Russia Claims to Be Using Hypersonic Missiles in Ukraine
Russia said it fired a hypersonic aero-ballistic air-to-ground missile for the first time in Ukraine, destroying a weapons bunker in the southwestern region of the country, according to Bloomberg.
Russian Ministry of Defense spokesman Igor Konashenkov told a daily briefing that the Kh-47M2 Kinzhal hypersonic missile struck an underground warehouse containing rockets and ammunition in the village of Deliatyn in the Ivano-Frankivsk region on Friday (March 18).
However, Ukraine didn’t report any Russian attack on the military facility overnight and did not immediately comment on Russia’s claims. There is also no mention of explosions on social media.
If the Kinzhal was indeed used, it would be first such use of a hypersonic missile—it travels at Mach 10 speeds (or about 7,672 mph) in an unpredictable flight path, making it near impossible for the most advanced missile defense shields to shoot down.
