The United Kingdom has just announced the launch of a weapons development program called "Project Nightfall". This move is seen as a direct effort to provide a replacement solution for US long-range missiles, helping Ukraine maintain its ability to attack deep into enemy territory.
Unlike low-flying cruise missiles like Storm Shadow, the Nightfall ballistic missile operates under the mechanism of launching high and then crashing down on targets at speeds of up to more than 3,200 km/h. This speed makes interception extremely difficult, unless the enemy possesses particularly modern defense systems like Patriot.
Battlefield reality shows that Ukraine is facing a serious shortage of ballistic missiles. The US-backed ATACMS line (range 300km) that was once the main force has now gradually dried up. The last time this type of weapon participated in combat was recorded in November last year.
Professor Michael Clarke from King's College London said Nightfall was designed to "take" the right place that ATACMS left. He said this is a strategic step by European allies to reduce dependence on Washington, in the context of increasingly unpredictable supply from the US.
Regarding technical specifications, the British Ministry of Defense revealed that the Nightfall missile carries a 200kg warhead but has a superior range of more than 500km. This number far exceeds the 300km range of ATACMS or the domestic Sapsan missile of Ukraine.
The tactics used by this type of missile are to launch from a mobile ground launcher and then quickly retreat to avoid counter-attack.
However, the biggest challenge is the timing issue. The Nightfall project has only just started the phase of awarding a contract of 12 million USD to manufacture a prototype. The goal is to have a test-fired product within the next 12 months.
According to expert Mykhailo Samus, Director of the New Geopolitical Research Network, the weapon development process usually takes many years. Therefore, although Nightfall has impressive specifications, it is likely that Ukraine's improved domestic missile lines will appear on the battlefield earlier than British weapons.
