Russia Announces Successful Trial of Nuclear-Powered Storm Petrel Cruise Missile
Moscow has trialed the atomic-propelled Burevestnik long-range missile, as stated by the state's top military official.
"We have conducted a extended flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it traveled a 14,000km distance, which is not the maximum," Senior Military Leader the commander informed the head of state in a broadcast conference.
The low-flying prototype missile, first announced in the past decade, has been hailed as having a possible global reach and the capability to avoid missile defences.
International analysts have previously cast doubt over the weapon's military utility and the nation's statements of having accomplished its evaluation.
The national leader stated that a "last accomplished trial" of the missile had been held in the previous year, but the claim could not be independently verified. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, only two had partial success since 2016, according to an disarmament advocacy body.
Gen Gerasimov reported the projectile was in the sky for 15 hours during the evaluation on the specified date.
He explained the projectile's ascent and directional control were assessed and were confirmed as meeting requirements, based on a national news agency.
"As a result, it displayed superior performance to evade missile and air defence systems," the news agency reported the general as saying.
The weapon's usefulness has been the focus of vigorous discussion in defence and strategic sectors since it was first announced in 2018.
A recent analysis by a American military analysis unit determined: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would provide the nation a unique weapon with worldwide reach potential."
Yet, as a global defence think tank observed the same year, Russia confronts significant challenges in achieving operational status.
"Its induction into the state's arsenal arguably hinges not only on overcoming the significant development hurdle of securing the reliable performance of the nuclear-propulsion unit," analysts stated.
"There were numerous flight-test failures, and an incident resulting in a number of casualties."
A military journal referenced in the report claims the missile has a operational radius of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, enabling "the weapon to be deployed throughout the nation and still be capable to target targets in the United States mainland."
The same journal also explains the missile can fly as at minimal altitude as a very low elevation above the surface, causing complexity for air defences to intercept.
The missile, referred to as a specific moniker by a foreign security organization, is considered driven by a nuclear reactor, which is intended to engage after solid fuel rocket boosters have sent it into the sky.
An inquiry by a media outlet the previous year located a facility 295 miles above the capital as the possible firing point of the weapon.
Utilizing space-based photos from the recent past, an expert informed the service he had detected multiple firing positions being built at the site.
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