The National Interest:
The Russian development is significant—even if the Kremlin does not yet have the ability to retarget cruise missile while the weapons are in flight (there are indications that X-101 can be retargeted while in flight and that such a capability at the very least in development). “This is an important advance for the Russians, and will increase their operational flexibility/ability to respond to changing conditions in the battlespace and pop-up target opportunities,” Mark Gunzinger, Center for Strategic and Budgetary Analyses airpower analyst and former B-52 pilot, told The National Interest.
Russia’s venerable Tupolev Tu-95MS Bear strategic bombers are starting to receive the capability to retarget cruise missiles once the bombers are already airborne. Moreover, those cruise missiles can be retargeted once they are already enroute to their targets—which is a significant new capability for the Russian military.
Indeed, earlier today, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that the Tu-95MS bombers armed with the latest X-101 cruise missiles—able hit targets a range of 4500km—struck ISIS targets in Syria.
