Russia Confirms Accomplished Trial of Nuclear-Powered Storm Petrel Cruise Missile

The nation has evaluated the atomic-propelled Burevestnik long-range missile, according to the state's senior general.

"We have launched a prolonged flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it covered a 8,700-mile distance, which is not the maximum," Top Army Official the general informed the Russian leader in a broadcast conference.

The low-flying advanced armament, initially revealed in recent years, has been described as having a potentially unlimited range and the capability to bypass anti-missile technology.

Foreign specialists have previously cast doubt over the weapon's military utility and Moscow's assertions of having successfully tested it.

The president said that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the missile had been carried out in last year, but the assertion could not be independently verified. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, only two had moderate achievement since several years ago, according to an non-proliferation organization.

Gen Gerasimov said the weapon was in the sky for a significant duration during the trial on the specified date.

He noted the projectile's ascent and directional control were evaluated and were determined to be meeting requirements, based on a local reporting service.

"Therefore, it displayed advanced abilities to evade defensive networks," the news agency quoted the commander as saying.

The missile's utility has been the subject of vigorous discussion in military and defence circles 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 unique weapon with intercontinental range capability."

Yet, as a foreign policy research organization commented the corresponding time, Moscow faces significant challenges in achieving operational status.

"Its integration into the country's inventory potentially relies not only on surmounting the substantial engineering obstacle of ensuring the consistent operation of the atomic power system," experts stated.

"There occurred numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap resulting in multiple fatalities."

A armed forces periodical quoted in the analysis claims the projectile has a flight distance of between 6,200 and 12,400 miles, permitting "the projectile to be based anywhere in Russia and still be equipped to target targets in the American territory."

The same journal also explains the weapon can fly as at minimal altitude as 164 to 328 feet above the earth, rendering it challenging for aerial protection systems to stop.

The projectile, code-named a specific moniker by a Western alliance, is thought to be powered by a nuclear reactor, which is supposed to activate after initial propulsion units have sent it into the sky.

An inquiry by a media outlet the previous year located a location a considerable distance north of Moscow as the possible firing point of the weapon.

Utilizing space-based photos from last summer, an expert reported to the service he had identified multiple firing positions being built at the location.

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