[4] The initial design was based on the Raduga Kh-58 (AS-11 'Kilter'), but it had to be abandoned[citation needed] because the missile speed was too high for visual target acquisition.

Raduga OKB developed the Kh-59 in the 1970s as a longer ranged version of the Kh-25 (AS-10 'Karen'),[7] as a precision stand-off weapon for the Su-24M and late-model MiG-27's.

[8] Target coordinates are fed into the missile before launch, and the initial flight phase is conducted under inertial guidance.

By November 2024 missiles launched were found to be lacking the active radar homing head ARGSN U559 and the "Comet" satellite communication module implying that Russia is unable to produce them in adequate numbers making the missiles less effective and more vulnerable to Ukrainian electronic warfare.

Russia has also struggled to substitute the P95-300 engine manufactured by the Ukrainian company Motor Sich forcing them to rely on Soviet-era stocks or cannibalizing the Kh-55(SM) missiles.