Russia's Avangard missile allegedly fails to launch in first attempt in eight years
Photo: Avangard missile system (Russian media)
The Russian forces inexplicably canceled the planned test launch of the new Avangard hypersonic missile. The test was scheduled to take place on September 3–5, The Moscow Times reports.
Avangard missile fails to launch again
Russian President Vladimir Putin promised to launch the Avangard hypersonic missile as early as 2018, presenting it as one of six types of "superweapons."
Based on publicly available data, the Avangard test was scheduled for September 3–5.
The test was supposed to take place at the Dombarovsky missile range in the Orenburg region, where the only Strategic Missile Forces division armed with these missiles is based, writes Pavel Podvig, a senior researcher at the UN Institute for Disarmament Research.
Russia issued NOTAM notices for pilots for the launch dates, closing the designated areas to flights. At Dombarovsky, the restricted area covered precisely the zone containing the Avangard missile silos.
The following areas were also closed to flights:
- In the Tyumen region;
- In the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, where missile parts were expected to fall;
- The Kura test range in Kamchatka, where the missile's warhead was supposed to land to hit a simulated target.
Residents of the following areas were also warned about the planned launch:
- Vikulovsky district;
- Vagaysky district;
- Sorokinsky district in the Tyumen region.
September 3 was given as the primary launch date, with September 4 as the backup date.
However, the launch of the UR-100N UTTKh intercontinental ballistic missile carrying the Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle did not take place. Had it been successful, the authorities would have made a public announcement, the expert writes.
Why there was no launch
At the same time, the expert believes there was most likely no failed launch either. In that case, the authorities would have immediately canceled the NOTAM, but that did not happen.
"Apparently, Russia planned to launch the Avangard from Dombarovsky to Kura, but was forced to cancel the test for some reason," the expert says. He also added that a new attempt should be expected in the near future.
What is known about Avangard
The last successful launch of Avangard took place in December 2018. At the time, Putin claimed that it "has no analogues in the world at all" and was therefore invulnerable to missile defense systems.
Yury Borisov, who was then head of Roscosmos, said that Avangard could accelerate to Mach 27. This is faster than the first cosmic velocity (Mach 23.2). Therefore, if an object exceeds it, it would simply fly into outer space.
According to SIPRI experts, the missile does exist and is in service, unlike, for example:
- The "miracle torpedo" Poseidon, allegedly capable of causing a radioactive tsunami;
- The nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile, which failed more than 10 times during launches.
According to SIPRI, as of early 2026, Russia had 12 Avangard systems in service, with a range of 10,000 kilometers and one warhead each.
Earlier, RBC-Ukraine reported that Russia was attacking Ukraine with new 9M729 Novator missiles. It is known that Russian forces had launched them more than 20 times.
In addition, Russia claimed that it had tested its nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile.
