MOSCOW, Oct 5 - RIA Novosti. Tests of the hypersonic missile "Zircon" from the submarine "Severodvinsk" pose a serious threat to the American fleet, writes the magazine Military Watch.
According to the author of the article, today "Zircon" is a unique rocket that has no analogues in the world. It is characterized by increased maneuverability and is capable of reaching speeds up to M = 9 (Mach number).
"Western Naval forces still rely on upgraded versions of very short-range subsonic missiles - Harpoon and Exocet, used during the Cold War. As a result, the "Zircon" has an even greater advantage than its predecessor, the "Caliber": this rocket at one time was more versatile than its Western counterparts," explains the author of the material.
The placement of "zircons" on submarines, in turn, "changes the rules of the game" when faced with an enemy: the target can be hit from a longer distance, and the chances of evading advanced air defense systems will also increase. The Ash-class submarines can carry from 32 to 40 hypersonic missiles capable of destroying even very large ships with one precise strike due to their tremendous speed.
"One ASH-class submarine can demonstrate firepower, which is enough to disable an aircraft carrier strike group twice," the author summed up.
The day before, the Russian lead submarine of Project 885 Severodvinsk launched the ZIRCON from a depth of 40 meters in the waters of the White Sea. The missile hit a simulated target in the Barents Sea. The flight completely followed the specified trajectory.
The Zircon is the world's first hypersonic cruise missile capable of performing a long aerodynamic flight with maneuvering in dense layers of the atmosphere, using the thrust of its own engine along the entire route. The maximum speed reaches about 2.65 kilometers per second at an altitude of 20 kilometers, or more than ten thousand kilometers per hour. The maximum range is a thousand kilometers.
They plan to equip Project 22350 frigates with zircons, the latest 885M Yasen-M multipurpose submarines, as well as the Admiral Nakhimov cruiser under modernization and the Irkutsk submarine, which they want to improve to the level of 949AM.
