Ukraine’s military confirmed the interception of a Russian “Kinzhal” hypersonic air-launched ballistic missile after it deployed Patriot air-defense systems obtained this spring from Western allies.
(Bloomberg) — Ukraine’s military confirmed the interception of a Russian “Kinzhal” hypersonic air-launched ballistic missile after it deployed Patriot air-defense systems obtained this spring from Western allies.
The rocket was launched from a Mikoyan MiG-31 fighter jet toward the Kyiv region in the early morning of May 4, according to Mykola Oleshchuk, Ukraine’s air force commander.
“My congratulations to the people of Ukraine on a historic event! Yes, we have shot down an ‘unparalleled’ Kinzhal!” he said Saturday in a Telegram post. Oleshchuk added the word “Patriot,” together with Ukraine’s flag and a flexed bicep emoji.
The confirmation followed discussion on social media on Friday that a Kinzhal missile, which Russia claims can fly at ten times the speed of sound, had been taken down. Wreckage said to be of the missile was shown in an empty football stadium in Ukraine’s capital.
The Kh-47M2 Kinzhal, or Dagger, is claimed to have a range of about 1,200 miles (2,000 km) and can carry either conventional or nuclear warheads. It was among six new strategic weapons unveiled by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2018.
Kremlin forces have used the pricey weapons only rarely during Russia’s war on Ukraine, which is now in its 15th month.
Media reports from Ukraine estimate about a dozen Kinzhal missiles fired in the conflict to date. Ukraine’s military authorities estimate Russia’s stockpile of the weapon at probably less than 40.
The first reported use by Russia in Ukraine was in March 2022, a month into its invasion. At that point Russia’s defense ministry said it had fired a Kinzhal at what it called an underground weapons cache in the southwest of Ukraine.
More recently, six Kinzhals were said to have been among an 84-missile barrage fired by Russian forces at cities across Ukraine on March 9, one of the heaviest aerial assaults of the war.
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