The US recently tested two Lockheed Martin Corp hypersonic missiles, according to the Pentagon, amid mounting concerns that Russia and China have had better success creating their own hypersonic weapons.
The United States Air Force stated Tuesday that it successfully tested its Air-Launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) rocket off the coast of California. Reuters reported earlier on Wednesday that the ARRW rocket was hauled aloft beneath the wing of a B-52H before being fired. The weapon did not separate from the plane in earlier tests.
‘This second successful test confirms ARRW’s ability to attain and sustain operational hypersonic speeds, capture critical data for future flight tests, and validate safe separation from the aircraft,’ Lockheed said in a statement.
‘We have already completed our booster test series and are ready to move forward to all-up-round testing later this year,’ said Air Force Brigadier General Heath Collins, programme executive officer, Armament Directorate.
The booster and the warhead are included in the ‘all-up-round.’
Hypersonic weapons move at more than five times the speed of sound in the upper atmosphere, or around 6,200 kilometres (3,853 miles) per hour.
In a separate hypersonic weapon test, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced that the first test of its Operational Fires hypersonic weapon was successful.
The test took place at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.
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