Content1. What the Flamingo can do: known missile specifications2. Flamingo analogs: similarities and differences3. Flamingo’s reach: Moscow, Siberia, and beyond4. Flamingo’s weaknesses: size, weight, and speed5. Flamingo’s role in Ukraine’s missile program6. Why the Flamingo missile made headlines nowWhat the Flamingo can do: known missile specificationsDeclared missile specifications:Range: 3,000 kilometersWarhead weight: 1 tonMaximum launch weight: 6 tonsCruise speed: 850–900 km/h, with peak speeds up to 950 km/hTotal length: 6–7 metersDiameter: 80–90 centimetersWingspan: approximately 5.2 metersThe guidance system combines inertial navigation with a CRPA satellite package, designed to protect against electronic warfare.“Being a subsonic missile with a speed of 0.75 Mach makes it one of the slowest in the world, although it carries a warhead exceeding the average size — 1,000 kilograms,” reported Military Watch magazine.Flamingo analogs: similarities and differencesThe Ukrainian Flamingo is similar to the FP-5 cruise missile produced by Milanion Group, a British-Emirati company that showcased the system at the IDEX 2025 exhibition in Abu Dhabi.                                                                                                     FP-5 missile produced by Milanion Group at the IDEX 2025 exhibition in Abu Dhabi                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Photo: Milanion GroupInterestingly, some experts note that the company was, in turn, inspired by Russia’s own Strizh Tu-141 missile.Milanion is headquartered in the UAE, has a subsidiary, NTGS, in the United Kingdom, and signed a cooperation agreement with a Ukrainian defense company in 2021. This could serve as the basis for Flamingo production in Ukraine.Milanion announced a production rate of over 50 missiles per month. This was made possible by simplifying design features, such as removing complex wings and using a containerized launch. However, this requires a preparation time of 20 to 40 minutes before launch.                                                                                                                                                                                                                 FP-5 missile specifications                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Infographic: Milanion GroupAnother analogue of the Flamingo is the American Tomahawk missile. In the Block IV and Block V variants, it has an approximate range of 1,600 kilometers and a weight of 450 kilograms.                                                                            Tomahawk cruise missilePhoto – WikipediaBased on the link to the Flamingo FP-5 being accurate, Armyrecognition writes that Ukraine now has a subsonic cruise missile with a similar speed but a larger warhead and roughly twice the range. The Tomahawk underwent decades of integration into sea- and land-based launch systems and continues to evolve through variants for maritime strikes and penetration of hard-to-reach targets, whereas the Flamingo has not yet been confirmed in operational use. No official Ukrainian data currently verifies these specifications, leaving references to the FP-5 from open sources as the main basis for technical assumptions.Some experts note, Armyrecognition continues, that the Flamingo bears some external resemblance to the German V-1 flying bomb used during World War Two. Media outlets predict that this parallel will be exploited by Russian state media in ongoing disinformation campaigns portraying Ukraine as a “neo-Nazi regime.”Tomahawk cruise missile before launchPhoto – WikipediaHowever, this comparison requires context. The resemblance mainly relates to the general shape of the airframe, the placement of the engine on its dorsal section, and the relatively simple design intended for ground launch — common features for cruise missiles. Historically, the V-1 was the first operational cruise missile widely used by Germany against London and Antwerp, with over 30,000 units produced between 1944 and 1945. It carried a warhead of approximately 850 kilograms and had an effective range of about 250 kilometers, reaching subsonic speeds of around 640 km/h. Its advantages lay in the simplicity of its pulsejet engine and relatively low production costs compared to conventional aircraft. Although it was slow and vulnerable to interception by fighters and anti-aircraft guns, it still inflicted significant damage on London and Antwerp and forced the Allies to redirect substantial human and military resources toward defensive measures.Flamingo’s reach: Moscow, Siberia, and beyondA 3,000-kilometer missile launched from Ukrainian territory could reach Moscow, strike beyond the Ural Mountains, and hit Novaya Zemlya. According to aviation expert Valeriy Romanenko, up to 90% of Russia’s defense industry enterprises fall within the missile’s range. The missile, he emphasizes, could reach Novosibirsk, where Su-34 aircraft are produced. Figuratively speaking, Romanenko adds, the Flamingo could destroy Russian Oreshnik missiles before they are even produced, as two missiles, if accurately targeted, could obliterate a weapons manufacturing facility.Military Watch reports that after these missiles are launched, the ability to strike deeper into Russian territory could enable a repeat of the Spider’s Web operation that Ukraine carried out on June 1, when it struck strategic Russian fleet targets in multiple regions of the country.Flamingo’s weaknesses: size, weight, and speedThe limitations are obvious. The large size, wide wingspan, and subsonic speed of the Flamingo potentially make it easier to detect and intercept than its counterparts. Some observers, Armyrecognition notes, argue that coverage gaps, low-altitude routing, and the use of decoys or drones could compensate for these drawbacks. Ukraine has previously reached 1,000 kilometers into Russian airspace using modified aircraft (such as the A-22 Foxbat) and older Soviet drones (such as the Tu-143).At the same time, Defense Express points out that the larger an object, the more noticeable it is. For simplicity, the FP-5 Flamingo does not employ stealth-reducing technologies. While ground-based radars and surface-to-air systems can be evaded with low-altitude flight and terrain masking, fighter radars have long been able to distinguish targets against the ground.Therefore, the key principle for effective use of this missile may simply be that the farther it reaches into Russian territory, the weaker the air defenses. After all, the Russian air defense system previously allowed large Tu-141 Strizh drones, which are fairly similar in size, to pass through. Thus, this cannot be considered a critical flaw; otherwise, the FP-5 Flamingo would not have such range and warhead size.Flamingo’s role in Ukraine’s missile programThe emergence of the Flamingo aligns with Ukraine’s broader missile development program, which Espreso detailed in the article Missile rethinking: how many ‘big’ missiles does Ukraine need to win.The cruise missile Neptune, initially developed as an anti-ship weapon, gained prominence after sinking the Russian cruiser Moskva in 2022 and has since been adapted for land strikes. Hrim-2 is a tactical ballistic missile project with a range of about 500 kilometers. In 2025, Ukraine tested a new ballistic missile that flew roughly 300 kilometers with a warhead weighing over 400 kilograms, already used against Russian command positions. Ukraine also introduced Palianytsia, described as a hybrid missile-drone with a range of 500–700 kilometers and a warhead estimated at 20–50 kilograms, domestically produced and deployed in combat. These systems demonstrate Ukraine’s expanding strike capabilities, from short-range drones to long-range cruise and ballistic missiles.Why the Flamingo missile made headlines nowMost experts agree that the timing of Yefrem Lukatsky’s publication, right before President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, points to both political and military motives for revealing the system. In this context, it is noted that Ukraine previously announced the production of the first 100 missiles in November 2024, and by April 2025, Zelenskyy stated that over 40 percent of all weapons used on the front are produced domestically, including 95 percent of drones. Thus, the disclosure of Flamingo aligns with broader statements about scaling up domestic weapons production. The announcement also coincided with ongoing discussions on acquiring air defense systems for Ukraine, including potential SAMP/T NG systems from France and Italy, expected to counter Russian ballistic and hypersonic threats. Clearly, releasing this information sent a strong message to the American side and, of course, to Russia, signaling that Russia’s claims of an inevitable victory over Ukraine are not so straightforward.The article was prepared in collaboration with the Consortium for Defence Information (CDI), a project that unites Ukrainian analytical and research organizations and aims to strengthen informational support and analytical capacity in the fields of national security, defense, and geopolitics.