On the second day of the full-scale war, he wrote a will and divided the money between his children , and today his company is valued at more than a billion dollars. Denis Shtilerman, owner of Fire Point, in an interview with Dmitry Gordon for the first time revealed shocking details of the production of Ukrainian ballistic and cruise missiles.
What Ukrainian developments are already burning Russian strategic factories, why hitting the Crimean bridge is ineffective, and when will Ukraine be able to organize a blackout in Moscow? We have collected the main insider insights from the conversation.
What is a Flamingo rocket and what is the orange paint for?
Stielerman’s main goal at the beginning of the development was to create the simplest, most automated weapon that does not require a large number of highly qualified specialists and minimizes the human factor. This is how the “Flamingo” appeared – a product that works on the principle of a turbojet aircraft flying at ultra-low altitudes (a record 15 meters above the ground – which is extremely difficult for air defense systems to detect).
Interestingly, the rocket got its name by accident: the contractor simply ran out of special orange paint, which was originally used to paint the flight recorders (hard drives) that were in the rocket during testing.
The stated characteristics of “Flamingo” according to the developer himself (impressive):
- Range: up to 3,000 km.
- Warhead: 1,150 kg.
- Speed: up to 950 km/h.
- Cost: about $600,000 per unit.
These missiles have already proven their effectiveness. Among the most important targets hit were the Botkin Plant, the Kapustin Yar test site (where components of the Russian Oreshnik ICBM were stored), and a number of strategic ammunition bases.
Ukrainian ballistics: “Sevens”, “Nine” and their superiority over Russian Iskanders
Fire Point develops not only cruise missiles, but also ballistic missiles that have nothing in common with outdated Soviet models:
FP-7 “Sevens”:
- range up to 300 km,
- combat load up to 250 kg,
- cost about 500 thousand dollars.
FP-9 “Nines”:
- range up to 850 km,
- warhead — 800 kg.
- The first launches are expected in the middle of this year (the rockets are almost ready, the only issue left is the engines).
These are aeroballistic targets that maneuver away from air defenses in the air.
“Our ballistic missiles are 850 km better than the Russian Iskanders. They fly further, carry a greater load, cost less, and reach the target one and a half times faster ,” notes Denis Shtilerman.
The Russian “Dagger” is simply called “an Iskander attached to a supersonic fighter,” by Flamingo’s developer. And while Russia is improving its missiles to bypass Patriot systems, their mass production is being slowed by successful Ukrainian strikes on component manufacturing plants.
Attack on Moscow and the Crimean Bridge: What to Expect
Many Ukrainians are interested in the fate of the Crimean Bridge. However, Stillerman looks at it pragmatically: Fire Point missiles can destroy the bridge span, but the question of expediency is, because Russia will quickly restore it. Therefore, wasting an expensive resource is inefficient (according to him, only a nuclear explosion can fundamentally destroy the bridge).
The main target is Moscow. That’s where decisions are made. According to the owner of Fire Point, in order for Russia to feel a real blow, 20-30 missiles need to be launched simultaneously at the capital of the Russian Federation.
Despite the fact that Moscow, in his opinion, is surrounded by three rings of air defense and mobile fire groups, Stillerman is confident in success: “The first missiles will go in like children in school, because the Russians have not yet intercepted such ballistics and simply do not know how to do it . “
Behind the scenes of Fire Point: 50 factories and a 94-year-old engineer
The scale of production is impressive. Today, the company employs over 5,000 people at more than 50 classified locations throughout Ukraine. People are recruited directly from universities and trained at the design bureau on site. The oldest employee is 94 years old (he is an experienced engineer from the legendary Yuzhmash ).
Interesting fact: To bypass bureaucracy and not waste years on classic weapons codification, these missiles are documented as drones.
Finally, Denis Shtilerman sharply responded to the skeptical statement of the head of the Rheinmetall concern that Ukrainian drones are supposedly “housewives with a 3D printer.” Fire Point not only owns the latest technologies, but also creates them itself – from unique antennas to navigation tools that allow missiles to fly accurately at night even without satellite communication. We are developing incredibly quickly, and the appearance of interceptor drones is a vivid proof of this. The main question of the future scaling of production is whether Ukraine will be able to obtain the necessary financing.
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