Putin touts Avangard's potential to bypass US missile defence

The Russian president has once again publicly threatened the West with hypersonic weapons. This time, he highlighted the hypersonic glide vehicle Avangard as a testament to Russia's alleged supremacy. What are the capabilities of this weapon?

According to Vladimir Putin, Avangard "nullifies" American missile defence, suggesting that the investments the US has made in building anti-missile systems have been in vain because Avangard can penetrate the missile defence shield and strike any target.

While it might be easy to dismiss these claims as mere propaganda designed to intimidate the West, it's important to acknowledge that Avangard does indeed exist, though its exact technical specifications are not known or have not been verified in a credible manner.

Its reported advantage is its exceptionally high speed, reaching up to Mach 27 (over 20,000 miles per hour or approximately 32,200 kilometres per hour), as well as its ability to manoeuvre both vertically and horizontally.

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Avangard belongs to the HGV (Hypersonic Glide Vehicle) class of weapons. This means that it is launched aboard an intercontinental ballistic missile, like the UR-100NUTTH, R-36M2, or RS-28 Sarmat. Its warhead can be either conventional or nuclear.

After launch, Avangard is boosted by the missile, after which the warhead separates and – while falling – heads towards its target. After separation, Avangard does not have its own propulsion, but due to its high speed, it is capable of manoeuvring, and according to Russian sources, this ability is supposed to provide an edge over antimissile systems.

For years, hypersonic weapons have been Vladimir Putin's preferred method of intimidation. Russia dedicates considerable resources to developing and producing several types of these weapons, and Kremlin propaganda claims they are invincible against modern antiaircraft systems.

The conflict in Ukraine has quickly challenged these claims. While Russian-made antiaircraft systems, like the S-300 used by Ukraine, have indeed struggled against very fast missiles, Western systems – such as the Patriot or IRIS-T SLM – have successfully intercepted both Kh-47M2 Kinzhal missiles and 3M22 Zircon.