Russia Announces Successful Test of Nuclear-Powered Storm Petrel Cruise Missile

The nation has evaluated the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, as reported by the state's top military official.

"We have launched a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traveled a 8,700-mile distance, which is not the maximum," Chief of General Staff the general told the head of state in a public appearance.

The terrain-hugging prototype missile, first announced in the past decade, has been portrayed as having a theoretically endless flight path and the ability to evade defensive systems.

Foreign specialists have in the past questioned over the projectile's tactical importance and the nation's statements of having successfully tested it.

The head of state said that a "final successful test" of the armament had been conducted in the previous year, but the assertion was not externally confirmed. Of at least 13 known tests, merely a pair had moderate achievement since 2016, according to an disarmament advocacy body.

Gen Gerasimov said the projectile was in the air for a significant duration during the evaluation on the specified date.

He noted the missile's vertical and horizontal manoeuvring were assessed and were determined to be meeting requirements, as per a national news agency.

"Therefore, it demonstrated advanced abilities to circumvent missile and air defence systems," the outlet reported the general as saying.

The missile's utility has been the subject of vigorous discussion in armed forces and security communities since it was first announced in 2018.

A previous study by a US Air Force intelligence center stated: "A reactor-driven long-range projectile would offer Moscow a distinctive armament with intercontinental range capability."

Yet, as a foreign policy research organization observed the same year, the nation confronts considerable difficulties in making the weapon viable.

"Its integration into the nation's arsenal likely depends not only on resolving the substantial engineering obstacle of securing the reliable performance of the atomic power system," experts wrote.

"There have been numerous flight-test failures, and an incident causing a number of casualties."

A military journal cited in the analysis states the weapon has a range of between 10,000 and 20,000km, enabling "the projectile to be based across the country and still be equipped to strike targets in the American territory."

The identical publication also notes the missile can travel as low as a very low elevation above ground, making it difficult for aerial protection systems to stop.

The missile, code-named Skyfall by a foreign security organization, is considered propelled by a nuclear reactor, which is supposed to engage after solid fuel rocket boosters have propelled it into the sky.

An examination by a news agency recently pinpointed a location 295 miles from the city as the possible firing point of the weapon.

Employing satellite imagery from last summer, an expert reported to the service he had detected multiple firing positions being built at the site.

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