Weapons 1987-88 by Ian V. Hogg, and Sagger Anti-Tank Missile vs M60 Main Battle Tank by Chris McNab.

A little background starting off. In the 1950’s the first anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM’s) were introduced. These missiles had a physical wire connecting them to a launcher with a human operated control mechanism. As the missile was fired off the gunner would control it via a joystick and try to guide it onto target. Dumbfire infantry portable weapons like the RPG-7, Bazooka, or Panzerfaust 44 were only accurate to – at most – half a kilometer. ATGM’s could be effectively used at a distance of several kilometers.

The earlier Soviet Shmel ATGM was not man portable like the Malyutka, but could still fit on light vehicles

The 9M14 Malyutka is also known by it’s NATO reporting name, the AT-3 Sagger. Introduced in 1963, the Malyutka is a venerable design. Compared to modern wire-guided ATGM’s, controlling the missile is a fiddly process. The gunner must use a joystick to physically guide the missile onto target, a concept referred to as MCLOS (manual command to line of sight). Some later variants adopted SACLOS (semi-automatic command to line of sight) where you only needed to keep your optic on the target, the missile would then follow your optic’s reticule.

The control stick and optics for the man-portable version of the Malyutka

MCLOS requires the missile operator to have plenty of time to line up the target and guide the missile. It takes a few seconds for a user to get a sense of where the missile is and how to correct it’s movement after launch. That means that while a Malyutka can potentially hit a target at a minimum range of 500 meters, it’s accuracy will actually improve for targets at longer ranges. You get more time to correct your aim and line up your optics, the missile, and the target. The Malyutka’s maximum range is 3,000 meters. For targets closer than 1,000 meters the operator doesn’t use a magnifying optic, and guides the missile purely via the MK.1 human eyeball. By modern standards the 9M14 is not an accurate weapon, but vastly augments the capabilities of infantry and IFV's by the standards of the 1960's and 70's.

MCLOS requires a lot of concentration and training. Being wire operated, the Malyutka gunner needs to have direct line of site to the target. The missile only has a speed of around 115-130 meters per second depending on the variant. That means that to hit a target two kilometers away requires the gunner to guide the missile for about 15.5-17.5 seconds. Upon firing the Malyutka the rocket motor kicks up a lot of dust, and the missile itself is slow enough to be visible. Veteran tankers could engage in evasive manuevers while saturating the area around the gunner with fire during that 15-17 second gap between launch and impact.

This quote from Vietnam Tracks helps illustrate how the South Vietnamese ARVN countered the Malyutka.

“The solution was for every AFV other than the target vehicle to fire all weapons at an area 15 metres (the length of the joystick control wire) in all directions around the plume of smoke, to make the gunner flinch and lose control of his missile. Meanwhile the crew of the target vehicle counted to five and then manoeuvred violently in any direction, forcing the enemy to make a sudden, and perhaps ineffective, correction to his flight path.”

The good optics on the M60 MBT made it easier to spot and engage ATGM launchers

While later variants of the Malyutka did correct some of these defects, there were still plenty of old 9M14’s out there that are based on these early models. While I was unable to find estimates of total units produced, I did see estimates of 25,000 missiles made annually in the 1960’s-70’s. Considering the Soviets exported these missiles to allies like North Vietnam, Egypt, Syria, and all other Warsaw pact countries, it is fair to say this is a prolific weapon.

The Malyutka was primarily used either as an infantry-carried ATGM or mounted on vehicles like the BRDM and BMP-1. As an infantry weapon it gave footborn troops in good cover a way to attack armor from kilometers away. Dismounted infantry now had a weapon that could actually reach out and hit tanks, rather than only wait in ambush positions hoping to use their recoiless rifles and RPG’s.

For the BMP-1 the Malyutka allowed the worlds first IFV to stand up as a threat to American armor. Most BMP-1 variants had a 9M14 Malyutka mounted on a rail above their 73mm cannon. It was still far from an even fight against American tanks like an M48 or M60, but the Malyutka gave BMP’s a weapon that could support Soviet armor and infantry against American vehicles. The Soviet predilection for mass also helped reduce the effects of the relatively poor accuracy of the Malyutka. A Soviet mechanized company had 10 BMP-1’s. While each Malyutka might individually be inaccurate, that is a significant volume of ATGM’s heading your way.

Soviet Tanks and BMP's are part of a combined arms team, they need to cooperate together with artillery to be truly successful

When mounted on BRDM’s, the Malyutka was mounted on launch rails attached to the top of the vehicle, turning what was originally a scout car into a dedicated anti-tank weapon. This gave some extra teeth to Soviet recon screens and provided a very mobile anti tank platform.

Your normal BRDM scout car with a 14.5mm HMG...

In terms of penetrating power the Malyutka is quite destructive when it’s introduced in 1963. It’s HEAT warhead provides 400mm of penetration, which is usually plenty when put against steel-armored vehicles. Almost every main battle tank from the M48 and M60 to the Leopard and Chieftain are vulnerable to frontal penetrations. With the arrival of the M1 Abrams that changes. While the Abram’s systems will degrade as it’s hit by missiles, the composite armor of the vehicle makes it resistant to HEAT warheads. The Abrams can usually defeat a frontal hit from the Malyutka, unless by chance it finds a weak point in the armor.

... and armed with the Malyutka ATGM

So how do you successfully employ the Malyutka and how do you counter it? Well like most things Soviet it’s best used en mass as a part of a wider system. While your tougher armor lead the way, your BMP’s should be in support using their ATGM’s to help win the tank battle. Infantry equipped with ATGM’s should be dug into good cover and concealment, with their launchers set up to cover overlapping fields of fire. The range of the 9M14 means you can have multiple strongpoints supporting one-another while still being spread out enough to minimize the damage artillery may cause.

Infantry, BRDM, BMD, and BMP - each of these units in Armored Brigade II is armed with a Malyutka

When facing off against the Malyutka, you want to try and break the system the Soviets will use against you. Try to pick unfair fights where you attack the enemies BMP’s without Soviet tanks nearby to help. It’s hard to line up an ATGM shot if the enemy is rapidly engaging you from an unexpected direction or at close range.

Those factories in the distance? Well within the three kilometer range of the Malyutka...

Likewise, if you suspect there is an ATGM team operating from cover or concealment, be sure to call down artillery fire to suppress them. If the operator is wounded or suppressed after firing, the missile will almost certainly miss it’s intended target.

... and the reverse view from the factories. The ATGM team is just barely visible behind the fence posts

There are no wonder weapons in war, but ATGM’s do add a whole new realm of capabilities to infantry weapons and IFV’s. Armored Brigade II covers the evolution of Cold War armies from 1965 all the way to 1991. With it’s release today I am excited to see what combined arms solutions our community comes up with. It will be exceptionally interesting to see the contrast between 1960’s gameplay where ATGM’s are relatively rare, to the 1980’s where every American rifle squad seems to have a Dragon.

Until next time, happy hunting everyone!