Moscow Announces Accomplished Evaluation of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Weapon
Moscow has trialed the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, as stated by the country's leading commander.
"We have launched a extended flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it traversed a vast distance, which is not the maximum," Top Army Official the general told the head of state in a broadcast conference.
The low-altitude prototype missile, first announced in the past decade, has been portrayed as having a possible global reach and the ability to avoid defensive systems.
International analysts have previously cast doubt over the missile's strategic value and Moscow's assertions of having successfully tested it.
The national leader declared that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the weapon had been carried out in last year, but the statement was not externally confirmed. Of at least 13 known tests, only two had limited accomplishment since the mid-2010s, based on an arms control campaign group.
The general said the weapon was in the sky for 15 hours during the trial on 21 October.
He explained the missile's vertical and horizontal manoeuvring were evaluated and were found to be up to specification, according to a national news agency.
"Therefore, it demonstrated superior performance to evade missile and air defence systems," the media source reported the official as saying.
The projectile's application has been the subject of vigorous discussion in military and defence circles since it was first announced in recent years.
A previous study by a American military analysis unit determined: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would give Russia a distinctive armament with intercontinental range capability."
Yet, as an international strategic institute noted the corresponding time, Moscow confronts significant challenges in making the weapon viable.
"Its integration into the state's stockpile potentially relies not only on surmounting the considerable technical challenge of ensuring the reliable performance of the nuclear-propulsion unit," experts stated.
"There occurred numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap resulting in several deaths."
A defence publication quoted in the analysis asserts the missile has a range of between 10,000 and 20,000km, allowing "the weapon to be stationed anywhere in Russia and still be equipped to target targets in the United States mainland."
The same journal also says the projectile can travel as close to the ground as 164 to 328 feet above the surface, making it difficult for defensive networks to stop.
The missile, designated Skyfall by an international defence pact, is thought to be propelled by a atomic power source, which is intended to activate after primary launch mechanisms have propelled it into the air.
An investigation by a reporting service last year located a location 475km north of Moscow as the probable deployment area of the missile.
Using orbital photographs from August 2024, an expert informed the outlet he had identified multiple firing positions being built at the site.
Associated Updates
- National Leader Approves Modifications to Nuclear Doctrine
