Moscow Confirms Accomplished Test of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Weapon
Moscow has trialed the nuclear-powered Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the state's top military official.
"We have launched a multi-hour flight of a reactor-driven projectile and it traversed a 8,700-mile distance, which is not the ultimate range," Chief of General Staff the general informed the head of state in a broadcast conference.
The low-altitude experimental weapon, originally disclosed in 2018, has been described as having a potentially unlimited range and the capability to evade anti-missile technology.
International analysts have previously cast doubt over the projectile's tactical importance and Russian claims of having successfully tested it.
The national leader said that a "final successful test" of the weapon had been carried out in the previous year, but the assertion lacked outside validation. Of at least 13 known tests, just two instances had limited accomplishment since 2016, based on an arms control campaign group.
Gen Gerasimov said the projectile was in the air for 15 hours during the trial on 21 October.
He said the projectile's ascent and directional control were evaluated and were confirmed as up to specification, according to a domestic media outlet.
"Therefore, it exhibited advanced abilities to evade anti-missile and aerial protection," the news agency stated the general as saying.
The projectile's application has been the subject of intense debate in armed forces and security communities since it was originally disclosed in 2018.
A recent analysis by a foreign defence research body concluded: "A reactor-driven long-range projectile would give Russia a distinctive armament with intercontinental range capability."
Nonetheless, as a foreign policy research organization observed the corresponding time, the nation encounters considerable difficulties in making the weapon viable.
"Its integration into the state's stockpile potentially relies not only on surmounting the significant development hurdle of ensuring the dependable functioning of the nuclear-propulsion unit," analysts wrote.
"There were multiple unsuccessful trials, and an incident resulting in a number of casualties."
A military journal cited in the analysis claims the weapon has a flight distance of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, enabling "the projectile to be based anywhere in Russia and still be equipped to strike objectives in the American territory."
The same journal also says the weapon can travel as at minimal altitude as a very low elevation above the earth, causing complexity for aerial protection systems to engage.
The weapon, designated Skyfall by a Western alliance, is thought to be driven by a nuclear reactor, which is intended to engage after initial propulsion units have propelled it into the air.
An investigation by a reporting service last year identified a facility 295 miles above the capital as the likely launch site of the weapon.
Using space-based photos from August 2024, an analyst informed the outlet he had detected nine horizontal launch pads being built at the location.
Connected News
- President Authorizes Amendments to Nuclear Doctrine
