[1][2] Bacteriophage phiKMV[3] and its relatives are known to be highly virulent phages, producing large (3–15 mm (0.12–0.59 in) diameter) clear plaques on a susceptible host.

[4][5] The only reported exception is phage LKA1, which yields small plaques (1 mm (0.039 in)) surrounded by a halo.

While all other P. aeruginosa-specific phikmvviruses use the Type IV pili as primary receptor, LKA1 particles attach to the bacterial lipopolysaccharide layer.

The following species are recognized:[2] Electron microscopic imaging of purified phage particles revealed these phages as typical members of the Podoviridae, with a head diameter of approximately 60 nm (2.4×10−6 in) and a stubby tail with a length of 8–10 nm.

Although phiKMV phage resembles the well-studied podovirus T7 in overall genome architecture, it was the first known T7-like phage which encoded a single-subunit RNA polymerase gene downstream its DNA metabolism genes instead of in the early genomic region.