The "Zyklon" ship is a missile carrier that Russia built on the territory of the temporarily occupied Crimea. However, the occupiers have never once used this vessel for attacks. The Ukrainian Navy answered what the matter was.
Why Russia does not use "Zyklon" for attacks
According to the Naval Forces spokesman, Dmytro Pletenchuk, the Russians completed the Cyclone ship three years ago. There could be several reasons why they still used it for attacks.
As the spokesman noted, it may be about technical problems and the crew's unpreparedness. Pletenchuk adds that both options sound strange since the ship has been in service for several years.
"Zyklon" has been in service for several years — in fact, it has been completed for about three years. And we can say that he did not pass all state tests. Because shootings (missile launches — ed.) are also included there. And as of now, yes, we have the fact that he did not launch the rocket, — said the representative of the Navy.
Pletenchuk's words make it clear that this situation with the "Zyklon" seems extremely strange since it is built precisely for launching missiles. However, it is essential that he also has "Pantsir-S" on board, an anti-aircraft system that the occupiers sometimes still use.
How many Kalibr missiles is Russia preparing to strike Ukraine?
Analysts have calculated the approximate number of "Caliber" missiles the enemy may have.
On the air of the telethon, the DIU chief Kyrylo Budanov said that the Russians will probably use Kalibr sea-based cruise missiles shortly to attack Ukraine because the enemy has been stockpiling such missiles for a long time.
Calibers accumulated throughout this period. They are completely ready for use.
To find an answer to this question, we can rely on the data on the number of missiles in the Russian Federation as of November 2023, which was then stated by the DIU representative Vadym Skibitsky.
At that time, it was about the fact that as of November last year, according to our intelligence, the Russians had an accumulated stock of 165 KRMB "Caliber". If we consider the data known at that time, the production rate of "Calibers" could vary from 20 to 35 units per month.
Based on this, and also from the fact that four months later, the Rashtriyas decided almost not to use "Caliber" for shelling of Ukraine, then we can be talking about the fact that the enemy's stock of cruise missiles of this type could grow in the range from +80 units to + 120 units, or to the range from 245 units to 285 units.
For comparison, purely to illustrate the trend — as of the same November 2023, the Russian invaders had only 160 air-based cruise missiles of the X-101/555/55 type in stock, i.e. already here "at the start" the number of air-based cruise missiles turned out to be somewhat smaller, than the number of Calibers.
In addition, it is worth considering the following point — if we rely on the official reports of the Air Force, then in the period from March 21 to 31, 2024, the Russian invaders fired a total of 133 Kh-101/555/55 air-based cruise missiles over Ukraine.
Against this background, it seems logical to assess that as the available stock of air-based cruise missiles is exhausted, the Russians can "unpack" the stock of "Calibers". But at the same time, the Russians can still rely on the same X-101s to carry out strikes on our critical infrastructure.
