Moscow Announces Accomplished Test of Atomic-Propelled Burevestnik Cruise Missile

Moscow has trialed the reactor-driven Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the country's top military official.

"We have launched a multi-hour flight of a reactor-driven projectile and it traversed a vast distance, which is not the limit," Top Army Official the commander informed President Vladimir Putin in a televised meeting.

The terrain-hugging prototype missile, first announced in the past decade, has been described as having a potentially unlimited range and the capability to avoid anti-missile technology.

Western experts have earlier expressed skepticism over the weapon's military utility and Russian claims of having successfully tested it.

The head of state stated that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the weapon had been conducted in last year, but the claim could not be independently verified. Of at least 13 known tests, just two instances had moderate achievement since the mid-2010s, based on an arms control campaign group.

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

He said the weapon's altitude and course adjustments were assessed and were determined to be complying with standards, according to a domestic media outlet.

"Therefore, it displayed advanced abilities to circumvent anti-missile and aerial protection," the outlet stated the general as saying.

The missile's utility has been the topic of intense debate in defence and strategic sectors since it was originally disclosed in 2018.

A 2021 report by a US Air Force intelligence center stated: "A reactor-driven long-range projectile would offer Moscow a distinctive armament with worldwide reach potential."

Nonetheless, as a global defence think tank observed the same year, Russia faces major obstacles in achieving operational status.

"Its entry into the country's stockpile arguably hinges not only on resolving the considerable technical challenge of securing the consistent operation of the atomic power system," experts stated.

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

A defence publication referenced in the report states the missile has a range of between 10,000 and 20,000km, allowing "the projectile to be deployed anywhere in Russia and still be equipped to target objectives in the American territory."

The corresponding source also says the projectile can fly as at minimal altitude as 50 to 100 metres above the earth, making it difficult for aerial protection systems to intercept.

The weapon, designated Skyfall by a foreign security organization, is believed to be propelled by a nuclear reactor, which is designed to activate after primary launch mechanisms have sent it into the air.

An inquiry by a media outlet the previous year identified a facility 475km north of Moscow as the likely launch site of the armament.

Employing satellite imagery from the recent past, an analyst reported to the service he had detected nine horizontal launch pads being built at the facility.

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