Moscow. February 8. INTERFAX-AVN - The planned tests of the Zircon hypersonic missile are continuing, the work is on schedule, Boris Obnosov, General Director of the Tactical Missile Armament Corporation (KTRV), told Interfax on Tuesday.
"Work on hypersonic topics is carried out in accordance with approved schedules. (...) The "vanguards" are already on duty in the units of the Russian army. Planned tests of the Zircon missile from surface and submarines are being carried out," Obnosov said.
He recalled that at the Army-2021 forum, a contract was signed for the supply of Zircon missiles for the Russian Defense Ministry.
"This is an important result of the work of the staff of the Military industrial complex "NPO Mashinostroeniya" - one of the leading enterprises of the corporation," said Obnosov.
On December 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that a test launch of the Zircons had been carried out.
"The tests were carried out successfully, flawlessly," Putin said. According to him, "this is a great event in the life of the country and a significant step in improving Russia's security, in increasing its defense capability."
Prior to the salvo launch, the Russian military in 2021 and 2020 reported successful test launches of Zircon missiles from the Admiral Gorshkov frigate of the Northern Fleet. According to the Northern Fleet, by now it has been successfully launched almost 10 times from a surface ship, twice from a submarine.
On August 24, at the Army-2021 forum, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced the signing of a contract for the supply of new Zircon hypersonic naval missiles.
On November 8, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the contract for the supply of Zircons is of a long-term nature.
In February 2019, in a message to the Federal Assembly, Putin announced that the Zircon missile would be capable of hitting ground and surface targets at a range of over one thousand kilometers at a speed of about nine Mach.
In December 2019, the president said that according to the plan, work is underway on the Zircon hypersonic missile, 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, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Krivoruchko reported.
