9M133 Kornet The Kornet ( ; ) is a Russian anti - tank guided missile ( ATGM ) . It is intended to deal with main battle tank s and to engage slow and low flying helicopter s , but is not intended to fully replace previous systems , due to the cost . The missile carries the GRAU designation 9M133 and the NATO reporting name AT - 14 Spriggan . Development . The Kornet anti - tank missile was unveiled in October 1994 by the KBP Instrument Design Bureau . The missile started development in 1988 as a modular , universal system able to engage any target from a mix of platforms using a reliable laser beam guidance system that was simple to use . It is a heavy ATGM , superior to the earlier 9K111 Fagot ( NATO : AT - 4 Spigot ) and 9K113 Konkurs ( NATO : AT - 5 Spandrel ) wire - guided ATGMs , but not to replace them ( due to the cost ) . The missile is believed to have entered service in the Russian army in 1994 . Its export designation is the Kornet - E . Description . The Kornet Anti Tank Missile system is an advanced ATGM with spiral trajectory . The 9M133 missile together with its 9P163 - 1 tripod launcher and 1PN79 - 1 thermal sight forms the 9K123 missile system , the 9K123 can be carried and operated by a two - person infantry crew . In addition to an infantry portable version , the 9K133 the system has been integrated into a variety of other vehicles and weapons systems as either an upgrade package or a new weapon system . The 9K133 has been fitted into a BMP - 3 to form the 9P163M - 1 tank destroyer and is similar in function to the Khrizantema missile system . The 9P163M - 1 carries two 9M133 missiles on launch rails , which are extended from a stowed position during transit . Missile are re - loaded automatically by the tank destroyer from an internal magazine with 16 rounds ( missiles are stored and transported in sealed canisters ) . NBC protection is provided for the two crew ( gunner and driver ) of each 9P163M - 1 in addition to full armour protection equivalent to the standard BMP - 3 chassis . The guidance system of the 9P163M - 1 allows two missiles to be fired at once , the missiles operating on different guidance ( laser ) channels . The KBP Instrument Design Bureau has also marketed the 9K133 system as part of the Kvartet for mounting on vehicles and boats , the system has four missiles on ready to launch rails along with associated guidance and sighting system all packaged in a single turret . The turret has space for an additional five rounds and is operated by a single individual , the guidance system also allows two missiles to be fired at once . Another upgrade possibility is the Kliver missile and gun turret , seen as an upgrade option for the BTR series of APC , BMP - 1 IFV and patrol boats . It has similar capabilities as the Kvartet turret , but also carries a 30 mm 2A72 cannon ; the turret weight is 1 , 500 kg . Finally the 9M133 is also available in the BEREZHOK turret upgrade also made available by KBP . Combat history . During the 2003 invasion of Iraq , Kornets were used by some groups of Iraqi special forces to attack American armoured vehicles , " disabling at least two Abrams tanks and one Bradley armored troop carrier in the opening week of the war " . The second verified episode of the Kornet ATGM in combat use occurred during the 2006 Lebanon War , where the missiles , reportedly supplied by Syria , were successfully used by Hezbollah fighters to destroy up to four Israeli Merkava tanks , and damage a number of others . One of the first detailed accounts of IDF ' s successful capture of Kornet ATGMs on Hezbollah positions in the village of Ghandouriyeh appeared in the Daily Telegraph article , which also reported that the boxes were marked with " Customer : Ministry of Defense of Syria . Supplier : KBP , Tula , Russia " . Several months after the cease - fire , reports have provided sufficient photographic evidence that Kornet ATGMs were indeed both in possession of , and used by , Hezbollah in this area . Israel claims that Russian weapons were smuggled to Hezbollah by Syria , and Israel has sent a team of officials to Moscow to show Russia the evidence of what they say can only be Syrian weapons transfers . Despite initial public denials by the Russian officials that any proof of actual use of Kornet by Hezbollah has been presented , the Russian government in fact has moved to tighten control over the use of Russian - made weapons by the importing states , suggesting that the visit of the Israeli delegation did bear fruit , although it might have nothing to do with Kornet . On 6 December 2010 , a Kornet launched from the Gaza strip penetrated the armour of a Merkava Mark III tank on the Israeli side of the border , but it caused no injuries in this instance due to a technical failure . In attacks against civilians . On 7 April 2011 Hamas claimed responsibility for a missile strike on an Israeli yellow school bus which killed a 16 - year old boy , Daniel Viflic , and wounded another civilian ( all the other children who were on the bus got out few minutes earlier ) . According to Israeli military spokesman , the bus was hit by a Kornet missile .