The president of the United States, Joe Biden, confirmed that the leader of Al Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was executed thanks to a secret missile called the R9X Hellfire, also known as the “ninja bomb”.
The R9X is one of the most unusual variants of the Hellfire missile family, built as a precision and “targeted kill” weapon, as its most distinctive feature is that it does not explode and simply uses its weight, momentum and blade-like appendages for killing.
First revealed by the Wall Street Journal in 2019, the modified R9X swaps out the standard explosive Hellfire warhead for a halo of six sword-like metal fins that are sharp enough to slice through concrete and steel on their way to a target.
The lethal payload has earned the R9X Hellfire nicknames like “the flying Ginsu ” or “the Ninja bomb” within the defense community.
Designed to be launched from an unmanned vehicle or drone, the R9X by 100 pounds unfurls the blades through its skin during flight.
Furthermore, this weapon’s design allows collateral casualties to be minimized, crashing and slashing at a lone target rather than exploding into an expanding ball of hot shrapnel like a conventional Hellfire.
Some have even suggested that the weapon, which originated during the Cold War as an anti-tank missile designed to be fired from a helicopter, could kill the passenger of a car without harming the driver.
The R9X is believed to have been used only half a dozen times since development began in 2011. It was probably first introduced in 2017.
The authorities have said that the weapon requires very precise intelligence: one would need to know not only what car or building the target is in, but specifically where they are sitting or standing, as in the case of Ayman Al-Zawahiri, who was allegedly on the balcony of a house.
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