Pyongyang’s MiG-29 Fires New Air-to-Air Missile, Signals Breakthrough with Russian Help

(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) – In a development that could significantly reshape the airpower calculus on the Korean Peninsula, North Korea has carried out a live-fire test of a domestically developed medium-range air-to-air missile, signaling a technological leap potentially enabled by covert Russian assistance.

The missile, first displayed publicly during a recent inspection by Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un at the 1st Air Guard Division, is believed to have been derived—at least in part—from design blueprints similar to China’s PL-12, a missile developed with extensive Russian technical input.

“The North Korean medium-range air-to-air missile is believed to have been developed through technology transfer from Russia, following deepening military cooperation between the two nations.”

North Korea’s state media outlet, KCNA, reported that Kim Jong Un personally observed the operational drills, which included both air defence and offensive strike simulations, emphasizing Pyongyang’s renewed focus on multidomain readiness.

Footage released by KCNA showed a MiG-29 fighter jet launching what analysts assess to be a next-generation air-to-air missile, which successfully engaged and destroyed a simulated cruise missile and an unmanned aerial target, underscoring a new era of indigenous interception capabilities.

The test represents a strategic milestone for Pyongyang, especially when viewed against the backdrop of South Korea’s delayed air-to-air missile programs, which remain in the preliminary stages of research and development.

South Korea’s indigenous AAM project has yet to mature, with its current focus directed toward a new air-to-surface missile for fighter aircraft, expected to enter service by 2028, while helicopter-launched variants have already been deployed.

For the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), the successful development and test of this new missile marks a departure from its long-standing reliance on outdated Soviet-era R-27 missiles, which employ semi-active radar homing and are considered obsolete against contemporary aerial threats.

According to Hong Min, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, “The R-27, a medium-range air-to-air missile originally developed by Russia for the MiG-29, is believed to have been indigenously reproduced by North Korea.”

While the missile was previously exhibited at the “Self-Defense 2021” defence exposition, this is the first time a live-fire test has been documented, offering visual confirmation of its functional integration into the KPAF’s operational arsenal.

South Korean lawmaker Yoo Yong-won, a member of the ruling People Power Party, stated that the test demonstrates Pyongyang has “achieved some level of proficiency in integrating [radar and avionics] with its [medium-range] air-to-air missile system.”

The missile test included the engagement of targets described by analysts as a “North Korean version of the Uran anti-ship missile” and a manta ray-shaped stealth drone, simulating South Korea’s cruise missiles and low-observable UAVs, highlighting Pyongyang’s efforts to tailor its tests to realistic regional threat scenarios.

Yoo further noted that the missile’s airframe and architecture bear strong resemblance to the Chinese PL-12, whose development was underpinned by Russian technological expertise, raising the likelihood that Moscow has extended similar support to Pyongyang despite international sanctions.

He cautioned that the missile platform could be modified for surface-to-air or ship-launched configurations, expanding its utility across multiple operational environments and complicating adversarial threat assessments.

If North Korea can standardize and serially produce this new air-to-air missile, it would represent a transformative moment in the evolution of the Korean People’s Army Air Force (KPAF), enhancing its ability to counter advanced South Korean and U.S. aircraft operating in and around the Korean Peninsula.

The emergence of a modern medium-range AAM within Pyongyang’s inventory would allow MiG-29s, Su-25s, or any future indigenous fighter platforms to engage targets at greater stand-off ranges, potentially outmatching legacy systems fielded by regional adversaries.

Should its capabilities rival China’s PL-12 or Russia’s R-77—both of which feature active radar guidance and high kill probability—South Korean air assets such as the F-15K, KF-16, and even the next-generation KF-21 Boramae would face a qualitatively enhanced aerial threat.

Additionally, U.S. fifth-generation platforms deployed in the region, including the F-35A and F-16C, would need to account for an adversary that can now project layered aerial denial beyond previously assumed engagement envelopes.

The missile’s potential adaptation into mobile surface-to-air systems or naval launchers would further enable North Korea to build a more resilient anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) network—especially relevant as regional maritime and aerial confrontations intensify in the context of the U.S.-China rivalry.

The ability to develop such systems indigenously, even if partially supported by foreign partners, indicates a shift toward self-reliance in missile technology and a rejection of the limitations imposed by sanctions regimes.

North Korea’s push to expand the domain applicability of this missile—whether via drones, land-based TELs, or warship-launched variants—reflects a maturing defence-industrial strategy with implications extending well beyond the Korean Peninsula.

Ultimately, the successful development of this air-to-air missile marks a strategic inflection point for Pyongyang, transforming it from a passive consumer of legacy technologies into a disruptive force capable of producing regionally destabilizing aerial weapon systems.

As the geopolitical contest for air superiority tightens across Northeast Asia, North Korea’s missile breakthrough stands as a stark reminder that even isolated states, with the right partners and doctrinal clarity, can upend the regional status quo.

— DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA