Moscow Confirms Successful Evaluation of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Missile
The nation has evaluated the atomic-propelled Burevestnik long-range missile, according to the nation's senior general.
"We have executed a prolonged flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traveled a 14,000km distance, which is not the limit," Chief of General Staff the commander informed the Russian leader in a public appearance.
The low-flying advanced armament, initially revealed in 2018, has been portrayed as having a theoretically endless flight path and the capacity to avoid anti-missile technology.
International analysts have earlier expressed skepticism over the weapon's military utility and Moscow's assertions of having successfully tested it.
The national leader declared that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the weapon had been conducted in last year, but the assertion could not be independently verified. Of at least 13 known tests, just two instances had moderate achievement since 2016, according to an disarmament advocacy body.
The military leader reported the projectile was in the sky for 15 hours during the test on October 21.
He noted the projectile's ascent and directional control were evaluated and were confirmed as meeting requirements, as per a national news agency.
"Therefore, it exhibited advanced abilities to circumvent defensive networks," the news agency quoted the commander as saying.
The weapon's usefulness has been the subject of vigorous discussion in military and defence circles since it was originally disclosed in recent years.
A 2021 report by a US Air Force intelligence center concluded: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would offer Moscow a distinctive armament with global strike capacity."
Nonetheless, as a global defence think tank noted the same year, Moscow confronts considerable difficulties in developing a functional system.
"Its induction into the nation's inventory arguably hinges not only on resolving the substantial engineering obstacle of ensuring the reliable performance of the nuclear-propulsion unit," specialists noted.
"There occurred several flawed evaluations, and a mishap causing a number of casualties."
A military journal cited in the analysis asserts the projectile has a flight distance of between a substantial span, allowing "the weapon to be deployed across the country and still be capable to strike goals in the continental US."
The same journal also notes the weapon can fly as close to the ground as 50 to 100 metres above ground, making it difficult for air defences to intercept.
The missile, code-named Skyfall by an international defence pact, is considered propelled by a nuclear reactor, which is supposed to activate after primary launch mechanisms have sent it into the atmosphere.
An examination by a reporting service recently identified a location 295 miles north of Moscow as the likely launch site of the armament.
Employing space-based photos from the recent past, an specialist informed the agency he had observed nine horizontal launch pads in development at the facility.
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