Russia Reports Effective Test of Reactor-Driven Burevestnik Weapon

The nation has evaluated the atomic-propelled Burevestnik strategic weapon, according to the nation's leading commander.

"We have conducted a multi-hour flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it traveled a vast distance, which is not the limit," Chief of General Staff the commander told the head of state in a public appearance.

The low-flying experimental weapon, first announced in the past decade, has been hailed as having a theoretically endless flight path and the capability to avoid defensive systems.

International analysts have in the past questioned over the missile's strategic value and Russian claims of having effectively trialed it.

The national leader stated that a "concluding effective evaluation" of the armament had been held in 2023, but the assertion lacked outside validation. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, just two instances had moderate achievement since 2016, based on an non-proliferation organization.

The general stated the projectile was in the sky for fifteen hours during the trial on 21 October.

He explained the weapon's altitude and course adjustments were assessed and were confirmed as complying with standards, according to a local reporting service.

"Therefore, it exhibited advanced abilities to bypass missile and air defence systems," the media source reported the official as saying.

The projectile's application has been the focus of heated controversy in military and defence circles since it was first announced in recent years.

A previous study by a American military analysis unit determined: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would give Russia a singular system with worldwide reach potential."

Nonetheless, as an international strategic institute observed the same year, Moscow confronts significant challenges in making the weapon viable.

"Its entry into the nation's arsenal arguably hinges not only on overcoming the significant development hurdle of guaranteeing the dependable functioning of the nuclear-propulsion unit," specialists stated.

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

A armed forces periodical referenced in the study states the missile has a flight distance of between 10,000 and 20,000km, enabling "the projectile to be deployed anywhere in Russia and still be able to strike targets in the American territory."

The corresponding source also notes the projectile can operate as low as a very low elevation above the earth, making it difficult for aerial protection systems to engage.

The missile, referred to as Skyfall by a Western alliance, is thought to be powered by a nuclear reactor, which is designed to commence operation after initial propulsion units have sent it into the sky.

An examination by a news agency last year identified a site 475km north of Moscow as the possible firing point of the armament.

Employing orbital photographs from last summer, an analyst informed the outlet he had observed nine horizontal launch pads being built at the location.

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