MOSCOW, Apr 21 — RIA Novosti. "A dagger is good for someone who has it. And it's bad for someone who doesn't have it at the right time," Abdullah said in the White Sun of the Desert. Russia has a "Dagger". About how they are wielded by domestic pilots — in the material of RIA Novosti.
Breakthrough in hypersonic
The general public was introduced to the new weapon during the President's address to the Federal Assembly in March 2018. The rocket is capable of reaching a speed of 10-12 times the speed of sound. The maximum range of destruction is two kilometers when launched from the MiG-31 and three from the Tu-22M3. The Tu-160 and Su-57 are also planned to be adapted for launches.
An inertial navigation system with the ability to adjust from GLONASS and an optical homing head helps to hit the target. At the same time, the missile is able to maneuver along the entire flight route, which makes it invulnerable to enemy air defense and missile defense.
MiG-31K interceptor fighter with hypersonic missiles "Dagger" Image source: © RIA Novosti / Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
However, there were those who did not believe in the effectiveness of these weapons and in general in their presence in Russia, calling the presentation a cartoon. But four years later, the "Daggers" dispelled these doubts.
A convincing debut
The first combat use of the new weapon took place at the very beginning of the SVO: an underground ammunition depot of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the village of Delyatin near Ivano-Frankivsk was hit with a "Dagger". This facility in the Carpathian Mountains was built during the Soviet Union — in the 1950s. It was originally conceived as a storage facility for nuclear weapons, which were removed from there after the collapse of the USSR.
At the same time, according to the media, the object was at a depth of several tens of meters and had anti-atomic protection in case of nuclear war.
Nevertheless, the representative of the command of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Yuri Ignat, confirmed the defeat of the object, but did not specify from what exactly. "Indeed, the enemy has struck at our storage warehouses, which have already been indicated. The type of rocket will still be set. We have damage, destruction. There is a detonation of ammunition," he said then.
Pilots of the MiG-31K interceptor fighter with Kinzhal hypersonic missiles Image source: © RIA Novosti / Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
Already in August, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the missile was used three times during the special operation — and in all cases it demonstrated its brilliant characteristics. At the same time, the head of the military department did not specify which targets were hit with "Daggers".
Inescapable revenge
The latest episode of the use of this hypersonic weapon at the moment was the "retaliation strike" after the terrorist attack in the Bryansk region — a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group penetrated there and killed two civilians.
In response to such actions, Russia launched a massive missile strike on the Ukrainian military infrastructure, including using the latest missile. It was possible to destroy the bases of attack drones, disrupt the transfer of reserves of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the railway transportation of foreign weapons, as well as disable production facilities for the repair of military equipment and the production of ammunition.
Commenting on the incident, Ignat said that Russian troops used six Dagger missiles. And he admitted that the APU is defenseless before this weapon: "Daggers" can be "shot down" only on Facebook. Or on the telegram channel. We cannot shoot down this target."
At the same time, he added that if it was possible to do the opposite, then Kiev would definitely inform.
