Yuri Ahnate announced on Ukrainian television that the air defense had succeeded in shooting down the Kinzhal hypersonic cruise missile. By the way, residents in Ukraine were warned several times on Thursday about the take-off of MiG-31 planes, but only one of them actually launched a missile, and the rest were just “bait targets.”
Kiev residents reported a powerful explosion in the early evening hours over Kiev. According to Ahnat, they heard anti-aircraft missile systems.
This is not the first time the Russian missile has been stopped “undetectable”: earlier on May 4, both Ukrainian air defense and the Pentagon confirmed that they had successfully intercepted an H-47M2 “Kindzhal” missile with the help of a PAC-3 Patriot. Air defense missile systems deployed around Kiev.
Kindzal and similar high-tech hypersonic missiles can reach several times the speed of sound. (The Kindz can theoretically reach 12,000 km/h)It has a very long range (With Kinds, for example, more than 2000 km), capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and adjusting its trajectory, so it is impossible to predict exactly where it will strike.
Meanwhile, Russia rarely uses its hypersonic missiles against Ukraine, and limited stockpiles would likely prevent their widespread use.
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