Russia Reports Effective Trial of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Cruise Missile

Moscow has trialed the atomic-propelled Burevestnik cruise missile, as stated by the country's senior general.

"We have launched a multi-hour flight of a atomic-propelled weapon and it covered a 14,000km distance, which is not the maximum," Top Army Official the general told the head of state in a televised meeting.

The terrain-hugging advanced armament, initially revealed in the past decade, has been portrayed as having a possible global reach and the ability to evade anti-missile technology.

International analysts have earlier expressed skepticism over the weapon's military utility and the nation's statements of having successfully tested it.

The president declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the weapon had been conducted in the previous year, but the statement was not externally confirmed. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, merely a pair had limited accomplishment since several years ago, based on an non-proliferation organization.

The general said the weapon was in the atmosphere for 15 hours during the test on 21 October.

He said the weapon's altitude and course adjustments were tested and were found to be up to specification, based on a national news agency.

"Consequently, it displayed superior performance to bypass defensive networks," the media source reported the commander as saying.

The missile's utility has been the focus of vigorous discussion in armed forces and security communities since it was first announced in recent years.

A recent analysis by a foreign defence research body concluded: "A reactor-driven long-range projectile would give Russia a distinctive armament with global strike capacity."

Yet, as a global defence think tank commented the identical period, Moscow confronts major obstacles in developing a functional system.

"Its integration into the state's arsenal potentially relies not only on overcoming the considerable technical challenge of ensuring the consistent operation of the reactor drive mechanism," specialists stated.

"There have been multiple unsuccessful trials, and a mishap resulting in multiple fatalities."

A military journal cited in the report claims the projectile has a flight distance of between 10,000 and 20,000km, allowing "the missile to be stationed throughout the nation and still be able to target targets in the United States mainland."

The same journal also says the weapon can operate as at minimal altitude as a very low elevation above ground, causing complexity for air defences to intercept.

The weapon, referred to as Skyfall by a Western alliance, is believed to be propelled by a reactor system, which is designed to engage after initial propulsion units have launched it into the sky.

An investigation by a media outlet last year identified a site 295 miles above the capital as the possible firing point of the armament.

Utilizing space-based photos from the recent past, an specialist told the outlet he had identified nine horizontal launch pads under construction at the facility.

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