Microcircuits from AliExpress are used in missiles from the Russian analogue of HIMARS
Conflict Armament Research has published a report that suggests that the 9М544 rocket projectiles use chips from the Chinese marketplace AliExpress. These munitions are launched by the occupiers using the Tornado-S installation. It is a deeply modernized variant of the ‘Smerch’ MLRS. The Russian defense industry positions Tornado-S as an analogue of HIMARS.
The main unit of the 9М544 rocket projectile remains intact after impact. CAR analysts decided to take it apart for study. As it turned out, for the production of the block, microcircuits of the commercial class, intended for household appliances, are used.
During the research, the organization’s specialists discovered LQFP64 and TSOP66 microcircuits, SMA and DB15 connectors, as well as SMD capacitors. According to them, any of these components can be easily purchased on the Chinese shopping platform AliExpress. The use of ‘civilian’ microcircuits in military equipment threatens with serious problems. The fact is that Chinese semiconductor products are characterized by low fault tolerance and reliability.
