Russia Reports Effective Evaluation of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Cruise Missile

Russia has tested the nuclear-powered Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the country's leading commander.

"We have executed a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traversed a 8,700-mile distance, which is not the ultimate range," Chief of General Staff the general told the Russian leader in a televised meeting.

The terrain-hugging experimental weapon, initially revealed in 2018, has been described as having a potentially unlimited range and the ability to evade missile defences.

International analysts have earlier expressed skepticism over the weapon's military utility and Russian claims of having successfully tested it.

The president declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the missile had been conducted in 2023, but the claim could not be independently verified. Of a minimum of thirteen documented trials, only two had partial success since several years ago, according to an arms control campaign group.

The military leader said the projectile was in the atmosphere for 15 hours during the test on 21 October.

He explained the missile's vertical and horizontal manoeuvring were tested and were confirmed as meeting requirements, as per a national news agency.

"Therefore, it displayed high capabilities to circumvent missile and air defence systems," the news agency reported the general as saying.

The projectile's application has been the topic of vigorous discussion in defence and strategic sectors since it was originally disclosed in 2018.

A 2021 report by a foreign defence research body determined: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would offer Moscow a unique weapon with intercontinental range capability."

Nonetheless, as a foreign policy research organization noted the same year, Russia confronts significant challenges in achieving operational status.

"Its induction into the state's inventory potentially relies not only on overcoming the substantial engineering obstacle of ensuring the consistent operation of the reactor drive mechanism," experts wrote.

"There occurred multiple unsuccessful trials, and an incident causing a number of casualties."

A military journal quoted in the study states the projectile has a operational radius of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, enabling "the missile to be deployed anywhere in Russia and still be capable to target targets in the United States mainland."

The identical publication also explains the missile can travel as low as 50 to 100 metres above ground, causing complexity for defensive networks to intercept.

The weapon, referred to as Skyfall by a Western alliance, is thought to be powered by a atomic power source, which is intended to activate after primary launch mechanisms have sent it into the air.

An inquiry by a reporting service the previous year pinpointed a location 295 miles above the capital as the likely launch site of the weapon.

Employing space-based photos from August 2024, an expert informed the agency he had identified several deployment sites in development at the facility.

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