Russia Announces Accomplished Trial of Reactor-Driven Storm Petrel Missile

Moscow has trialed the nuclear-powered Burevestnik strategic weapon, as reported by the nation's leading commander.

"We have conducted a prolonged flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it traveled a vast distance, which is not the maximum," Senior Military Leader the commander informed the Russian leader in a broadcast conference.

The low-flying experimental weapon, initially revealed in 2018, has been described as having a possible global reach and the ability to bypass defensive systems.

International analysts have in the past questioned over the missile's strategic value and Russian claims of having effectively trialed it.

The national leader stated that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the armament had been carried out in last year, but the statement could not be independently verified. Of at least 13 known tests, merely a pair had limited accomplishment since the mid-2010s, as per an arms control campaign group.

Gen Gerasimov said the weapon was in the sky for fifteen hours during the test on 21 October.

He noted the projectile's ascent and directional control were evaluated and were determined to be complying with standards, based on a domestic media outlet.

"As a result, it displayed superior performance to circumvent missile and air defence systems," the outlet reported the official as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the focus of intense debate in military and defence circles since it was originally disclosed in the past decade.

A 2021 report by a US Air Force intelligence center stated: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would provide the nation a unique weapon with worldwide reach potential."

Yet, as a foreign policy research organization commented the identical period, Russia encounters major obstacles in developing a functional system.

"Its induction into the country's arsenal likely depends not only on surmounting the significant development hurdle of guaranteeing the dependable functioning of the nuclear-propulsion unit," experts wrote.

"There occurred numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap resulting in several deaths."

A armed forces periodical quoted in the study states the projectile has a range of between a substantial span, enabling "the projectile to be deployed anywhere in Russia and still be capable to target targets in the American territory."

The corresponding source also notes the weapon can fly as close to the ground as 50 to 100 metres above the earth, rendering it challenging for aerial protection systems to stop.

The weapon, referred to as a specific moniker by a foreign security organization, is thought to be driven by a nuclear reactor, which is designed to activate after initial propulsion units have propelled it into the sky.

An examination by a news agency last year identified a facility 295 miles from the city as the probable deployment area of the missile.

Employing space-based photos from last summer, an analyst informed the outlet he had identified multiple firing positions in development at the site.

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