Russia test-fires hypersonic Tsirkon cruise missile from submarine

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) – Russia successfully launched its hypersonic Tsirkon cruise missile from submarine, the country's Defense Ministry said on Monday.

The test launch was carried out from the White Sea to the Barents Sea in the Arctic region, from an underwater position at a depth of 40 meters (131 feet), the ministry said in a statement.

It was the second successful test of this type of cruise missile; the first was performed from a surface position, the ministry stated.

"The second test of the hypersonic cruise missile Tsirkon was carried out by the crew of the nuclear submarine missile cruiser 'Severodvinsk' for the first time from an underwater position, from a depth of 40 meters, in the waters of the White Sea at a conditional sea target in the Barents Sea. According to objective control data, the flight of the missile from leaving the water to hitting a conditional target fully corresponded to the specified parameters," the statement read.

Earlier this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Tsirkon hypersonic missiles, capable of reaching a speed of about 9 Mach (11,113 kilometers an hour) and hitting targets at a distance of more than 1,000 kilometers (621 miles), will be put on combat duty in Russia in the near future.