Kathrine Frich
Ukraine is preparing to roll out a long-range weapon it believes could reshape the battlefield.
Behind closed factory doors in Kyiv, engineers say they have developed a system designed to slip beneath Russia’s air-defence network.
Early demonstrations have already stirred growing unease in Moscow.
A new long-range threat
According to reporting from the Associated Press (AP), the defence start-up Fire Point has introduced a next-generation cruise missile known as the FP-5 Flamingo.
The six-ton projectile is built for strikes up to roughly 3,000 kilometres away and carries a warhead weighing about 1,150 kilograms, putting key Russian refineries, command sites and logistics hubs well within reach.
Fire Point says each missile costs about £390,000, far below Western-made equivalents such as the Tomahawk, and aims to scale production to around 210 units per month by early 2026.
The funding stems from Ukrainian government contracts and international backers, including contributions from the EU’s £5 billion drone initiative.
Low-altitude stealth
The missile’s defining feature is its terrain-following guidance system, enabling it to fly just 30–40 metres above ground level.
During a Fire Point panel event, co-owner Denys Shtilerman said:
“The only chance to see it will be if there’s an interceptor in the air with a new high-quality radar.”
A 74-second test clip posted on X by Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, focused on this low-visibility profile.
Gerashchenko wrote: “Once Ukraine has terrain maps of Russia, the Flamingo missile will fly at an altitude of 30-40 metres, and no one will be able to see it from the ground.”
Industry transformed
Founded in 2022 by designers and software developers, Fire Point has quickly reinvented itself.
AP reports that the company, which began as a film-casting agency, has grown into an £800 million defence manufacturer responsible for most of Ukraine’s televised deep-strike videos.
One such operation targeted a refinery in Novorossiysk on 14 November.
Chief Technical Officer Iryna Terekh told the Wall Street Journal that refurbished Soviet jet engines, salvaged from scrap sites, were key to lowering production costs.
“We purposefully aimed for low cost to enable large-scale procurement,” she said.
Battlefield implications
Four verified Flamingo strikes have been reported since August, including an attack on an FSB facility in occupied Crimea, AP says.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has described the FP-5 as “the most successful missile we have” and expects serial manufacturing to begin by February.
Analysts at the Centre for European Policy Analysis warn that the system could disrupt up to 90 percent of Russia’s weapons production by forcing Moscow to divert air-defence resources.
With partners such as Denmark preparing support packages, including a £170 million model, Ukraine is already exploring post-war export opportunities.
Sources: AP, Wall Street Journal, Express
