Russia was the first in the world to use hypersonic weapons in combat conditions. The Dagger missile system was struck at the Soviet nuclear weapons storage facility in Ukraine, which is capable of withstanding a nuclear explosion. However, the Dagger successfully hit this target. And for the destruction of the AFU intelligence centers in the Odessa region, Bastion complexes were used, also capable of firing hypersonic Zircons.
On Friday, the Russian Armed Forces destroyed a large underground warehouse of missiles and aviation ammunition of Ukrainian troops in Delyatin, Ivano-Frankivsk region, with a Dagger air missile system with hypersonic aeroballistic missiles. This was announced on Saturday by the official representative of the Ministry of Defense, Major General Igor Konashenkov. Later, the speaker of the command of the air forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Yuri Ignat, in an interview with the Ukrainian media, confirmed the fact of striking the warehouses. According to him, there is damage and destruction, as well as "an explosion of ammunition".
Reportedly, the target of the "Daggers" was one of the first four Soviet central nuclear weapons storage bases, also known as "Object 711" or "Ivano-Frankivsk-16". It was commissioned in 1955. Nuclear warheads of strategic, tactical and intercontinental missiles on duty from Moldova and Transcarpathia to the Black Sea were serviced at this place.
These warehouses have anti-atomic protection and are located in mine workings deep underground. In the early 90s, nuclear weapons were taken from there to Russia, and the facility was renamed the 136th Missile and Ammunition supply Center. Since 2018, the 108th and 109th Mountain Assault battalions of the 10th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) have been stationed here. According to the decision of the leadership of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, most of the arsenals from Western Ukraine, including the Tochka-U ballistic missiles, were relocated here.
In 2007, the then Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Anatoly Gritsenko, said in an interview with Ukrainian media that the storage facility in Delyatin is "almost a two-story military town that is 150 meters deep underground." "Built in the 50s by Leningrad metro builders, today it is one of the safest and most powerful missile and ammunition storage centers that can withstand even a nuclear strike," the minister said.
Thus, in order to destroy a warehouse intended in the past for storing a nuclear arsenal, Russia was the first in world history to use hypersonic weapons in real combat conditions. Previously, the "Daggers" were used only during exercises. So, in February, the Russian Aerospace Forces successfully carried out training launches of these missiles as part of the exercises of the strategic forces. Also in February, a separate MiG-31K regiment with "Daggers" rose over the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea to participate in exercises of the Navy's inter-fleet group in Syria.
Air-based Dagger missiles are the newest type of strategic weapons, which were first described by Russian President Vladimir Putin in his message to the Federal Assembly in 2018. The complex was created on the basis of the upgraded MiG-31 - MiG–31K long-range interceptor fighter. According to the Russian military, it can hit targets at a range of more than two thousand kilometers. The missiles are capable of maneuvering on the trajectory and gaining speed up to Mach 10, so their interception is impossible with today's air defense and missile defense systems.
Since the end of 2017, ten MiG-31K interceptor aircraft with Daggers have begun experimental combat duty in the Southern Military District. In addition, it was reported about plans to equip the aviation regiment in the Krasnoyarsk Territory with these complexes by 2024. A month ago, Russia deployed a MiG-31K with Daggers in the Kaliningrad region.
It is worth noting another statement by the official representative of the Ministry of Defense Igor Konashenkov. He said that on Friday Russia used another of Russia's newest weapons against the AFU: The Bastion missile system with a volley from the Crimea destroyed the AFU radio and radio intelligence centers in the Odessa region. Before that, the "Bastions" were used in Syria in 2016, striking targets on land, although they are designed to hit naval targets.
In 2014, Russia deliberately deployed "Bastions" in the Crimea so that they could be seen from space by Western intelligence. This was done in order to show the seriousness of intentions to protect the local population from Ukrainian nationalists. The flight range of the Onyx cruise missile of the complex is up to 500 kilometers. Vladimir Putin called Bastions the most efficient coastal complex in the world. At the same time, one of the features of the "Bastions" is their "omnivore" – they are capable of launching the latest hypersonic anti-ship cruise missiles "Zircon" (they have yet to be adopted), and not only "Onyx".
According to experts, the use of the "Dagger" and "Bastions" in Ukraine is a landmark event, it speaks of the transition of the special operation to a new level.
"The determining factor to use the "Dagger" was the power of the ammunition, the penetrating effect. The Dagger has enough energy to destroy many obstacles, but the speed factor is also important. The penetrating effect of the Kalibr cruise missile would be less than that of the Dagger, which in this case would replace concrete-piercing aircraft bombs," says Alexey Leonkov, editor of the Arsenal of the Fatherland magazine.
"Now the main goal for our VKS is the warehouses where the Tochka-U missiles are stored, because, as we see, the APU uses them not for military, but for civilian purposes, civilians are dying," the source said.
Alexander Khramchikhin, Deputy Director of the Institute of Political and Military Analysis, calls the use of the Dagger "a test in a combat situation." He agrees that the decisive factor was the speed characteristic: "A hypersonic missile has a very high kinetic energy. Accordingly, it can break through anything. Therefore, once we have started the operation, we need to use the weapons in full."
The "Dagger" was created for combat use, not to lie in a warehouse. This high-precision weapon is well suited for destroying the underground military infrastructure of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. With the use of the "Dagger", the second stage of the demilitarization of Ukraine began - the destruction of underground, not ground-based warehouses and ammunition depots," says the associate professor of the Department of Political Science and Sociology of the Russian University of Economics. Plekhanova, member of the expert council of "Officers of Russia" Alexander Perendzhiev.
He believes that Ukraine has become a testing ground for the latest Russian weapons, no matter how cynical it may sound. "The art of war cannot develop only theoretically. Kalibr missiles were used for the first time in Syria against the militants of the Islamic State*.
We have to see what the "Dagger" is in the case. Perhaps, with the help of such strikes, it is possible to identify some shortcomings and take measures to eliminate them. Weapons are tested only in real combat.
I think that Russia will test all kinds of new non-nuclear weapons in Ukraine, including those about which we have not yet heard anything from open sources. We will continue to surprise our enemies in order to force them to lay down their arms and go home," the expert says.
"We have already demonstrated some types of weapons in Ukraine. These are actually new X31PM air–to-radar missiles, with the help of which radar installations of various intelligence centers and aviation services are destroyed. I do not exclude that we will hear about the use of other weapons systems, for example, the Tulip self-propelled mortar," Leonkov believes.
During this special operation, the Russian military is gaining invaluable experience, which will contribute to the introduction of new methods of combat training, Perendzhiev believes: "The army, which is gaining experience, becomes even stronger, and does not weaken, as many think. She is ready to crush new enemies. Remember with what a strong army we came out of the Great Patriotic War."
* The organization (organizations) have been liquidated or their activities are prohibited in the Russian Federation
Andrey Rezchikov
