Russia Announces Accomplished Trial of Nuclear-Powered Burevestnik Cruise Missile

Russia has tested the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, as stated by the country's leading commander.

"We have conducted a multi-hour flight of a reactor-driven projectile and it traveled a 14,000km distance, which is not the maximum," Top Army Official Valery Gerasimov reported to the Russian leader in a public appearance.

The terrain-hugging prototype missile, first announced in recent years, has been described as having a potentially unlimited range and the capacity to avoid defensive systems.

Foreign specialists have earlier expressed skepticism over the weapon's military utility and Moscow's assertions of having effectively trialed it.

The president declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the missile had been held in last year, but the assertion was not externally confirmed. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, just two instances had partial success since 2016, according to an non-proliferation organization.

The military leader reported the missile was in the atmosphere for a significant duration during the trial on 21 October.

He explained the weapon's altitude and course adjustments were assessed and were found to be complying with standards, as per a local reporting service.

"Therefore, it displayed high capabilities to evade missile and air defence systems," the outlet quoted the official as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the topic of vigorous discussion in defence and strategic sectors since it was originally disclosed in recent years.

A 2021 report by a US Air Force intelligence center stated: "A reactor-driven long-range projectile would provide the nation a singular system with global strike capacity."

However, as a global defence think tank observed the corresponding time, the nation faces significant challenges in achieving operational status.

"Its integration into the state's inventory potentially relies not only on resolving the substantial engineering obstacle of ensuring the consistent operation of the nuclear-propulsion unit," experts wrote.

"There have been multiple unsuccessful trials, and an accident leading to several deaths."

A armed forces periodical cited in the report asserts the weapon has a flight distance of between 10,000 and 20,000km, enabling "the missile to be stationed across the country and still be able to strike objectives in the American territory."

The corresponding source also says the missile can operate as low as 164 to 328 feet above the surface, rendering it challenging for aerial protection systems to intercept.

The projectile, code-named an operational name by a Western alliance, is believed to be powered by a reactor system, which is designed to commence operation after primary launch mechanisms have propelled it into the air.

An investigation by a reporting service the previous year identified a location 295 miles from the city as the probable deployment area of the armament.

Utilizing space-based photos from August 2024, an specialist reported to the agency he had identified nine horizontal launch pads being built at the location.

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