Hypersonics

Russia admits its deadly Zircon hypersonic missile is suffering from 'childhood diseases'

Russia is in the process of developing a new hypersonic cruise missile — the 3M22 Zircon (Tsirkon), but the weapon is currently suffering from "childhood diseases," the Russian navy's top admiral revealed to Russian media, The Drive first reported.

Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov told RIA Novosti that the Zircon hypersonic missile expected to eventually arm Russian frigates would be available to the fleet "in the coming years."

The Russian admiral did not elaborate on what "childhood diseases" are affecting the weapon's development. He simply said that modernization efforts will correct these deficiencies. Yevmenov explained that work on the Zircon missile will be carried out simultaneously with ongoing efforts to arm warships with the 3M-54 Kalibr land-attack cruise missile.