Russia Announces Accomplished Trial of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Weapon

Russia has tested the reactor-driven Burevestnik strategic weapon, as stated by the nation's top military official.

"We have conducted a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it covered a 8,700-mile distance, which is not the limit," Senior Military Leader Valery Gerasimov informed the Russian leader in a public appearance.

The terrain-hugging advanced armament, originally disclosed in 2018, has been portrayed as having a potentially unlimited range and the ability to evade missile defences.

Foreign specialists have in the past questioned over the weapon's military utility and the nation's statements of having effectively trialed it.

The president stated that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the weapon had been carried out in the previous year, but the statement could not be independently verified. Of at least 13 known tests, merely a pair had moderate achievement since 2016, as per an disarmament advocacy body.

Gen Gerasimov reported the weapon was in the atmosphere for a significant duration during the evaluation on 21 October.

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

"Therefore, it displayed advanced abilities to circumvent missile and air defence systems," the media source quoted the official as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the topic of vigorous discussion in armed forces and security communities since it was first announced in the past decade.

A recent analysis by a foreign defence research body determined: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would offer Moscow a unique weapon with global strike capacity."

However, as an international strategic institute observed the corresponding time, Moscow encounters significant challenges in developing a functional system.

"Its entry into the country's stockpile likely depends not only on resolving the considerable technical challenge of ensuring the consistent operation of the atomic power system," analysts noted.

"There have been numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap causing multiple fatalities."

A armed forces periodical cited in the analysis claims the weapon has a operational radius of between 10,000 and 20,000km, permitting "the missile to be deployed throughout the nation and still be equipped to strike objectives in the United States mainland."

The corresponding source also explains the missile can travel as close to the ground as a very low elevation above ground, rendering it challenging for air defences to engage.

The missile, designated an operational name by a Western alliance, is considered driven by a atomic power source, which is supposed to activate after initial propulsion units have propelled it into the air.

An examination by a news agency the previous year located a facility 475km above the capital as the probable deployment area of the weapon.

Using satellite imagery from August 2024, an specialist told the agency he had detected multiple firing positions in development at the location.

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