What we know about the “Orechnik” hypersonic missile used for the first time by Russia against Ukraine

kyiv has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of firing into its territory an intercontinental missile designed to carry nuclear warheads. However, if we are to believe a US Department of Defense official, the Russian fire against the city of Dnipro was that of a “experimental intermediate-range ballistic missile” and not an intercontinental missile without a nuclear charge, as the Ukrainian air force initially claimed. The Russian president declared during a press briefing that this new hypersonic missile is called “Orechnik” , (meaning “Hazel” in Russian) and was used “in response to US plans to produce and deploy short- and medium-range missiles“, in reference to the famous ATACMS (new window)before adding that Russia “would respond decisively and symmetrically” in case of escalation.

As its name suggests, an intercontinental missile (ICBM) has the ability to strike one continent from another. Technically, according to international treaties, this means that it has a range greater than 5,500 km, while an intermediate-range missile (IRBM) can cover a distance of between 3,000 and 5,500 km. Theoretically, with this type of range, its trajectory theoretically takes it out of the Earth's atmosphere, beyond 600 km altitude, in other words into space.

But the distance between the Russian region of Astrakhan, from where the Orechnik missile was fired according to kyiv, and the Pivdenmach satellite manufacturing plant, which it hit in Dnipro (east-central Ukraine) , is approximately 800 km. Over such a short distance, according to experts, it probably did not leave the atmosphere. Contrary to what one might believe, hypersonic missiles are not necessarily faster than conventional ballistic missiles. The big difference is that the hypersonic missile is maneuverable, which makes its trajectory difficult to predict, and therefore also its interception.

A variant of the old Russian missile “RS-26 Roubej”?

Over the past 24 hours, speculation has been rife as to the exact nature of the device. Experts suggest that Russia could have used a variant of its “RS-26 Roubej” missile, the development of which was stopped in 2018. In the world of the war industry, it is common, in fact, to give a new name for a military technology as soon as a new development appears. For Fabian Hoffmann, the importance of the Orechnik missile firing lies above all in the fact that it seemed to carry a type of payload which “is exclusively associated with nuclear-capable missiles”.

“I would be surprised if Russia managed to manufacture (such a device) without relying at least 90% on existing designs and without cannibalizing parts of the RS-26 (or another missile)“, continues this expert in missile technology and nuclear strategy at the University of Oslo, in a message posted on the social networkwas never officially confirmed and it may have continued under the radar“, agrees Nick Brown, director of the British intelligence company Jane's.

It can reach 12,350 km/h

The RS-26 Roubej armament program, the first successful test of which dates back to 2012, had been frozen, according to the TASS agency, for lack of means to carry out “simultaneously” this project with the development of new generation Avangard hypersonic systems (new window)supposed to be able to reach a target almost anywhere in the world. According to Vladimir Putin, the Orechnik missile, which was fired on Thursday “in its non-nuclear hypersonic configuration“, can reach speeds of Mach 10, or 12,350 km/h.”Today there is no way to counter such weapons“, boasted the Russian leader.

This new Russian hypersonic missile would also be equipped with maneuvering charges in the air, which would further increase the difficulty of interception. A video of the Russian launch, posted on social networks, showed six powerful successive flashes falling from the sky at the time of the attack, a sign, according to experts, that the missile carried at least six charges. This “mirvage“, as it is called in military jargon, consists of equipping a missile with several warheads, nuclear or conventional, which each follow an independent trajectory upon entry into the atmosphere.

A type of missile banned until 2019

A treaty requires Russia to notify the United States of the launch of certain types of ballistic missiles, hoping to avoid an escalation that could lead to all-out nuclear war. A US official said Russia had “pre-notifiedWashington of the launch before the attack to try to avoid retaliation, although Russia said it had done so only 30 minutes earlier through the US Nuclear Threat Reduction Center, said the Kremlin spokesperson.

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Until 2019, Russia and the United States could not field such missiles under the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty signed in 1987 during the Cold War. But in 2019, Donald Trump withdrew Washington from this text, accusing Moscow of violating it. The Orechnik missile can threaten almost all of Europe and could theoretically hit targets on the west coast of the United States. According to the Russian president, the firing was a test in combat conditions, meaning that this weapon is still in development. He also threatened to reuse it.