Russia successfully tests high-precision long-range cruise missile

Russia has successfully tested a high-precision long-range cruise missile, said Lieutenant-General Alexander Rakhmanov, deputy chief of armaments directorate of the Russian Armed Forces.

"The cruise missile flew right into the window after traveling 2,000 kilometers," said Mr. Rakhmanov describing the test flight of the cruise missile. Mr. Rakhmanov took part in the round-table discussions on innovation in defense industry that was held the Russian Academy of Sciences.

According to him, the X-555 cruise missile is built on the basis of all state-of-the-art technologies used for developing high-precision weapons. "This is an old missile that has been modernized using all the state-of-the-art technologies," said he.

The long-rage cruise missile with a non-nuclear warhead entered service with the Russian Strategic Air Force last year. The missile is designed for hitting ground targets with pinpoint accuracy.

The Russian military expects to use the missile in local armed conflicts and antiterrorist operations. Only the U.S. Air Force has similar missiles, according to Izvestia. In the past, the Russian Air Force had only X-55, a nuclear-warhead cruise missile capable of hitting targets within the range up to 3,000 kilometers. The new cruise missile X-555 is a modification of the X-55. It is equipped with a homing-guidance warhead and therefore can be used as a high-precision weapon.