Moscow Confirms Accomplished Trial of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Cruise Missile

Russia has tested the nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile, according to the nation's leading commander.

"We have conducted a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it covered a vast distance, which is not the maximum," Top Army Official the commander informed the Russian leader in a broadcast conference.

The low-altitude experimental weapon, originally disclosed in recent years, has been hailed as having a theoretically endless flight path and the capability to evade defensive systems.

Western experts have in the past questioned over the missile's strategic value and the nation's statements of having effectively trialed it.

The head of state declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the weapon had been conducted in the previous year, but the statement was not externally confirmed. Of at least 13 known tests, merely a pair had moderate achievement since 2016, as per an non-proliferation organization.

The general stated the weapon was in the air for fifteen hours during the evaluation on 21 October.

He said the missile's vertical and horizontal manoeuvring were tested and were found to be up to specification, based on a national news agency.

"Therefore, it exhibited high capabilities to evade anti-missile and aerial protection," the media source reported the commander as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the focus of intense debate in armed forces and security communities since it was first announced in the past decade.

A recent analysis by a foreign defence research body stated: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would provide the nation a singular system with global strike capacity."

However, as a foreign policy research organization noted the identical period, Moscow faces significant challenges in achieving operational status.

"Its induction into the country's inventory likely depends not only on resolving the substantial engineering obstacle of ensuring the consistent operation of the reactor drive mechanism," experts stated.

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

A military journal referenced in the analysis claims the weapon has a operational radius of between 10,000 and 20,000km, allowing "the weapon to be stationed across the country and still be equipped to strike objectives in the United States mainland."

The same journal also explains the projectile can operate as low as a very low elevation above ground, causing complexity for defensive networks to intercept.

The missile, referred to as a specific moniker by a foreign security organization, is thought to be powered by a nuclear reactor, which is designed to commence operation after solid fuel rocket boosters have propelled it into the air.

An inquiry by a media outlet the previous year identified a location 475km north of Moscow as the possible firing point of the missile.

Employing satellite imagery from August 2024, an expert told the outlet he had identified nine horizontal launch pads in development at the location.

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