Russia Announces Effective Test of Reactor-Driven Storm Petrel Cruise Missile

Russia has tested the reactor-driven Burevestnik cruise missile, as stated by the state's leading commander.

"We have conducted a prolonged flight of a reactor-driven projectile and it covered a vast distance, which is not the ultimate range," Senior Military Leader Valery Gerasimov told the head of state in a broadcast conference.

The low-altitude advanced armament, originally disclosed in the past decade, has been hailed as having a possible global reach and the capability to avoid anti-missile technology.

Western experts have in the past questioned over the weapon's military utility and Russian claims of having successfully tested it.

The head of state declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the weapon had been carried out in the previous year, but the claim was not externally confirmed. Of a minimum of thirteen documented trials, merely a pair had limited accomplishment since several years ago, as per an disarmament advocacy body.

The military leader stated the projectile was in the air for a significant duration during the trial on 21 October.

He said the missile's vertical and horizontal manoeuvring were tested and were found to be complying with standards, as per a national news agency.

"As a result, it exhibited advanced abilities to evade defensive networks," the media source quoted the commander as saying.

The projectile's application has been the focus of intense debate in military and defence circles since it was originally disclosed in recent years.

A recent analysis by a foreign defence research body stated: "A reactor-driven long-range projectile would give Russia a distinctive armament with worldwide reach potential."

Yet, as a global defence think tank commented the corresponding time, Moscow confronts major obstacles in achieving operational status.

"Its induction into the country's inventory likely depends not only on overcoming the considerable technical challenge of guaranteeing the consistent operation of the reactor drive mechanism," experts noted.

"There have been multiple unsuccessful trials, and an incident resulting in a number of casualties."

A military journal cited in the analysis claims the projectile has a operational radius of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, allowing "the weapon to be deployed throughout the nation and still be able to target targets in the continental US."

The corresponding source also says the weapon can operate as close to the ground as 50 to 100 metres above ground, causing complexity for defensive networks to engage.

The missile, referred to as a specific moniker by a foreign security organization, is thought to be powered by a nuclear reactor, which is intended to activate after initial propulsion units have launched it into the atmosphere.

An inquiry by a media outlet last year located a site 295 miles above the capital as the probable deployment area of the weapon.

Utilizing orbital photographs from the recent past, an expert informed the outlet he had detected multiple firing positions being built at the site.

Related Developments

• Head of State Endorses Revisions to Nuclear Doctrine