Russia Announces Accomplished Trial of Reactor-Driven Burevestnik Missile

The nation has evaluated the atomic-propelled Burevestnik cruise missile, as stated by the state's senior general.

"We have executed a prolonged flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it covered a 8,700-mile distance, which is not the maximum," Chief of General Staff the commander reported to President Vladimir Putin in a televised meeting.

The low-altitude advanced armament, first announced in the past decade, has been described as having a potentially unlimited range and the ability to bypass anti-missile technology.

Foreign specialists have earlier expressed skepticism over the missile's strategic value and Russian claims of having effectively trialed it.

The president declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the armament had been carried out in the previous year, but the assertion could not be independently verified. Of a minimum of thirteen documented trials, merely a pair had limited accomplishment since 2016, as per an disarmament advocacy body.

The military leader stated the missile was in the sky for a significant duration during the trial on October 21.

He explained the missile's vertical and horizontal manoeuvring were assessed and were confirmed as meeting requirements, based on a national news agency.

"As a result, it displayed advanced abilities to evade missile and air defence systems," the news agency quoted the commander as saying.

The weapon's usefulness has been the topic of intense debate in armed forces and security communities since it was initially revealed in the past decade.

A 2021 report by a foreign defence research body concluded: "A nuclear-powered cruise missile would offer Moscow a singular system with intercontinental range capability."

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

"Its entry into the state's stockpile arguably hinges not only on surmounting the considerable technical challenge of securing the reliable performance of the nuclear-propulsion unit," specialists noted.

"There were numerous flight-test failures, and an incident leading to a number of casualties."

A defence publication quoted in the report states the weapon has a range of between 10,000 and 20,000km, allowing "the projectile to be stationed throughout the nation and still be able to strike objectives in the American territory."

The identical publication also notes the weapon can fly as at minimal altitude as 164 to 328 feet above the surface, making it difficult for defensive networks to stop.

The weapon, designated an operational name by a Western alliance, is considered driven by a nuclear reactor, which is designed to activate after primary launch mechanisms have propelled it into the sky.

An examination by a media outlet last year located a facility 295 miles from the city as the possible firing point of the missile.

Employing orbital photographs from August 2024, an expert told the service he had identified several deployment sites in development at the site.

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