Russian Hypersonic Missile ‘Kinzhal’ Fired From MiG-31 Fighter Reportedly Fell On Its Own Territory

Eurasian Times ^ | 16th September 2022 | Ashish Dangwal

[Cronos]

On September 15, a video of an unidentified flying object that crashed in Stavropol, Russia, around 350 kilometers (220 miles) from the Ukrainian border, went viral on the internet.

The Russian media reports initially led people to believe it was a Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Later, Twitter users noted similarities between the wreckage and the Russian Kinzhal missile.

A Twitter user going by the handle LotA shared a video of the incident, which happened on September 14. According to the user, the unidentified object was a Russian Kinzhal missile.

“If anyone wondered what crashed today in Russian Stavropol region injuring six firefighters, you’d be very much surprised to know that it wasn’t a “Ukrainian UAV,” but a Russian Kinzhal missile,” he tweeted.

The missile was allegedly fired from a MiG-31 aircraft in the direction of Ukraine, but it is thought to have failed and crash-landed in Russia’s territory.

Twitter users drew attention to the resemblance between the object’s wreckage and the Russian Kinzhal missile, particularly the winglets and the booster’s separation mechanism.

LotA alleged that the missile’s “booster” or nozzle’s aerodynamic cover didn’t separate from the missile when it was released from the carrier, which suggests that the main engine did not ignite.

The fact that a booster was found on the debris suggests that the missile either misfired or was accidentally dropped by its carrier aircraft, Aerotime reported.

OSINTtechnical, an open source user, shared the thread and reminded that “In the last 6 months, Russia has hit Ukraine with three Kh-47M2 Kinzhal ‘hypersonic’ missiles and itself with one.”

On the other hand, Russian media outlets reportedly claimed that the unidentified aircraft was a Ukrainian Tu-141 Strizh reconnaissance drone. Ukraine is the sole known operator of unmanned aircraft at the moment.

Rescue personnel arrived at the crash site and tried to put out the flames. The explosion hurt six people, including four locals and one firefighter.

According to Vladimir Vladimirov, the governor of the Stavropol Territory, a firefighter was injured while working at the scene. “He has been hospitalized and is being treated by paramedics,” he said.

Meanwhile, according to NewsWeek, Russia also employed the Kinzhal missile to strike the dam of the Karachunivske Reservoir in Kryvyi Rih, a city in Ukraine’s heartland and the birthplace of President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The head of the city’s military administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, said Russia had also employed Iskander missiles to attack the reservoir. The hits damaged a water pumping plant and flooded the embankments, causing some inhabitants to evacuate.

Zelensky criticized the strikes in his address, stating they had “no military value at all” and that attempting to impact “hundreds of thousands of ordinary civilians” was another reason “why Russia will lose.”

The Russian Air Force is believed to have 252 MiG-31s in its inventory, of which 10 to 20 have been modified to fire Kinzhals, according to a previous EurAsian Times report. Despite Russia’s claims about the Kinzhal and its development of other “next generation” systems, many Western specialists feel that Russia overstates the relevance of these weapons.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies notes, for instance, that “Russia’s designation of the Kinzhal as a ‘hypersonic’ missile is somewhat misleading, as nearly all ballistic missiles reach hypersonic speeds… at some point during their flight.”

The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense highlighted that the deployment of the Kinzhal was “likely intended to detract from a lack of progress in Russia’s ground campaign” and “unlikely to materially affect the outcome of Russia’s campaign” in Ukraine.

Nevertheless, it is still a vital weapon in Russia’s arsenal. However, if the most recent claims are accurate, it is evident that reservations about its capabilities will grow

[Cronos]

More evidence of the rickety nature of the Russian war machine.

No wonder they are losing to Ukraine of all people

[lodi90]

There was a period a couple week ago when the Russians were bombing themselves on a daily basis in Belgorod with misfired rockets.

[Timber Rattler]

More Russian junk falling out of the air...

[Cronos]

Ukraine has hobbled Russia's Black Sea Fleet.

The fleet and its air wing have been battered by Ukrainian missile and drone attacks, turning the once-feared force into something of an afterthought.

... Kyiv has seized the initiative as missile strikes and mysterious explosions have wreaked havoc on the Russian fleet, sinking several vessels — including its flagship cruiser the Moskva — and devastating its Crimea-based air wing in a dramatic attack this month.

[JonPreston]

Sounds like a Polish missile to me.

[logi_cal869]

You must have made a mess of your monitor when you saw this article with your self-gratification.

You’ve made ZERO posts about anything but Russia all month, despite many pertinent stories exposing the Xiden administration & cronies.

Speaks volumes about you, troll. What’s your GS grade?

[Dr. Franklin]

The Russian people should be very scared that if Putin decides to use nukes, they may explode inside Russia.

[Cecily]

They are going to end up nuking themselves if they don’t get rid of the lunatic Vlad Putin. Please let no one in Russia carry out any nuke launch order from him.

[Cronos]

The moskva had 3 layers of defense

1. S-300 long range surface-to-air missiles
2. K33 short range missles
3. AK-630 rotary cannons
   
   
   

But it all failed -- due to non-existent maintenance, Putin's corruption and incompetence -- the S-300 missile system's radar was turned off as it interefered with the Moskva's communication platform, the K33's weren't working and the rotary cannons only 1 was functional and the others were taken apart for weapons to be used in the land invasion.

utter failure by Putin's army

This new conscription is going to just send more Russian boys to be slaughtered. Putin is killing Russia

[NorseViking]

Donbas is littered with wrecks of British Brimstone missiles which failed to hit a thing. Even if true, what should a single malfunctioned missile prove?

[GreenHornet]

Russian Hypersonic Missile ‘Kinzhal’ Fired From MiG-31 Fighter Reportedly Fell On Its Own Territory

It's their own fault for purchasing their military equipment from Acme Corporation.

[JonPreston]

The author is a freelance, college student with ZERO experience

[Cronos]

What’s your KGB pay grade?

https://freerepublic.com/focus/news/4094813/posts?page=52#52

https://freerepublic.com/focus/backroom/4094656/posts?page=56#56

https://freerepublic.com/focus/news/4094430/posts?page=15#15

https://freerepublic.com/focus/news/4094018/posts?page=79#79

https://freerepublic.com/focus/news/4094295/posts?page=9#9

Those are just in the past 3 days.

[entropy12]

And American tax payers are losing to Ukraine.

[Cronos]

“littered” — you mean like how you Russians destroyed 44 HIMARS when there are only 16 being used against Russia?

[NorseViking]

More strawmen. Who claimed 44 of them destroyed? How do you know how many were delivered to start with?

[Cronos]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htznqmp3tgw

The Western missiles are battering your forces. in contrast Putin’s military is falling apart

[rrrod]

Gee... that’s a shame.

[Cronos]

a Russian Defence Ministry map, which included the claim to have destroyed 44 MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket Systems - on which HIMARS are a type) near the Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv.

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