Ukraine has upgraded its Neptune missile — here's what we know
Ukraine has unveiled what appears to be a long-range modernized version of its Neptune cruise missile, capable of hitting targets up to 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) away, Defense Express reported on Aug. 25.
Originally, Neptune was Ukraine’s ground-launched, domestically produced anti-ship rocket with a maximum range of 300 kilometers which it famously used in April 2022 to sink Russia’s Black Sea flagship, the Moskva.
An image of the upgraded missile appeared in a video published on Aug. 24 by the state-run weapons portal Zbroya on Instagram.
According to Defense Express, the missile shown is likely a modernized version of the original anti-ship Neptune missile — informally dubbed as the "Long Neptune." Its estimated length could exceed six meters, the outlet claims.
In March, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the missile had successfully completed tests and been used in combat.
According to Fabian Hoffmann, a doctoral research fellow at the University of Oslo who specializes in missile technology, the main upgrade for the latest version is most likely its guidance system.
The original anti-ship version relies on radar guidance which is effective when "you have a big enemy ship that your seeker can home in on."
"But that's not very useful in a land-based environment, which is cluttered and where you don't have these types of very easy to discriminate radar signatures," he told the Kyiv Independent.
"You probably want to replace that with something like an imaging infrared seeker or an electro-optical seeker," he added.
Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing undisclosed sources, that the Long Neptune missile was used to hit an oil refinery in Russia’s Krasnodar Oblast on March 14.
But another recent announcement may make the Long Neptune slightly redundant.
Ukraine is planning to begin mass production of its domestically developed long-range Flamingo cruise missile this winter, which has a reported range of 3,000 kilometers and carries a 1,150 kilogram warhead — far larger than Long Neptune's 150 kilogram warhead.
"If the producer manages to put this missile out in significant numbers, and it's not just the marketing gag.. then to be honest, a modernized Neptune cruise missile, in terms of its importance, decreases significantly," Hoffman said.
Ukraine has continued to increase domestic weapons production. Zelensky said on April 16 that over 40% of the weapons used on the front line are now produced in Ukraine, including over 95% of drones used on the battlefield.
In June, Ukrainian media reported that the homegrown short-range Sapsan ballistic missile had successfully completed combat testing and is in the process of serial production.Zelensky also previously revealed that Ukraine had developed another domestic weapon, the hybrid Palianytsia missile-drone.
