Hwasong-11B

The official designation was confirmed in October 2021, during a military exhibition. The missile has been reported to be used by Russian force during Russo-Ukrainian war.

The Hwasong-11B is a missile that bears similarities to the American ATACMS and South Korean KTSSM, especially in external resemblance, which is similar to ATACMS. It likely fills a similar role of supporting battlefield operations. The missile's aft-mounted aerodynamic fins are fixed rather than foldable like those on the ATACMS, requiring deployment from rectangular launch canisters. It flies in a "variable ballistic trajectory," flattening out at a lower altitude, below around 50 km (31 mi), than traditional SRBMs like the Scud, where the atmosphere is dense enough, so the missile's fins can maintain aerodynamic control over its entire flight and dive toward the target. The use of INS updated with satellite-guidance data could make it accurate to within 35–200 m (115–656 ft) CEP, depending whether the missile uses satellite guidance or INS alone. Although the missile is outwardly similar to the ATACMS, it has demonstrated greater range, suggesting its physical dimensions are larger. It appears to share a common booster with the Hwasong-11A (KN-23) and is estimated to carry a 400–500 kg (880–1,100 lb) payload with a unitary or submunition warhead. The Hwasong-11B is also capable of carrying the Hwasan-31 tactical nuclear warhead. It is likely to replace older liquid-fueled North Korean SRBMs, such as Hwasong-5 and Hwasong-6, as its non-parabolic trajectory makes it more survivable against missile defense systems, and its increased accuracy reduces the number of missiles that would be needed to destroy a single target. Despite their similarities to the ATACMS system, the Hwasong-11B is significantly larger, with estimated length and diameter being 7.2 m (24 ft) and 1.0 m (3 ft 3 in), respectively. The missile also likely uses the same motor as the Pukguksong-1 with similar jet vanes, and overall resembling a single stage version of it. The transporter erector launcher is a tracked chassis, which has a width of about 1.26 m (4 ft 2 in) and a wheel diameter of 0.78 m (2 ft 7 in), similar to the Pukguksong-2's tracked mobile launcher. It is similar to the TEL of South Korean Hyunmoo-2A and 2B; however, North Korean system utilizes two launch canisters instead of one used by South Korean counterpart. A number of images shown of the system appears to be manipulated, significantly increasing the size of the launcher. The Hwasong-11B can also be launched using a four-axle truck chassis. With the missile fulfilling a similar role to the Hwasong-11A, there should have been no need to develop another missile later with an overlapping performance. In an analysis of news reports from the Korean Central News Agency, despite the differences the Hwasong-11A possesses from the 9K720 Iskander, the Hwasong-11A is likely to be constructed with foreign assistance or foreign parts. While all the news reports on the Hwasong-11A mainly focused on the deployment, "demonstration of power" and newness of it, reports on the Hwasong-11B instead focused on the "research" and "development" in its first launch, as well as its superiority compared with older weapons. Later launches of Hwasong-11B made mention of "Juche weapons of Korean style", which is not mentioned at all for the Hwasong-11A, hinting that whereas the Hwasong-11B underwent a research and development phase, the Hwasong-11A was already deployed prior to being tested, and likely having foreign involvement in some form.