Russia’s New “Carrier Killer”, Ballistic Missile ‘Zmeevik’, with Hypersonic Speed, Reported Russia’s State-Owned TASS News Agency.

 

Russia developing a new ballistic missile for the Russian Navy that can travel at hypersonic speeds and sink an aircraft carrier.  

Russia is developing a new “carrier killer” – ballistic missile ‘Zmeevik’ with hypersonic combat equipment for the Navy, reported Russia’s state-owned TASS news agency, citing two sources close to the Russian military department.

“The Zmeevik ballistic missile with hypersonic combat equipment has been developing for quite a long time. It will be designed to destroy large surface targets, primarily aircraft carriers,”  According to another source cited by TASS, the new missile could enter service with coastal missile units of the Russian Navy.

Interestingly, Russia is also developing a new coastal missile system to launch the Tsircon (or Zircon) hypersonic cruise missile that can hit both land-based and sea-based targets.

Currently, only the aviation and sea-based variants of the Tsirkon are known to exist that have a range of over 1000 kilometers and can travel at a speed of Mach 9 (11,113 kilometers per hour).

Described as “invincible” by President Putin, Tsirkon is considered a hybrid cruise missile and ballistic missile, unlike the pure hypersonic missiles that are powered by air-breathing scramjet engines.

The missile can reportedly evade the most sophisticated American air defense systems. Because of its tremendously high speed, the air pressure in front of the missile is said to create a plasma cloud that traps radio waves, making it near invisible to radar systems.

It is believed that the Tsircon missile can sink even the most advanced American aircraft carriers, and according to experts, it could easily defeat the US’ Aegis Combat System.

Therefore, the Russian Navy is developing coastal defense capabilities for a contingency where an American aircraft carrier could come close to the Russian coast.

Zircon or Tsirkon Hypersonic Missile:

The 3M22 Zircon also spelled as 3M22 Tsirkon (SS-N-33) is a scramjet-powered maneuvering anti-ship hypersonic cruise missile currently in production by Russia.

Zircon is believed to be a maneuvering, winged hypersonic cruise missile with a lift-generating center body. A booster stage with solid-fuel engines accelerates it to supersonic speeds, after which a scramjet motor with liquid fuel in the second stage accelerates it to hypersonic speeds.

The high speed of the Zircon likely gives it better target-penetration characteristics than lighter subsonic cruise missiles.

‘Zmeevik’ Missile is Similar to the Chinese ‘carrier killer’:

the Zmeevik is similar to the Chinese DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missile. The DF-26 intermediate-range ballistic missile has a range of up to 4,000 kilometers, according to TASS.

Beijing and Moscow share their concerns about the US’ technological advantage at sea, as the US Navy plans to maintain a fleet of 12 nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. In contrast, China currently has three aircraft carriers, the fourth in the pipeline, and Russia only has one.

The land-based Dong Feng-21D, also known as the ‘carrier killer’ missile with a range of 1,500 kilometers,

The DF-26 missile is considered a more significant threat to the US as it has a range of 4,000 kilometers. The missile can threaten the US forces over a larger area in the Indo-Pacific region, including its strategic Anderson Air Base in Guam. It is why the missile is often referred to as the ‘Guam Killer’ by many defense analysts.