Tests of the Zirkon maritime supersonic missile system are successfully nearing completion, Russian Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov said at a briefing for foreign military attachés on Thursday.

Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov said:

“The trials of the Zirkon shipborne missile system are successfully coming to an end. These trials proved the possibility of launching this hypersonic missile from both a surface ship and a nuclear-powered submarine from the submerged position,”

The Russian Navy built up its capabilities in the close-in and distant maritime areas “due to the deliveries of advanced submarines and surface ships,” he said.

“In August this year, six new ships were laid down for the Navy,” the Russian General Staff chief added.

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Recently, the Russian Military-Industrial Research and Industrial Association for Machine Building (MIC NPO Mashinostroyenia) in the Moscow city of Reutovo launched a serial production of Zirkon supersonic missiles for the country‘s Navy, a source close to the site told TASS.

“A serial production of Zirkon missiles is underway at NPO Mashinostroyenia, although state testing of surface launches of this missile will continue,” the source said.

Can the Tsirkon/Zircon missile avoid radar?

The multi-purpose Zirkon supersonic missile, designed to hit sea and ground targets, is capable of flying at Mach 9, or nine times the speed of sound, at a range of over 1000 km.

It is worth mentioning that President Putin has described Tsirkon and other cutting-edge weapons as “invincible“.
The reason is that supersonic weapons, such as the Russian 3M22 Tsirkon, travel at speeds in excess of Mach 9 and have a low atmospheric ballistic trajectory, allowing it to evade typical anti-missile defences.

The rocket flies with advanced fuel, which the Russians say gives it a range of up to 1,000 kilometres. And it‘s so fast that the air pressure in front of the weapon forms a cloud of plasma as it moves, absorbing radio waves and making it virtually invisible to active radar systems.