Washington, DC [US], March 21 : United States Air Force recently conducted a test of a hypersonic cruise missile in the Pacific, a significant move aimed at showcasing its continued competitiveness in a realm where China is perceived to hold a strategic advantage, CNN reported.
On March 17, a B-52 bomber flying out of Andersen Air Force Base on the island of Guam fired "a full prototype operational hypersonic missile", an Air Force spokesperson confirmed in a statement to CNN.
The test of the hypersonic weapon, officially called the All-Up-Round AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW), was conducted at the Reagan Test Site on Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, almost 1,600 miles (2,600 kilometres) to the east of Guam, the statement said.
ARRW tests have been conducted off the US mainland.
The ARRW consists of a rocket booster motor and the hypersonic glide vehicle, which carries a conventional warhead.
It is "intended to attack high-value, time-sensitive, land-based targets," a 2021 Defence Department document says.
According to CNN, hypersonic glide vehicles, like the ARRW, travel at speeds surpassing Mach 5, or approximately 4,000 miles per hour, making them elusive targets for detection and interception, while also possessing the capability to manoeuvre and alter altitude, thereby evading existing missile defence systems.
US officials have previously acknowledged that China and Russia have pulled ahead in the development of hypersonics.
China has been testing hypersonic glide vehicles that can carry both nuclear and conventional warheads since 2014, according to the Missile Defence Advocacy Alliance, a non-partisan lobbying group, as per CNN.
A US Air Force general said in 2021 that China had tested a hypersonic glide vehicle weapon that "went around the world," while Russia fired a Zircon hypersonic cruise missile against Ukraine earlier this year, according to a Ukrainian government agency.
North Korea also claims to be developing hypersonic weapons. The state-run Korean Central News Agency on Wednesday said that leader Kim Jong Un watched the test of a new engine for an intermediate-range hypersonic weapon on Tuesday.
While the future of the ARRW programme remains uncertain, with funding limitations and strategic considerations at play, analysts suggest that the Defence Department may reconsider its stance given the evolving threat landscape.
As the hypersonic arms race continues to intensify, the US remains vigilant in its pursuit of advanced hypersonic capabilities, signalling its resolve to match pace with its global competitors.
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