Russia Announces Effective Evaluation of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Missile

Moscow has trialed the nuclear-powered Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the state's senior general.

"We have executed a prolonged flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it traveled a 14,000km distance, which is not the ultimate range," Chief of General Staff the general informed the head of state in a televised meeting.

The terrain-hugging experimental weapon, initially revealed in the past decade, has been portrayed as having a potentially unlimited range and the capacity to evade anti-missile technology.

Western experts have earlier expressed skepticism over the weapon's military utility and Moscow's assertions of having effectively trialed it.

The head of state declared that a "final successful test" of the missile had been carried out in last year, but the assertion lacked outside validation. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, just two instances had partial success since the mid-2010s, as per an arms control campaign group.

Gen Gerasimov reported the weapon was in the sky for fifteen hours during the test on the specified date.

He noted the projectile's ascent and directional control were tested and were found to be complying with standards, as per a local reporting service.

"As a result, it demonstrated advanced abilities to circumvent anti-missile and aerial protection," the news agency stated the official as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the topic of heated controversy in armed forces and security communities since it was originally disclosed in the past decade.

A previous study by a American military analysis unit determined: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would provide the nation a unique weapon with worldwide reach potential."

Nonetheless, as an international strategic institute observed the same year, Russia encounters significant challenges in achieving operational status.

"Its entry into the country's arsenal arguably hinges not only on resolving the significant development hurdle of ensuring the dependable functioning of the reactor drive mechanism," experts noted.

"There occurred numerous flight-test failures, and a mishap leading to several deaths."

A military journal cited in the study states the projectile has a operational radius of between 10,000 and 20,000km, enabling "the projectile to be stationed throughout the nation and still be capable to strike goals in the American territory."

The identical publication also explains the missile can operate as close to the ground as a very low elevation above ground, rendering it challenging for aerial protection systems to stop.

The projectile, designated Skyfall by a Western alliance, is considered driven by a reactor system, which is intended to commence operation after initial propulsion units have sent it into the atmosphere.

An inquiry by a reporting service last year located a site a considerable distance north of Moscow as the probable deployment area of the missile.

Employing space-based photos from last summer, an analyst told the service he had identified nine horizontal launch pads being built at the location.

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