Russia Reports Successful Evaluation of Reactor-Driven Storm Petrel Missile
Moscow has trialed the reactor-driven Burevestnik long-range missile, as stated by the nation's senior general.
"We have launched a extended flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it covered a vast distance, which is not the limit," Chief of General Staff the commander told the head of state in a public appearance.
The low-flying advanced armament, initially revealed in recent years, has been hailed as having a potentially unlimited range and the capability to evade missile defences.
Foreign specialists have in the past questioned over the weapon's military utility and Russian claims of having effectively trialed it.
The head of state stated that a "final successful test" of the weapon had been held in 2023, but the claim could not be independently verified. Of at least 13 known tests, just two instances had partial success since the mid-2010s, based on an disarmament advocacy body.
The military leader said the weapon was in the air for a significant duration during the test on October 21.
He explained the projectile's ascent and directional control were tested and were confirmed as meeting requirements, as per a domestic media outlet.
"As a result, it displayed advanced abilities to circumvent defensive networks," the news agency stated the official as saying.
The projectile's application has been the topic of vigorous discussion in defence and strategic sectors since it was first announced in 2018.
A recent analysis by a foreign defence research body determined: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would give Russia a singular system with global strike capacity."
Nonetheless, as an international strategic institute commented the corresponding time, the nation confronts major obstacles in achieving operational status.
"Its entry into the state's stockpile potentially relies not only on overcoming the substantial engineering obstacle of guaranteeing the dependable functioning of the reactor drive mechanism," analysts noted.
"There were numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap resulting in multiple fatalities."
A armed forces periodical referenced in the analysis states the projectile has a flight distance of between a substantial span, enabling "the missile to be stationed anywhere in Russia and still be capable to target targets in the continental US."
The same journal also notes the missile can fly as at minimal altitude as 50 to 100 metres above ground, rendering it challenging for defensive networks to engage.
The weapon, code-named an operational name by an international defence pact, is thought to be powered by a reactor system, which is designed to activate after initial propulsion units have propelled it into the sky.
An investigation by a media outlet the previous year identified a facility 475km above the capital as the likely launch site of the missile.
Using space-based photos from August 2024, an expert reported to the outlet he had identified multiple firing positions under construction at the site.
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