Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
Russia The President has reportedly tested a new nuclear-capable and nuclear-powered cruise missile Vladimir Putin The claims are designed to bypass existing defense systems as it approaches military deployment.
Video footage released on Sunday along with Kremlin comments showed Mr Putin in camouflage fatigues meeting with senior military officers. General Valery GerasimovRussia’s Chief of General Staff informed the Russian leader that the Burevestnik missile traveled 14,000 kilometers (8,700 miles) during a crucial test conducted on Tuesday.
General Gerasimov said that the Burevestnik, also known as the Storm Petrel, remained in the air for 15 hours, adding that “this is not the limit.”
In the video, Mr Putin instructed General Gerasimov to work on final tests of the missile, saying: “We need to determine the possible uses and begin preparing the infrastructure to deploy these weapons in our armed forces.” Citing its almost unlimited range and unpredictable flight path, he further said that the weapon is invincible against present and future missile defense.
Here are some key facts about the weapon.
What is Russia’s Burevestnik missile and what does it mean?
– 9m730 itThe Revestnik, nicknamed “Storm Petrel”, is a ground-launched, low-flying cruise missile that is not only capable of carrying a nuclear warhead but is also nuclear-powered. NATO refers to it as the SSC-X-9 Skyfall.
Putin, who first revealed the project in March 2018, has said it has unlimited range and can evade US missile defense. But some Western experts have questioned its strategic value, saying that it will not increase capabilities. moscow Is not already there, and may spread radiation along its flight path.
Putin said on Sunday that this weapon is unique. Russia’s top general Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, told Putin that in the October 21 test the missile traveled 14,000 km (8,700 miles) and remained in the air for about 15 hours. He said it travels on nuclear energy, can defeat any missile defense and has unlimited range.
– Its nuclear propulsion is designed to enable it to fly farther, for longer periods of time, compared to conventional turbojet or turbofan engines, which are limited in how much fuel they can carry. This would allow it to “loiter” for an extended period before attacking a target. The Nuclear Threat Initiative, a US-based non-profit security organization, said it could potentially remain aloft for several days: “In operation, Burevestnik would carry a nuclear weapon (or weapons), circle the globe at low altitude, evade missile defense, and avoid terrain; and drop the weapon at a difficult-to-predict location (or locations),” it said in a 2019 report.
– Some Western experts say that the Burevestnik’s subsonic speed will make it undetectable, and the longer it remains in flight, the more vulnerable it will become. Responding to this, Russian military expert Alexei Leonkov wrote in 2019 that Burevestnik’s role would be to eliminate “remnants” of enemy command posts, military bases, factories and power plants after Russia has already fired intercontinental ballistic missiles, rendering the opponent’s air-defense systems unable to intercept them. He said that Burevestnik would “trunk the aggressor countries into the Stone Age”, leading to the complete destruction of their military and civilian infrastructure.
– The International Institute for Strategic Studies quoted an expert Russian military magazine in 2021 as saying that Burevestnik would have an estimated range of up to 20,000 km (12,400 mi), so it could be located anywhere in Russia and attack targets in the United States.
– The same Russian magazine said the missile had an estimated altitude of only 50 to 100 meters (164 to 328 ft), much lower than a conventionally operated cruise missile, which would make it hard for air-defense radar to detect.
– A 2020 report by the United States Air Force National Air and Space Intelligence Center said that if Russia successfully brings Burevestnik into service, it would give Moscow “a unique weapon with intercontinental-range capability.”
– Experts estimate that it will be sent aloft by a small solid-fuel rocket to deliver air to the engine of a miniature nuclear reactor. Extremely hot and possibly radioactive air would be expelled, causing forward thrust.
– According to Western experts, Burevestnik has a poor testing record and has had several previous failures. At least five Russian nuclear experts were killed in 2019 after an explosion and release of radiation during an experiment in the White Sea, and US intelligence sources said they suspected it was part of Burevestnik’s testing. Putin presented top state awards to their widows and said the weapon they were developing had no match in the world, although he did not name it. Putin announced the successful test of the missile in October 2023.
– Two US researchers said in 2024 that they had identified a nuclear weapons storage facility called Vologda-20 or Chebsara, as well as a possible deployment site for the missile. The site is 295 miles (475 km) north of Moscow.
On Wednesday Putin directed exercises of Russia’s strategic nuclear forces that included practice missile launches. The exercise coincided with their planned summit ukraine with the US President donald trump Was stopped.
The Kremlin said the maneuvers involved all parts moscowThe nuclear triad, consisting of intercontinental ballistic missiles, was tested from launch facilities in northwestern Russia and a submarine in the Barents Sea. The exercise also included Tu-95 strategic bombers firing long-range cruise missiles.
The exercises tested the skills of military command structures, the Kremlin said in a statement on Wednesday.