Key facts
- Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) claims Russia's Zircon missile is slower than advertised.
- HUR states the Zircon has a smaller warhead than Russia's S8000 Banderol cruise missile.
- The agency reclassified the Zircon as a ballistic missile, not a hypersonic cruise missile.
- The Zircon missile has a reported range of 1,000 kilometers and a maximum speed of Mach 6.8.
- Ukraine identified 70 companies, including U.S. firms, involved in Zircon production.
- Russia has produced 33 Zircon missiles in the first seven months of the year, meeting its annual target.
Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) has released new assessments regarding the capabilities of Russia's 3M22 Zircon hypersonic missile, suggesting its performance falls short of Moscow's claims. The HUR stated that the missile is slower than previously believed, carrying a smaller warhead than Russia's S8000 Banderol cruise missile.
According to the HUR, the Zircon is not a hypersonic cruise missile as Russia has claimed, but rather a ballistic missile that uses solid fuel and follows a quasi-ballistic trajectory. The agency estimates its range at 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) and its maximum recorded speed at Mach 6.8, significantly lower than Russia's claim of Mach 9.
The HUR also identified 70 companies, including U.S. firms TriQuint Semiconductor and Altera Corporation (part of Intel), that it alleges supplied components or were involved in the missile's production. As of August 3, Russia had reportedly manufactured 33 Zircon missiles in the first seven months of the year, meeting its annual production target.