Ukraine may have shot down Putin’s hypersonic missile

When the Ukrainian trade magazine “Defense Express” announced last week that the Ukrainian army had shot down a Russian Kinzhal-type hypersonic missile, many experts were surprised. After all, it would have been the first time such a maneuver had been successful. It would also be a real coup in the war in Ukraine – and a major setback for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and his armed forces. However, so far there is no confirmation of the alleged success of the Ukrainian air defense.

Now the US is stepping in and is convinced that it is possible to shoot down a kinshah from the air with a Patriot air defense system, as Ukraine claims. Until now, it was not known that the Patriot system can also intercept air-launched missiles, ie missiles carried by aircraft. The experts of the US Secretary of Defense were impressed by the incident, broadcaster CNN reports.

The Kinzhal, or dagger in English, is considered one of the best missiles available to the Russian military. According to Russian information, it remains maneuverable even in fast and high flights. According to NATO, the missiles can hardly be intercepted with anti-aircraft or anti-missile systems. Austrian military expert Gustav Gressel was one of the first experts to believe that the launch of the Russian hypersonic missile by a Patriot anti-aircraft system was possible. Now the military strategists in the Pentagon are also apparently convinced that Ukraine has once again outdone itself in this war.

The Ukrainian troops have already shown their enormous inventiveness with numerous other weapon systems. At the beginning of the war, for example, they converted hobby drones into dangerous offensive weapons or they succeeded in firing American missiles from the air, which are actually not compatible with Ukrainian fighter jets.

The supposed shooting down of the Kinschal would be one of the greatest military successes yet in a war that has been going on for more than 14 months, amounting to the destruction of a Russian myth. Because according to dictator Putin, the hypersonic missile Kinzhal should not be able to be defended by any air defense system in the world.

(t-online, cc)