Russia tests new anti-submarine missile (VIDEO)

A Russian warship in the Sea of Japan has conducted a successful test of a new anti-submarine missile which launches into the air before dropping a torpedo, a statement from the country’s Ministry of Defense revealed on Wednesday.

The weapon, named the “Otvet,” or “Answer,” was launched by the Russian Pacific Fleet’s Marshal Shaposhnikov frigate and successfully hit an underwater target, officials announced. “Anti-submarine missiles are fired by universal launchers that make it possible to use the Oniks and Kalibr cruise missiles,” the statement added, referring to supersonic weapons currently employed by the Russian Armed Forces.

The head of the Otvet missile contains a compact, self-guided anti-submarine torpedo. When the missile has reached its target, it releases the torpedo by parachute into the water, where it seeks out the enemy vessel using its sonar capabilities. The version of the Otvet designed to target surface ships has a maximum range of 40 kilometers.

In October, the Russian Armed Forces carried out the first successful test of the Zircon, a state-of-the-art hypersonic anti-ship missile capable of accelerating up to Mach-9, or nine times the speed of sound. The Zircon is designed to provide superiority in naval battles, allowing Russian forces to target enemy aircraft carriers without being intercepted. Russian President Vladimir Putin later announced that the Navy would be equipped with the Zircon missile in 2022.

READ MORE: WATCH: Russia launches Zircon hypersonic missile

In a documentary shown on Russian TV last weekend, Putin contended that Russia had overtaken the rest of the world in military technology. He claimed that his country had approximate nuclear parity with the US, but superior conventional weapons, saying, “still, in our promising developments, we are undoubtedly the leaders.”