Russia’s Avangard hypersonic intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) has been touted to instill fear in the heart of the United States, whose advanced air defense systems according to military experts would not be able to stand a chance against nuclear boost-glide vehicles, Eurasian Times writes in the article China Praises Russia’s Nuclear-Tipped, Hypersonic Missile That Can ‘Devastate’ US’ Defenses. The Avangard hypersonic missiles can reportedly cruise at 27 times the speed of sound and its unique maneuvering capability makes it difficult for enemy forces to predict its trajectory, thereby providing it with the ability to protect itself from the air and ballistic missile defenses.
As per Times Hub, Major General Vladimir Popov, Honoured Military Pilot of the Russian Federation and candidate of technical sciences, echoed the capabilities of the missile systems and stated that the US despite their state-of-the-art defense systems, do not stand a chance against Russia’s Avangard.
“The United States has practically no chances to resist the Avangard, since, in the event of large-scale hostilities, Russia will attack a potential enemy with all available weapons. In this case, the defensive complexes will not be able to identify all targets. Among the attackers, there will be false missiles without charges as well as electronic interference due to electronic warfare. Among the many attacking missiles, some will still reach their destination,” said Popov.
However, Popov suggests that the US and Russia are still miles ahead of other countries when it comes to developing modern weapons, and are almost at par with each other.
“The air and missile defense system of the United States is very strong. It cannot be written off and underestimated, we are talking about a deeply echeloned engineering network. It is thought out and protects the most important regions of the country. Nevertheless, the Russian development is also very high-tech and has outstanding parameters. Almost the entire flight period of a hypersonic defense missile will not be able to observe it, since after the launch it reaches its maximum height, reaching space.
Despite this, the Russian Federation and the United States are in parity, while the other states cannot yet catch up with them in the arms race.” added Popov.
The Avangard, which when mounted on top of an intercontinental ballistic missile, has the ability to carry a nuclear weapon of up to two megatons, has also invited skepticism regarding its effectiveness, especially from the US, with the Pentagon even stating that it would “not characterize the Russian claims” the Russian missile’s capabilities.
The US has its own hypersonic missile program, which includes the major Hypersonic Glide Body, C-HGB, their newest missile, who was raved about by President Trump in June.
“We are building new ships, bombers, jet fighters, and helicopters by the hundreds; new tanks, military satellites, rockets, and missiles; even a hypersonic missile that goes 17 times faster than the fastest missile currently available in the world and can hit a target 1,000 miles away within 14 inches from center point.” said Trump.
However, according to a military expert writing for the Chinese news outlet, Sina, Trump’s statements are false. “Trump’s claim that C-HGB is the world’s fastest-flying missile is somewhat exaggerated. According to reports, the Russian “Avangard” hypersonic missile has a flying speed between Mach 20 and Mach 27, which is much faster than C-HGB. In fact, almost all intercontinental ballistic missiles, including the U.S. Minuteman III and Russian Topol-M, fly faster than C-HGB in the final stages of flight.”
