Last week in a major setback to the Kremlin’s campaign of long-range airstrikes, for the first time Ukrainian Air defences shot down a Russian hypersonic missile. According to reports the Russian Kinzhal missile was shot down by a US Patriot air defence system.
More about Kinzhal
Hypersonic missiles, like the Kinzhal (Dagger) rockets that the Russian Air Force is said to be using, are thought to be the next generation of weapons because they can move at speeds up to ten times the speed of sound, which is about 8,000mph.(12,875 Kph). This is one of six “next generation” weapons which was unveiled in 2018 by President Vladimir Putin in 2018.
The US Air Force’s Tomahawk rocket, which is a subsonic cruise weapon, moves at a relatively slow 550mph (885 Kph).
Based on the information in the public domain Kinzhal missiles are usually carried by MiG-31K fighter jets and can hit targets up to 1,250 miles ( 2012 Kms) away. Their speed, ability to change direction in mid-flight, and ability to fly at low altitudes make it hard to follow them with radar on the ground, making it nearly impossible to stop them.
It is said that the Russian Kinzhal missile is a change to its Iskander missile. Russia is also working on putting the missile on the Tu-22M3 strategic bomber and using it on the Su-34 long-range fighter.
The most frightening thing about the Kinzhal is that it can carry both a nuclear warhead and a conventional explosive. This is a strategy that has been feared Russia could use if its war in Ukraine drags on longer than expected because the people there are fighting so bravely.
Hypersonic weapons could be hard to find and defend against because they move quickly and fly low to the ground. The story says that radars on the ground or on land can’t find hypersonic missiles until late in their flight. This makes it hard for the people who need to react to the missile attack to figure out what they can do and try to stop the missile.
A US Congress report citing experts states that the current command and control model for missile defence in the United States would not be able to process data fast enough to respond to and stop an incoming hypersonic missile.
Aside from Russia, which announced its hypersonic “Kinzhal” or “Dagger” missile in 2018 and used it for the first time in battle in Ukraine, China is also said to have this weapon system and has used it twice to go around the world before landing near a target in August 2021.