Russia Announces Accomplished Test of Atomic-Propelled Burevestnik Weapon
Russia has tested the reactor-driven Burevestnik cruise missile, as reported by the country's leading commander.
"We have executed a extended flight of a reactor-driven projectile and it traversed a 14,000km distance, which is not the limit," Senior Military Leader the general reported to the head of state in a broadcast conference.
The low-altitude advanced armament, initially revealed in 2018, has been portrayed as having a potentially unlimited range and the ability to evade anti-missile technology.
Western experts have previously cast doubt over the missile's strategic value and Russian claims of having effectively trialed it.
The head of state stated that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the missile had been conducted in last year, but the statement could not be independently verified. Of a minimum of thirteen documented trials, just two instances had partial success since several years ago, as per an disarmament advocacy body.
Gen Gerasimov stated the missile was in the atmosphere for 15 hours during the test on the specified date.
He explained the weapon's altitude and course adjustments were evaluated and were confirmed as meeting requirements, according to a domestic media outlet.
"Consequently, it exhibited high capabilities to bypass defensive networks," the outlet quoted the official as saying.
The missile's utility has been the topic of intense debate in defence and strategic sectors since it was first announced in recent years.
A 2021 report by a foreign defence research body stated: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would give Russia a singular system with global strike capacity."
However, as an international strategic institute commented the identical period, Moscow encounters considerable difficulties in achieving operational status.
"Its entry into the nation's arsenal likely depends not only on surmounting the considerable technical challenge of securing the dependable functioning of the reactor drive mechanism," analysts wrote.
"There were several flawed evaluations, and an accident leading to multiple fatalities."
A armed forces periodical cited in the report claims the projectile has a range of between a substantial span, permitting "the missile to be stationed throughout the nation and still be capable to reach objectives in the continental US."
The same journal also notes the projectile can operate as low as 50 to 100 metres above ground, rendering it challenging for aerial protection systems to intercept.
The weapon, designated a specific moniker by a Western alliance, is believed to be powered by a reactor system, which is supposed to engage after primary launch mechanisms have launched it into the atmosphere.
An investigation by a news agency the previous year located a location a considerable distance from the city as the likely launch site of the weapon.
Using space-based photos from the recent past, an specialist informed the service he had identified several deployment sites under construction at the location.
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