Footage captures Russia today testing its new 6,670 mph Zircon - or Tsirkon - missile which can hit targets some 600 miles away.
Vladimir Putin, 69, has poured money into developing new nuclear-cable missiles which - he claims - are “unstoppable” by Western air defences.
Deliveries of the Zircon are due within weeks in Russia, which fired the missile from the Admiral Gorshkov frigate in the Barents Sea and hit a target at a range of 625 miles in the White Sea.
A statement from the Russian defence ministry said: “According to objective control data, the Zircon hypersonic cruise missile successfully hit a sea target located at a distance of about 1,000 km.
“The flight of the hypersonic missile corresponded to the specified parameters.”
In December, Putin announced a “flawless” salvo launch involving the Zircon.
In January, deputy defence minister Alexey Kryvoruchko said: “The state tests of the Zircon sea-based hypersonic cruise missile are nearing completion.
“From 2022, serial deliveries will begin.”
The Zircon will be deployed on Russian frigates and, later, on submarines.
Earlier it was identified by Moscow’s state-controlled TV as Putin’s weapon of choice to wipe out American cities in the event of an atomic conflict.
In December Putin hailed “our newest [Zircon] missiles fired from the sea at sea targets, and land targets.
“The tests were carried out successfully, flawlessly.
“This is a big event for our country, a significant step in improving Russia’s security, in increasing (our) defence capability.”
It is now in “serial production”, he said, previously calling the weapon “truly unparalleled … in the world”.
TV Zvezda - a channel owned by the Russian defence ministry - said of the footage: “The Russian Zircon hypersonic missile's stealth features have been disclosed…
“The speed of the Zircon hypersonic missile is so high that it prevents the opponent's air defence system from detecting its impact in time.
“In fact, its launch will be known only after the target has been hit.”
The missile also has a “variable trajectory” to avoid detection, viewers were told.
The frigate’s captain Igor Krokhmal has said previously: “No one will see the missile launch or its flight. They will only see when the missile hits the target,” said the frigate’s commander, first rank captain Igor Krokhmal.
“A surface target, a coastal target. I don't think there will be anything to counter this in the next few years.”
