by Sputnik [10-26-2025].

(RAD: This is an amazing technological development that no one in the West considered possible!!! The nuclear engine for the new Burevstnik missile is 1000 times smaller than one of equivalent power in a submarine & it can start up in only a few seconds, instead of days. The equivalent nuclear engine being used on their new Poseidon drone is 100 times smaller, since the drone can handle more weight. Notice that development began in the early 2000s, which means that this was even more challenging than development of their first nuclear weapons. Based upon my physics & technology background, NO government in the West has the technological skills and long-term commitment to duplicate what the Russians have accomplished!!!

Maybe it is time for the West, US, NATO, UK, and EU to finally realize that Russia is NOT a military threat and learn to live in peace with Russia. This would benefit everyone on earth. — RAD)

A test has demonstrated the missile’s ability to evade enemy missile defense systems, Chief of General Staff Gerasimov has told President Putin. Here’s what makes Burevestnik a genuine strategic gamechanger.

The defining feature of the 9M730 Burevestnik (Russian ‘Storm petrel’, NATO reporting name SSC-X-9 Skyfall) is its nuclear propulsion system. Its small onboard nuclear reactor gives it effectively an unlimited range.

Unlimited range means:

• the capability to loiter in the air for days on end
• the ability to circumnavigate the entire globe, if necessary, to reach its target
• the capacity to evade concentrated defenses, and strike from unexpected attack vectors

Stealth

Since it’s a cruise missile, the Burevestnik can hug the ground on approach at altitudes below enemy radar’s ability to detect, making interception challenging if not impossible.

That’s because no traditional ballistic flight trajectory and no range limits means there’s no point where defenses can be deployed en masse to stop it.

Strategic Response

First unveiled by President Putin in 2018, the Burevestnik’s development began in the early 2000s in reaction to the US pullout from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, and Pentagon efforts to ring Russia with missile defense systems (Aegis, Aegis Ashore, including in Poland and Romania).

The Burevestnik and other groundbreaking strategic Russian systems like it (Avangard HGV, Zircon naval hypersonic missile, Kinzhal air-launched missile, Poseidon unmanned submarine, Sarmat heavy ICBM) guarantee Russia’s ability to respond to aggression, even in an enemy decapitation strike scenario (like US Conventional Prompt Strike/Prompt Global Strike).

Related

Putin: Tests Of Burevestnik Missile Have Been Completed [10-26-2025]

Russia on Track to Developing New Hypersonic Weapons: Putin [10-2-2025]

New unlimited-range cruise missile can bypass air defenses – Russian military

by RT [10-26-2025].

The Burevestnik, noted for its unmatched range, was test-fired earlier this month, covering a distance of over 14,000km.

Russia’s new unlimited-range nuclear-powered missile, the Burevestnik, can evade missile defenses, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov has said. He made the remarks on Sunday during President Vladimir Putin’s visit to a Russian Army command post.

Putin held a meeting with Gerasimov and other senior military commanders, during which he was briefed on the situation along the line of contact with the Ukrainian Army and on the Russian Army’s offensive training exercises, including the country’s strategic nuclear forces. According to Gerasimov, the Burevestnik test took place on October 21.

The missile completed a multi-hour flight that covered 14,000km, though he stressed that this is not the range limit for the Burevestnik.

“The technical characteristics of the Burevestnik missile make it capable of striking highly protected targets at any distance with guaranteed accuracy,” Gerasimov stated.

“During the test flight, the missile successfully performed all designated vertical and horizontal maneuvers, demonstrating its strong ability to evade anti-missile and air defense systems.”

The Burevestnik is a nuclear-powered, unlimited-range strategic cruise missile designed to destroy high-value targets, including fortified bunkers. It is undetectable by conventional radar and can only be tracked by specialized spacecraft during the launch and acceleration phases.

Putin first revealed the missile’s development in 2018, describing it as a one-of-a-kind weapon that does not follow a ballistic trajectory, rendering existing missile defense systems ineffective. He noted that its unlimited range allows it to maneuver indefinitely. Speaking to Gerasimov, the president reiterated that the Burevestnik is a “unique product that no one else in the world has,” while stressing that “much work” remains before it can be placed on combat alert.

“We will need to more thoroughly define what class of weapon this new system belongs to, determine possible methods of use, and begin preparing the infrastructure for its deployment within our armed forces,” Putin said. He added that all key testing objectives for the missile have now been achieved.

Russia’s Secret Weapon: How Burevestnik Missile Could Force NATO to Spend Itself Into Bankruptcy

by Sputnik [10-27-2025].

The nuclear-powered, nuclear-armed missile is likely to keep NATO’s planners up at night thinking of ways to defend against it, but that will be an impossible task unless the alliance is prepared to radically ramp up its already bloated defense spending. Leading international affairs and defense experts weigh in for Sputnik.

During its latest flight test, the Burevestnik “performed vertical and horizontal maneuvers, demonstrating its ability to evade missile and air defense systems. This is where its main uniqueness lies,” IMEMO fellow and Vatfor Project founder Dmitry Stefanovich told Sputnik.

Since its range is effectively unlimited, “it can avoid entering areas where enemy air defense systems are located” altogether, approaching targets from literally any attack vector. This distinguishes it from other nuclear weapons delivery systems, Stefanovich explained.

The missile could hypothetically be targeted using air-to-air missiles, but doing so would require costly upgrades to NATO hardware, and may still prove insufficient, due to the Burevestnik’s below-the-radar-horizon flight and small radar cross-section compared to traditional ballistic threats.

Military analyst Alexei Leonkov points out that footage of the missile’s testing shows its deployment from transport-launch containers. “In other words, it’s a mobile, ground-based launcher,” Leonkov told Sputnik.

Launching the Burevestnik will require specialized platforms which meet its weight and size requirements,” Leonkov says. These could be met by a modified Iskander transporter-erector-launcher (TEL), with a single launcher carrying two, four or even six missiles. If a heavier platform is used, even more can be fitted.

“For now, we can only speculate on this topic, but what’s certain is that the launcher will be mobile and agile, choosing its launch site arbitrarily, making it difficult for space-based reconnaissance to preemptively detect. The launch will be sudden, and will follow an unknown trajectory to its target,” Leonkov stressed.

Unlimited range further means that it can be launched from any point in Russia, the analyst said, pointing out that the latest launch and flight (14,000 km) was not detected or reported by anyone at NATO.

Leonkov characterizes the Burevestnik as Russia’s response not only to the US’s exit from the ABM Treaty, but its new nuclear doctrine, which talks about a “limited nuclear war.” The Burevestnik thus becomes a kind of “doomsday weapon,” guaranteeing that if surprise aggression is launched against Russia, the enemy won’t live to tell about it.

Russia’s Unique Burevestnik Missile: Infographic

by Sputnik [10-27-2025].

Russia has completed tests of the Burevestnik unlimited-range cruise missile with a nuclear engine, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin described the nuclear-powered Burevestnik as a unique weapons system that no other country possesses.

• Test saw the missile fly 14,000 km — and that’s not even the limit.
• Missile is powered by a miniature nuclear reactor, granting it virtually unlimited range.
• Flying at ultra-low altitudes, it stays below radar, making interception nearly impossible

Putin reveals details about Burevestnik missile’s nuclear engine

by RT [10-29-2025].

The ultra-miniaturized reactor can achieve full operation in a matter of minutes, the president has said.

Russia’s unlimited-range Burevestik cruise missile is based on breakthroughs in nuclear reactor technology that allow a high degree of miniaturization and quick attainment of operational power, President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday. A landmark test of the nuclear-capable weapon was announced last week.

The president praised the engineers behind the achievement during a meeting with injured Russian soldiers at a military hospital.

The missile’s reactor “is comparable in output with a reactor of a nuclear-propelled submarine, but it’s 1,000 times smaller,” Putin said. “But the key thing is that where a regular reactor needs hours, days or weeks to go online, this one launches in minutes or seconds.”

The discoveries made during the creation of the unique power plant will find applications in civilian life, for example in building energy infrastructure in the Arctic, the president said. Meanwhile, the electronic components shielded from radiation that were developed for the Burevestik are already being used in space missions and will be utilized in Russia’s Moon exploration program.

Last week, Putin announced a successful test launch of the Burevestnik, during which the projectile reportedly traveled more than 14,000km. During a meeting this week, he reported a successful trial of the Poseidon system, an advanced nuclear torpedo that is understood to use the same technology as the Burevestnik for propulsion.

“For the first time, we succeeded not only in launching it from a submarine using its booster engine, but also in starting its nuclear power unit, which provided energy to the vehicle for a certain period of time. This is a tremendous success,” Putin said.

He added that the Poseidon’s reactor is miniaturized to a lesser degree than the Burevestnik’s, being roughly 100 times smaller than a regular submarine reactor.

Russia has not released details about the technology behind the two reactors. Some defense experts suggested that it derives from Russian nuclear submarine research.