Avangard

Russia's nuclear-capable strategic hypersonic glide vehicle, carried by a heavy intercontinental ballistic missile and designed to manoeuvre through the upper atmosphere rather than follow a conventional ballistic trajectory.

Overview

Avangard is a Russian strategic boost-glide vehicle rather than a self-contained missile. A heavy intercontinental ballistic missile accelerates it to the edge of space, after which the vehicle separates and glides through the upper atmosphere toward its target. Its ability to alter course during this glide is intended to complicate trajectory prediction and interception by missile defenses optimized for conventional ballistic reentry vehicles.

The system occupies the strategic tier of Russia's hypersonic arsenal. Unlike theatre-range weapons such as Kinzhal, Zircon and Oreshnik, Avangard is associated with intercontinental nuclear deterrence and has no battlefield role. Russia declared it operational in 2019, with deployment concentrated at the Dombarovsky missile field in Orenburg Oblast. Publicly available performance figures and force totals remain Russian claims or external estimates rather than independently verified specifications.

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