Moscow Confirms Successful Evaluation of Nuclear-Powered Storm Petrel Weapon
The nation has evaluated the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, as reported by the state's leading commander.
"We have launched a extended flight of a reactor-driven projectile and it traversed a vast distance, which is not the maximum," Senior Military Leader Valery Gerasimov reported to President Vladimir Putin in a public appearance.
The low-altitude prototype missile, first announced in the past decade, has been described as having a possible global reach and the ability to evade anti-missile technology.
International analysts have previously cast doubt over the weapon's military utility and Russian claims of having accomplished its evaluation.
The president stated that a "last accomplished trial" of the missile had been carried out in 2023, but the assertion lacked outside validation. Of a minimum of thirteen documented trials, only two had partial success since several years ago, according to an arms control campaign group.
The general said the projectile was in the atmosphere for 15 hours during the trial on October 21.
He explained the missile's vertical and horizontal manoeuvring were assessed and were determined to be meeting requirements, according to a local reporting service.
"Therefore, it demonstrated high capabilities to circumvent anti-missile and aerial protection," the news agency stated the general as saying.
The missile's utility has been the topic of vigorous discussion in defence and strategic sectors since it was first announced in 2018.
A previous study by a American military analysis unit determined: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would provide the nation a distinctive armament with worldwide reach potential."
Yet, as a global defence think tank commented the corresponding time, the nation confronts major obstacles in developing a functional system.
"Its entry into the nation's inventory potentially relies not only on resolving the considerable technical challenge of securing the reliable performance of the atomic power system," experts stated.
"There have been several flawed evaluations, and an accident causing multiple fatalities."
A armed forces periodical cited in the report claims the missile has a flight distance of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, permitting "the weapon to be based across the country and still be capable to reach objectives in the continental US."
The same journal also notes the missile can operate as low as 50 to 100 metres above the earth, rendering it challenging for air defences to stop.
The missile, referred to as Skyfall by a Western alliance, is thought to be propelled by a reactor system, which is supposed to activate after primary launch mechanisms have launched it into the atmosphere.
An investigation by a reporting service the previous year identified a location 475km above the capital as the probable deployment area of the armament.
Employing satellite imagery from last summer, an analyst told the service he had detected nine horizontal launch pads being built at the location.
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