Zhukovsky. July 21. INTERFAX - There should be no great difficulties with the development of a ground-based version of the new Russian sea hypersonic missile "Zircon", if such a task is set, said Boris Obnosov, General Director of the Tactical Missile Armament Corporation.
"She will appear on earth: if there is a task, she will appear. It will be easier than launching from a boat (submarine-IF) and a ship, " Obnosov said on Wednesday at the MAKS-2021 air show in Zhukovsky, near Moscow.
Obnosov said that the work on the Zircon naval missile has been coordinated with the Russian Defense Ministry and everything is going according to schedule.
"The system is very complex, I personally participated in a number of launches-it's amazing. I hope that everything that is planned will be fulfilled, " Obnosov said.
In February 2019, in a message to the Federal Assembly, President Vladimir Putin announced that the Zircon missile would be capable of hitting ground and surface targets at a range of more than 1 thousand kilometers at a speed of about Mach 9.
In December 2019, Putin said that according to the plan, work is underway on a hypersonic missile "Zircon" not only sea-based, but also land-based.
Serial deliveries of the Zircon naval missile to the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are planned for 2022, Deputy Defense Minister of the Russian Federation Alexey Krivoruchko said on January 29.
In March 2020, the commander of the Northern Fleet, Alexander Moiseev, announced tests of hypersonic weapons by submarines.
On July 19, the Russian military reported that another test of the Zircon missile was conducted from the Admiral Gorshkov frigate of the Northern Fleet. "In the waters of the White Sea, the lead frigate of the project 22350" Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov " fired a hypersonic cruise missile "Zircon" at a ground target located on the coast of the Barents Sea," the Russian Defense Ministry said.
"According to objective control data, the Zircon missile successfully hit a target at a range of over 350 km with a direct hit. During the tests, the tactical and technical characteristics of the Zircon rocket were confirmed. The flight speed was about Mach 7, " the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
It is planned to equip submarines and surface ships of the Russian Navy with the Zircon complex, the Defense Ministry noted.
The military department reported on successful test launches of the Zircon from the Admiral Gorshkov frigate, in particular, in December, November and October 2020.
