D
Russian army 'tests the father of all bombs'
Daily TelegraphLink
Just as long as you're no where near it when it detonates 
Daily TelegraphLink
Russia has delivered a belligerent message of defiance to the West after army generals claimed to have tested "the father of all bombs".
Developed in secret, the unchristened bomb, a vacuum device capable of emitting shockwaves as powerful as a nuclear weapon, was unveiled with great theatre on state television's main evening broadcast.
Boasting that the weapon had "no match in the world," ORT First Channel television showed a Tupolev Tu-160 strategic bomber dropping its payload over a testing ground, followed by a massive explosion.
Pictures of what appeared to be crumpled multi-storey apartment blocks were also broadcast.
Although there was no independent verification of the Russian military's claim, the test is likely to cause further consternation in the West after a series of bellicose statements by the president, Vladimir Putin.
According to Russian generals, the bomb is four times more powerful than the American Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb or MOAB.
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Better known as the Mother of All Bombs, the MOAB is a descendent of the BLU-82 Daisy cutter used in Tora Bora during the war against the Taliban in 2001.
Although it has never been used, the US military says the MOAB is capable of destroying nine city blocks in one strike.
According to Gen Alexander Rushkin, the Russian deputy chief of staff, the new bomb is smaller than the MOAB but much deadlier because, due to nanotechnology, the temperature at the epicentre of the blast is twice as high.
"Test results of the new airborne weapon have shown that its efficiency and power is commensurate with a nuclear weapon," he said.
"The main destruction is inflicted by an ultrasonic shockwave and an incredibly high temperature," ORT added.
"All that is alive merely evaporates."
Despite its destructive qualities, the bomb is environmentally friendly, Gen Rushkin said.
Developed in secret, the unchristened bomb, a vacuum device capable of emitting shockwaves as powerful as a nuclear weapon, was unveiled with great theatre on state television's main evening broadcast.
Boasting that the weapon had "no match in the world," ORT First Channel television showed a Tupolev Tu-160 strategic bomber dropping its payload over a testing ground, followed by a massive explosion.
Pictures of what appeared to be crumpled multi-storey apartment blocks were also broadcast.
Although there was no independent verification of the Russian military's claim, the test is likely to cause further consternation in the West after a series of bellicose statements by the president, Vladimir Putin.
According to Russian generals, the bomb is four times more powerful than the American Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb or MOAB.
advertisement
Telegraph - TravelShop
Better known as the Mother of All Bombs, the MOAB is a descendent of the BLU-82 Daisy cutter used in Tora Bora during the war against the Taliban in 2001.
Although it has never been used, the US military says the MOAB is capable of destroying nine city blocks in one strike.
According to Gen Alexander Rushkin, the Russian deputy chief of staff, the new bomb is smaller than the MOAB but much deadlier because, due to nanotechnology, the temperature at the epicentre of the blast is twice as high.
"Test results of the new airborne weapon have shown that its efficiency and power is commensurate with a nuclear weapon," he said.
"The main destruction is inflicted by an ultrasonic shockwave and an incredibly high temperature," ORT added.
"All that is alive merely evaporates."
Despite its destructive qualities, the bomb is environmentally friendly, Gen Rushkin said.
