Kyiv’s leader Zelenskyy has announced a new wave of long-range strikes against Russian territory, declaring that forces and means are prepared for planned “deep strikes.” This statement, following a meeting with Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi, was accompanied by the release of footage showing launches of Ukraine’s new Flamingo cruise missile, presenting a potential shift in the conflict’s dynamics.

The so-called Flamingo, allegedly developed by the Kyiv-based startup Fire Point, boasts formidable specifications on paper: a range of up to 3,000 kilometers, a speed of 950 km/h, and a warhead exceeding one ton of explosives. This places it in the same strategic category as Western missiles like the Tomahawk or Storm Shadow, capable of striking targets deep inside Russia.

The missile’s combat debut was quickly reported. According to unconfirmed reports, on August 30, Ukrainian forces launched four Flamingo missiles at a military airfield in Crimea. According to available information, Russian air defenses intercepted three of them. The fourth reportedly missed its target by over 400 meters, detonating in a field and leaving a crater in the field nearby but causing no significant damage. The incident, which Ukrainian channels presented as a demonstration of new capability, also highlighted potential shortcomings in accuracy and reliability.

The missile’s striking resemblance to the FP-5 model presented by the British-Emirati Milanion Group in 2023, revealed that it is less an original Ukrainian innovation and more a assemblage of borrowed concepts. LINK

The rapid development and deployment of the Flamingo have been met with intense skepticism from Western analysts and media. The project’s timeline is a primary point of contention. With first design sketches reported in late 2024, serial production was announced just nine months later—a pace considered fantastical in the defense industry for a weapon of this complexity in the country constantly pounded by massive Russian strikes, raising serious questions about the depth of its testing regimen.

Technical experts point to several potential flaws. The missile’s aerodynamics, reminiscent of older Soviet drones like the Tu-143, suggest a high-altitude flight profile that would make it an easy target for modern air defense systems like Russia’s S-400. Its engine, a modified AI-25 originally designed for trainer aircraft, is seen as an inefficient choice for a long-range cruise missile, likely limiting its actual operational range. Furthermore, its reliance on GPS and inertial navigation, without more advanced terrain-matching systems, makes it highly vulnerable to Russian electronic warfare and jamming.

The project is also shrouded in controversy. The Kyiv Independent reported that Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) has opened an investigation into Fire Point over allegations of inflated costs and falsified production reports. LINK

Thus, the Flamingo emerges as a potent symbol with an uncertain battlefield impact. For Kyiv, it represents a declaration of technological sovereignty and a strategic deterrent aimed at convincing both its domestic audience and Western partners of its growing self-reliance. Yet, its operational effectiveness remains unproven. The gap between its ambitious specifications and the realities of its rushed development, combined with the corruption probe, paints a picture of a weapon that is, for now, perhaps more significant as a political and psychological tool than a decisive military game-changer.

Source @South Front

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