Profile
- Type
- Antipersonnel blast mine family
- Conflict side
- Russia
- Origin
- Soviet Union / Russia
- Service note
- Cold War and post-Soviet service
Infantry Weapons
PMN-1/2/4
The PMN-1/2/4 family covers Soviet and Russian pressure-activated antipersonnel blast mines used to deny foot movement and injure personnel at close range. PMN-1 and PMN-2 are Soviet designs, while PMN-4 is a later Russian circular plastic-cased mine; all three are relevant to mine-contamination reporting in and around Ukraine, where PMN-2 and PMN-4 examples have been documented during the Russia-Ukraine War.
- Conflict side
- Russia
- Built in
- Soviet UnionRussia
Service History
- In service
- Used as hand-emplaced pressure mines; PMN-4 also documented in Russian use in Ukraine
- Used by
- Russian Armed Forces, Former Soviet and Russian client-state users
- Wars
- Russia-Ukraine War
Production History
- Designer
- Soviet and Russian ordnance designers
- Designed
- PMN-1 late 1950s; PMN-2 mid-1970s; PMN-4 early 1990s
- Built in
- Soviet UnionRussia
- Produced
- Soviet production for PMN-1 and PMN-2; Russian PMN-4 production in the early 1990s
- Variants
- PMN-1, PMN-2, PMN-4
Specifications
- Initiation
- Victim-activated pressure fuze
- PMN-1 dimensions
- About 112 mm diameter and 56 mm high
- PMN-1 explosive fill
- Approximately 200 g pressed TNT
- PMN-2 dimensions
- About 120 mm diameter and 53 mm high
- PMN-2 explosive fill
- 100 g TNT/RDX charge
- PMN-4 dimensions
- About 95 mm diameter and 46 mm high
- PMN-4 explosive fill
- About 55 g TG-40 explosive
Conflict Usage
- Russia-Ukraine War
- Side: Russia
Russian forces have used PMN-family antipersonnel blast mines in Ukraine, including PMN-4 mines cleared in Sumy Oblast in April 2022 and PMN-2 mines documented in occupied residential areas of Kherson Oblast.
PMN-1/2/4 Images
Related Weapon Systems
MON-100Directional anti-personnel fragmentation mineThe MON-100 is a Soviet/Russian directional anti-personnel fragmentation mine, a larger member of the MON family intended to project steel fragments across a 100-meter danger area. In the Russia-Ukraine War it appears in mine-action reporting as one of the MON-series mines used by Russian forces, adding to the hand-emplaced and tripwire or command-initiated explosive hazards facing Ukrainian deminers and civilians.
MON-50Directional fragmentation antipersonnel mineThe MON-50 is a Soviet directional fragmentation antipersonnel mine broadly comparable in role to the M18 Claymore, with a plastic body, folding legs, and a forward fragmentation pattern. It can be command-detonated or configured with tripwire and other fuzing, making it a compact infantry obstacle and ambush munition. In the Russia-Ukraine War, monitoring groups identify MON-50 mines among Russian-used hand-emplaced antipersonnel mines, adding to the dense explosive contamination faced by Ukrainian deminers and civilians.
MON-90Directional fragmentation anti-personnel mineThe MON-90 is a Soviet-designed directional fragmentation anti-personnel mine, broadly comparable in role to a large Claymore-type munition. It uses a plastic, curved body and a heavy explosive charge to project steel fragments across a fixed arc, and open-source mine-action reporting identifies it among the antipersonnel mines contaminating Ukrainian territory during the Russia-Ukraine War.
PFM-1Scatterable anti-personnel blast mineThe PFM-1 is a Soviet scatterable anti-personnel blast mine with a plastic winged body and a small liquid-explosive charge, designed for remote delivery rather than hand emplacement. In the Russia-Ukraine War it has been documented in PFM-series rocket-scattered mine contamination around Izium, where Human Rights Watch linked the mines to 220 mm Uragan mine-laying rockets and civilian casualties.
POM-2Scatterable antipersonnel fragmentation mineThe POM-2 is a Soviet/Russian scatterable antipersonnel fragmentation mine that deploys tripwire sensors after delivery by rockets, helicopters, aircraft, vehicles, or specialized dispensers. In Ukraine, it appears as part of Russia's remotely delivered mine threat, including documented POM-2 mines and KPOM-2 canisters recovered in areas cleared by Ukrainian emergency services.
PTM-1Scatterable anti-vehicle mineThe PTM-1 is a Soviet/Russian plastic-bodied scatterable anti-vehicle blast mine intended for remote delivery by rocket artillery, helicopter, or aircraft dispensers rather than manual emplacement. In the Russia-Ukraine War it appears in documented anti-vehicle mine use, with Human Rights Watch listing PTM-1/PTM-1G mines among types stockpiled by both Russia and Ukraine.Sources
Russian Federation Mine Ban PolicyPublisher: Landmine & Cluster Munition Monitor | Note: Supports Russian production/background context and identifies PMN-2 and PMN-4 as pressure-initiated antipersonnel blast mines used by Russia in Ukraine. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Background Briefing on Landmine Use in UkrainePublisher: Human Rights Watch | Note: Direct Russia-Ukraine War conflict-use source documenting Russian antipersonnel mine use and PMN-4 mines cleared in Sumy Oblast in April 2022. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Ukraine/Russia: The Use of Anti-Personnel Mines in Occupied Residential AreasPublisher: Amnesty International | Note: Direct Russia-Ukraine War conflict-use source documenting PMN-2 antipersonnel mines left in Bezimenne, Kherson Oblast, and a civilian injury linked to a PMN-2 mine. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Mines PMNPublisher: No Land Mines | Note: Supports PMN-1 construction and specification data. | Accessed: 2026-06-20PMN-2 Anti-Personnel Blast MinePublisher: No Land Mines | Note: Supports PMN-2 construction and specification data. | Accessed: 2026-06-20PMN-4 Russian Anti-Personnel MinePublisher: U.S. Army OE Data Integration Network | Note: Supports PMN-4 dimensions, explosive fill, and pressure-fired blast-mine description. | Accessed: 2026-06-20PMN-4 Anti-Personnel Landmine in Kyiv OblastPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance and licensing page for the primary PMN-4 photograph from the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. | Accessed: 2026-06-20