Russia test fires Zircon hypersonic missile from ship, ‘hitting nearly Mach 7’
- Russia to equip warships and submarines with Zircon missile
- Putin has boasted of weapons that can evade missile defences
Moscow has in recent years touted the development of futuristic weapons which it hopes will give it the edge in any arms race with the United States at a time of growing tensions with the West.
Footage distributed by the defence ministry showed the Admiral Gorshkov warship launching the cruise missile at a target on the Barents Sea coast in northern Russia.
“The Zircon missile successfully hit a target directly at a range of over 350km (217 miles). The flight speed reached nearly Mach 7,” the ministry said in a statement.
Putin revealed the development of the new weapon in a state of the nation address in February 2019, saying it could hit targets at sea and on land with a range of 1,000km and a speed of Mach 9.
The defence ministry has said it plans to equip both warships and submarines with the Zircon.
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Russia has boasted of developing several weapons that circumvent existing defence systems, including the Sarmat intercontinental missiles and Burevestnik cruise missiles.
Additional reporting by Reuters