Hwasong-18

North Korea's first solid-fueled, road-mobile ICBM, unveiled in February 2023 and flight-tested the same year.

In service since 2023

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-03

Several performance figures for North Korea-origin systems are manufacturer or state claims with limited independent verification. Treat these specs as directional, not tested values.

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

Sanctioned origin

Under UN sanctions; procurement is prohibited for most states.

Channel: State channel

Fielded & proven

Operator data not public

In service since 2023. Status: announced.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from.

Interoperability

No standardised NATO calibre / datalink detected in public specs.

Derived guidance from public data, export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.

Overview

The Hwasong-18 is North Korea's first solid-propellant ICBM, cold-launched from a road-mobile transporter-erector-launcher for faster launch readiness than earlier liquid-fueled designs. Caveat: figures are state-claimed by the DPRK or Western-estimated, the system is not confirmed to be operationally deployed.

Full specifications

Performance

Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.

Range Maximum distance: ferry range for aircraft, operational range for vehicles, maximum engagement distance for missiles. Higher means more standoff or persistence.: 15,000 km

Stronger than 85% of its class

Firepower

Armament, payload and guidance.

Weapons payload Maximum ordnance weight the platform can carry. Higher means more strike capacity per sortie.: 1,150 kg
Warhead type Blast-fragmentation, shaped charge (HEAT), penetrator, thermobaric or nuclear-capable.: 1

Propulsion

Engine, power and fuel.

Propulsion type Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…: 3-stage solid (cold-launched)

Specifications compiled from public DPRK Academy of Defense Science and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations, treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-03.

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