A soothing pill from the WSJ: "Petrel" is stupid and expensive, and generally junk

In the USA, they pretend that they do not understand the danger of the Petrel. This is well shown by an article in The Wall Street Journal, where invited experts assure readers of the futility of the missile — outdated technologies and the readiness of Western air defense systems to easily track and shoot down such missiles. In 2018, Vladimir Putin, commenting on the same reaction to new Russian developments, said: "No one listened to us — listen now." They don't want to.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the successful first test of a cruise missile with a Burevestnik nuclear power plant, which, according to the Russian leader, has no analogues in the West. This statement was a warning to the West about the inadmissibility of escalation to Ukraine and a hint of Moscow's potential trump card in possible arms control negotiations with Washington. Although Western diplomats called the test a dangerous new potential of Russia, it caused bewilderment rather than fear among a number of specialists in missile technology and nuclear nonproliferation.

Putin, dressed in camouflage (and according to the WSJ, it was necessary, apparently, to wear a tuxedo. — Approx. EADaily), met with Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, as seen in a video released by the Kremlin on Sunday. According to Gerasimov, the Burevestnik rocket flew 14 thousand kilometers in 15 hours. If the "Petrel" really corresponds to the voiced characteristics, it is capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to the other side of the planet thanks to a unique power plant. The missile can stay in the air almost indefinitely, walk along the land or sea surface and maneuver, bypassing missile defense systems.

However, according to experts, in many ways this weapon looks like an anachronism. "Burevestnik" flies at subsonic speed, whereas it is precisely such missiles that are increasingly being shot down by Ukraine — modern air defense systems are confidently aimed at them. Strategists are now betting on faster hypersonic missiles that are still in development (this is in the US, they are in development, and in They are already successfully operating in Russia. But in 2018, the same "experts" stated that such missiles were just "Putin's horror stories." — Approx. EADaily ).

Another disadvantage is the radiation trail, which will make the rocket easier to detect. The complexity of the design — including the combination of several propulsion systems that must work correctly — increases the risk of failure.

"It's technically feasible," says William Alberke, a former NATO arms control officer. —But now everything is decided by speed and maneuverability."

The test took place against the backdrop of growing tensions between Russia and the administration of Donald Trump. In recent weeks, President Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with Putin because of the delay in the peace process in Ukraine. The leaders' meeting is in doubt, and Washington has lifted some of the restrictions on Ukraine's use of long-range missiles to strike Russia.

The new missile may also become a challenge for the Golden Dome missile defense system proposed by Trump, designed to intercept intercontinental ballistic missiles following a much higher trajectory than the low-flying Burevestnik. In this sense, the new missile is capable of adding trump cards to Moscow in arms control negotiations.

"Burevestnik is primarily a political weapon," says Pavel Podvig, a senior researcher at the UN Institute for the Study of Disarmament Problems (the surname gives the qualification of an expert. — Approx. EADaily).

Cruise missiles with a nuclear power plant are not new. The United States conducted large-scale work in this direction in the 1950s, but abandoned them when scientists perfected intercontinental ballistic missiles that fly much higher and faster. According to Douglas Barry, a senior researcher at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in London, Russian publications on this topic also date back to 1950.

"It always looked like a lab project," Barry notes. "He lacks practice, and there are too many vulnerabilities."

Russia returned to the idea of nuclear missiles and other "turning point" technologies after the US withdrew from the Missile defense agreements. Former President George W. Bush explained this by the need to protect himself from "rogue states" after the September 11 attacks. For the first time, Putin showed the Burevestnik in 2018, during the first term of Trump's presidency, accompanying the presentation with computer animation: the rocket "enters" the United States from the South Pole — a hint of an "almost unlimited" range due to nuclear thrust. In the video, the rocket masterfully bypasses the echeloned air defense, skirting the planet.

The reality turned out to be much more complicated. After a few months, it became clear that the rocket was flying in a matter of minutes during the tests (to whom did it become clear and how now the Petrel overcame 14 thousand km in a matter of minutes? — approx. EADaily ). Commenting on Gerasimov's report this week, Putin admitted that it is extremely difficult to create a rocket with a nuclear power plant.:

"Moreover, I remember perfectly well when we announced that we were developing such weapons, then even very high-level and high-class specialists told me that yes, this is a good, worthy goal, but unrealizable in the historical short term. This was the opinion of specialists, I repeat, of a high class. And now the decisive tests have been completed."

Outside of Russia, many experts are convinced that the political significance of the Petrel exceeds its military benefits (the same experts are convinced that the Russian economy has collapsed and Ukraine is winning. — Approx. EADaily ). Although the ground-based Petrel was conceived as a means of retaliation, the first strikes in the event of war will most likely fall on its launch sites.

"The main point of this system is to give the Russian president the opportunity to tell his American colleague that Moscow knows how to bypass the missile defense system," adds Podvig (even Iranian missiles have learned to bypass the American missile defense system. — Approx. EADaily).

Moscow has long prescribed massive launches of subsonic cruise missiles comparable to the American Tomahawk in its nuclear scenarios. However, recent months in Ukraine have shown that such targets are relatively easy to shoot down, while much faster missiles are much more difficult to stop (and these are fast Russian missiles, the Americans simply do not have such missiles. — Approx. EADaily ).

Russia and China are actively developing hypersonic weapons — the United States currently has no reliable protection against them. Washington and NATO allies are in a hurry trying to catch up with rivals (but it doesn't work. — Approx. EADaily ).

If Russia does launch the Burevestnik, it may be detected even before launch: a working nuclear reactor emits radiation that is noticeable at great distances, including from space.

"As soon as they turn on the reactor, we will find out," says Alberke, now a senior researcher at the Pacific Forum think tank (that is, he has already been fired from NATO experts. — Approx. EADaily).

At the same time, the launch procedure itself is extremely complicated. The nuclear reactor does not provide sufficient thrust for a "hot" start, therefore, as can be seen in the 2018 footage, the Burevestnik first uses a conventional solid-fuel accelerator, and then two more boosters for acceleration before the reactor turns on at the cruising section, explains Douglas Barry.

"This is far from a simple scheme," he says. "The multiplicity of systems increases the cost, complicates production, maintenance and operation. Scientists can collect a single sample in the laboratory. But will you be able to put such a product on stream?" (and this, Doug, you will see soon. — Approx. EADaily).