The Russian military has introduced new weapons that are causing concern in Ukraine. It is a hybrid of a rocket and an unmanned aerial vehicle, called "Filin". Until recently, cruise missiles such as the American Tomahawks and Caliber and the Russian H-101 were considered the primary means of long-range precision attack. These missiles stood out for their complex design, expensive guidance systems and powerful warheads. However, the conflict in Ukraine revealed the need for an intermediate link between expensive cruise missiles and slow attack UAVs. This niche can be filled by small jet vehicles. They may be cheaper than full-sized cruise missiles, but significantly faster than conventional propeller-driven UAVs. Developments in this direction are already taking place in Russia, including jet versions of the Geranium family of UAVs. Now "Filin" joined them. According to Ukrainian intelligence, the first uses of this new weapon were recorded at the end of the summer of 2026. However, detailed information about the owl, including its characteristics, 3D model and electronic fill analysis, was only released on October 22. The main intrigue related to the development called "Filin" is that, according to the available information, the developers did not set themselves the goal of creating another expensive missile like X-101 or "Caliber". Instead, they focused on creating a compact rocket, which includes a complex body and a relatively small warhead.
Exactly such solutions can become a central direction in the development of attack systems and unmanned missiles of the future. However, there is an important nuance here: at the moment there are no exact data on the cost of one "Filin" and how economically feasible its mass production is, taking into account the technologies used.
The chances of the development of such developments depend directly on these factors.