UKRAINE, Oct. 22 — In the summer of 2026, Russian troops started to attack Ukraine with a new Filin cruise missile, reported Ukraine’s main intelligence agency (HUR). 

“This cruise missile is a continuation of the Russian military-industrial complex’s tendency to develop affordable jet-powered weapons for airstrikes that can be launched from the ground,” HUR wrote. 

The agency reports that Filin missiles can accelerate to 800 km/hour (497 mph) and reach targets at a distance of 1,200 km (~745 miles), according to Russian records. For Ukraine, that means that Russian attacks on regions that are far from the border with Russia and the frontline will be more challenging to counter. Filin can fly at ultralow heights up to six kilometers, which also makes it harder to down it. 

Ukraine’s intelligence also identified 35 US-made and 22 Chinese-made electronic components in the missile.

At the meeting with journalists on Oct. 11, Evhen Khmara, Ukraine’s minister of defense, said that Kyiv knows Russia’s latest solutions involve jet-powered drones capable of reaching speeds of 800 km/hour. 

“We also work on the countering of the next generation of threats,” Khmara said, adding that the ministry gave out assignments for prototype development to manufacturers and other actors within Ukraine’s military-industrial complex. 

The BBC wrote that, according to their unnamed sources, Khmara spoke of counter-solutions for downing Filin missiles. 

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