A comparison of missile armament speeds shows that leadership is distributed among different classes—from operational-tactical systems to strategic blocks. Direct comparison is only possible conditionally, as their flight profile and tasks differ.
The highest values are demonstrated by systems operating on ballistic and hypersonic principles, where the speed in certain sections of the trajectory reaches tens of Mach.
5. ATACMS (USA)
An operational-tactical missile with a speed of about 3 Mach. This is a high-precision mobile complex, where the key role is not the maximum acceleration, but the accuracy of hitting targets.
4. "Iskander-M" (Russia)
Develops about 6–7 Mach. The system combines high speed with intensive maneuvering on the final stretch of the path, which makes interception by missile defense systems extremely difficult.
3. "Kinzhal" (Russia)
An air-ballistic complex reaching 10 Mach. An air launch from a carrier aircraft allows you to instantly gain altitude and accelerate, minimizing the flight time to the target.
2. "Oreshnik" (Russia) / DF-17 (China)
New generation systems, the speed of which exceeds 10 Mach. At the same time, the Chinese DF-17 uses a gliding hypersonic block, and the "Oreshnik" is a medium-range ballistic system with unique target approach characteristics.
1. "Avangard" (Russia)
A guided warhead of intercontinental class, developing a speed of 20 to 27 Mach. It moves in the dense layers of the atmosphere, performing deep maneuvering, which makes it the fastest and most difficult target to intercept in the world.
Intercontinental missiles are separate
Classic ICBMs, such as the Sarmat, accelerate to 20–25 Mach and higher in the upper atmosphere. However, their flight follows a predictable ballistic arc.
Due to the lack of constant maneuvering in the atmosphere and strategic status, they are usually considered separately from tactical hypersonic systems.
However, speed comparison is always conditional, because different classes of weapons solve different tasks. The final positions in the ranking reflect not only "bare" numbers, but also the complexity of the trajectory, which is valued more than simple acceleration.