Ukrainian Air Force reveals where Russian Zircon missile was heading during night attack
Yurii Ihnat (photo: Getty Images)
Russian Zircon missile was flying toward the Vinnytsia region during the overnight attack on Ukraine, said Yurii Ihnat, head of the Communications Department of the Ukrainian Air Force Command.
According to him, Russian forces directed this missile at the energy facility.
During an overnight attack, the Russian army launched a Zircon missile from the area of temporarily occupied Crimea. In addition, the enemy used strike drones, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles.
What is known about today's attack and its consequences is covered in the RBC-Ukraine report.
What is known about the Zircon missile
3M22 Zircon is a Russian hypersonic cruise missile that the Kremlin presents as a unique weapon with no analogues. It was developed by the NPO Mashinostroyenia design bureau, and its official presentation took place in 2019.
Moscow does not disclose the full technical characteristics of Zircon or demonstrate it publicly, but at various times has announced individual parameters of the missile.
According to open data, flight range can range from 400–600 km to more than 1,000 km, and speed can reach 8–9 Mach. A missile can climb to an altitude of 30–40 km and carry a warhead weighing approximately 300–400 kg. The estimated length of the missile is 8–10 meters.
Zircon launches are carried out from universal vertical launch systems 3S-14, which Russia deploys on ships, submarines, and mobile ground platforms.
Russia has also claimed the creation of the Bastion ground-based system adapted for these missiles. In addition, launches may likely be carried out from stationary facilities, including the modernized Object 100 on the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea.
On November 14 last year, a powerful explosion was heard in the Ukrainian city of Sumy. The Russian army may have used the hypersonic Zircon missile for that attack.
Russia has already struck Sumy with a Zircon missile before. The previous attack took place on August 21, when a hypersonic 3M22 missile hit the city. After analysis of the debris, specialists confirmed that Zircon was used.
