“Brilliant Performance”
In an interview with Rossiya-1 TV channel, Sergei Shoigu said that the Kinzhal hypersonic missile was used three times during a military special operation in Ukraine. And “he showed his excellent performance three times.” According to him, no similar missile in the world has these features.
“Actually, no one else has a missile like this: it’s hypersonic and it’s that fast and it’s that penetrating. It can neither be detected nor prevented,” he said.
The head of the defense department noted that during the military special operation, the Kinzhal missile hit “especially important targets.” At the same time, Shoigu added, “it’s almost impossible to get it.”
He reminded that Kinzhal missiles can reach speeds of more than 10 Mach. Along the way, they can also change the trajectory in both the vertical and horizontal planes.
Shoigu also praised the Su-57 aircraft, noting that it protected it from various air defense systems.
“There are many things, and most importantly, very, very powerful weapons. We also tried this weapon, we checked it, it works perfectly,” he said.
Discovering Captured Weapons
Sergei Shoigu said that Russian experts are carefully examining the seized Western weapons transported to Ukraine. He made sure they already knew how to deal with him.
“They are interested in both our science and our industry. We are looking from both sides. The first is the possibility of combating these weapons, how and with what they can be countered. On the other hand, what can affect it, its main shortcomings. This work is ongoing and is progressing quite successfully overall.”
Shoigu also talked about the shortcomings of Western weapons. In particular, he mentioned the M-777 portable howitzer, foreign multiple launch rocket systems, NLAW, JAVELIN anti-tank systems, Stingers MANPADS and a number of small arms. In his opinion, the M-777 howitzer proved to be “too capricious” and difficult to repair. According to him, the same statement applies to the JAVELIN anti-tank complex.
We learned to fight them, we know, we understand, we see. But its firing range is almost twice that of our Cornet. Therefore, I cannot miss the opportunity to advertise our weapons. This also applies to MANPADS, this also applies to our anti-tank systems, ”added the head of the Russian defense department.
Three Applications
Air-based Kinzhal missiles are the newest type of strategic weapon. According to open sources, the Kinzhal complexes have been on experimental combat duty in the RF Armed Forces since December 2017. On March 19, the official representative of the Ministry of Defense Igor Konashenkov spoke about the first use of the missile system in Ukraine.
“On March 18, the Kinzhal aviation missile system with hypersonic aeroballistic missiles destroyed a large underground missile depot and aviation munitions of Ukrainian troops in the village of Delyatyn in the Ivano-Frankivsk region,” he said at a briefing.
Konashenkov added that Russia will continue to use Kinzhals in Ukraine. Later, a representative of the defense ministry said that the hit of the hypersonic missile “Dagger” into the arsenal in Ukraine was carried out at a distance of more than 1000 kilometers, and “the flight time of the hypersonic missile was less than 10 minutes.”
According to him, “due to hypersonic speed and ultra-high kinetic energy, the warhead of the Kinzhal missile destroyed a protected underground arsenal located in a mountainous area, built in Soviet times to store special ammunition and missiles.”
On March 21, an official representative of the defense ministry stated that not only the underground storage facilities protected for Ukraine’s Tochka-U missile systems were destroyed, but also “large fuel depots in Konstantinovka in the Mikolaiv region.”
“The combat use of the Kinzhal aviation missile system has confirmed its effectiveness in destroying highly protected special enemy targets,” Konashenkov said.
“In the Chasov Yar enclave in the Donetsk region, the Kinzhal aviation missile system destroyed a buried, well-protected command center of a group of Ukrainian soldiers in Ukraine,” he said at a briefing on April 11. Donbass.”
But in March, US officials downplayed the Daggers’ merits. For example, United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin stated that he does not see the use of the “Dagger” as “any tipping point.”
A few days later, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said it was “difficult to see what exactly justifies” the initial launch, as it targets fixed storage. According to him, “This is a pretty serious blow to such a target.”
US President Joe Biden said at a meeting with American business representatives that the Kinzhal missile “has the same warhead as other missiles.” “There’s no big difference, except it’s almost impossible to stop it,” he said.