Russian troops hit the Kyiv region twice with experimental Zircon missiles

Russian troops launched experimental 3М22 Zircon anti-ship missiles over Ukraine twice. Both attacked Kyiv region on February 7, during a massive missile attack. Earlier, the examination preliminarily confirmed one missile.

The director of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Examinations (KSRIFE) Oleksandr Ruvin told the Vechirniy Kyiv publication that one 3M22 fell in the Dniprovsky district (near the Chernihivska metro station), creating a landslide, and the other fell in a field in the town of Vyshneve, near Kyiv. They were shot down by air defense, so they did not reach their targets.

Analysis of the wreckage has shown, says Ruvin, that the 3M22 does not meet the specifications claimed by the Russians. The missile does not fly at a speed of Mach 8-9 (about 10 000 kmph). It reaches 2 500 kmph in the final part of the flight. The accuracy of the missile is questionable, and the declared destructive power with almost 400 kg of charge is less.

According to Ruvin, Zircon was developed primarily as a weapon against aircraft carriers, which are very difficult to sink. But it is unlikely that this rocket will cope with its intended purpose.

"That is, the next Russian analog Zircon, adopted in Russia in 2023, turned out to be not at all unique, just like their Kinzhal. It was not possible to frighten Ukraine and its allies with a new ʼmiracle weaponʼ", noted the director of KSRIFE.

According to open data, the 3M22 Zircon is an anti-ship experimental cruise missile that operates at a distance of up to 1 500 km. The approximate weight of its combat unit is 300-400 kg. The Russians claim that the speed of the missile is up to Mach 8-9, but it is somewhat similar to a hybrid of the Kinzhal and the P-800 Onyx, so statements about the "hypersonic" status of the ZM22 may be exaggerated. This missile can be shot down.

• On February 7, 2024, Russian troops launched a massive attack on Ukraine in several waves, using 64 means of air attack: attack drones, cruise, ballistic and anti-aircraft guided missiles. Air defense shot down 29 missiles and 15 drones at that time.
• In the capital, fragments of downed missiles fell in the Holosiiv and Dnipro districts. An 18-story building caught fire in Teremky. Five people died there, and another 40 were injured. In the Dnipro region, a fragment of a missile fell near the Chernihivska metro station, damaging a high-voltage line and a heat supply main. Three people were injured.
• In Mykolaiv, a person died from the attack, 20 houses were damaged.