Ukraine’s General Staff confirmed the FP-5 “Flamingo” cruise missile was first used in combat in spring 2025 and remains in service.
Major Dmytro Lykhovyi, a spokesperson for the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, told reporters during an “open dialogue” hosted by defense firm Fire Point that the Ukrainian-made Flamingo has been in combat use for seven months, Ukrinform reports.
“Combat use of ‘Flamingo’ began in May 2025. And as of the fall, its employment against enemy targets continues,” Lykhovyi said.
He noted the missile remains experimental and is still being refined.
“If with the FP-1 drone we note significant effectiveness achieved over years of mass use and upgrades, then, according to General Staff experts, the FP-5 ‘rocket-drone’ still has to go through that path. For now, we say this is experimental weaponry with significant stated performance characteristics and strong growth potential. Its improvement is complicated by a high unit cost and the developer’s capacities,” he said.
Lykhovyi added that while the FP-1 saw major upgrades over two years, iterating the FP-5 is harder because “launches are measured in different numbers.”
Fire Point’s chief technology officer, Iryna Terekh, said production is scaling according to the manufacturer’s original plan. The company is working with the military on tactics and broader deployment.
“We’re moving very well, and I’m glad we’re meeting the preliminary plans,” Terekh said.
Flamingo missile: what to know
Ukraine’s Flamingo is a ground-launched, land-attack cruise missile fired from a towed platform.
Technical specifications:
- Range: 3,000 km
- Time aloft: more than 4 hours
- Max speed: 950 km/h
- Cruise speed: 850–900 km/h
- Wingspan: 6 meters
- Max takeoff weight: 6 tons
- Warhead weight: 1 ton
The missile has a fixed straight wing and an engine mounted above the fuselage. Unlike folding-wing missiles launched from canisters, this design simplifies manufacturing, allowing a stated capacity of more than 50 missiles per month. The tradeoff is a longer pre-launch prep time of 20–40 minutes.
