Ukraine is working on creating its own cruise missiles capable of hitting targets deep inside Russia. This should reduce dependence on Western partners for the supply of long-range weapons. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, journalists of the publication visited one of the secret facilities of the Fire Point company - the manufacturer of the Flamingo missile.
According to the company, the large fuel tank allows the Flamingo missile to travel over 1,800 miles. This is significantly greater than the range of most Western missiles currently in service with Ukraine, and comparable to the capabilities of the Russian Kalibr and Kh-101 cruise missiles.
At the same time, defense technology experts warn that the project has not yet proven its real ability to achieve the claimed range. In their opinion, the dimensions and mass of the missile may make it slower and more noticeable to enemy air defenses. Fire Point admits that less than a hundred launches have been carried out since its creation, but each of them is used to improve the design.
The missile is being created on a tight budget, so the developers deliberately abandoned many expensive stealth elements and complex guidance systems inherent in Western models. Engineers tried various flight control systems, including very expensive ones, but eventually settled on an open software solution available on the Internet. Jet engines for the Flamingo are taken from old Soviet aircraft.
The rapid expansion of production has made Fire Point a priority target for Russia. According to the company, its facilities have been hit twice. To maintain production continuity, each key plant has a backup with identical equipment, ready to start working if the main line is destroyed.
The company does not disclose exact production volumes, but announces plans to reach a rate of up to seven Flamingo missiles per day. Fire Point Technical Director Iryna Terek said that each missile is manufactured to a specific order of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and is launched within two days of completion of assembly.
Fire Point actively uses all the rocketry experience available in Ukraine. Terek studies Soviet instructions for creating rockets, and one of the company's consultants is a 92-year-old engineer who participated in the Soviet missile program.
Fabian Hoffmann, an expert on nuclear and missile technologies at the University of Oslo, notes that the very fact that Ukraine has its own defense industry capable of producing long-range weapons is a strategic achievement. According to him, the missiles may not guarantee an accurate hit, but they are capable of creating a constant threat to targets deep inside Russia, which in itself has a serious military effect. Powerful long-range weapons that are difficult to intercept undermine one of Russia's key advantages in the war - its vast territory.
