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The United States’ hopes for a hypersonic missile came across another hurdle.
On July 28th, the second booster flight test of the AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) resulted in failure.
The missile was shot over Point Mugu Sea Range near southern California, and its engine failed to ignite after it was launched out of a B-52 bomber.
The missile cleanly separated from the aircraft and successfully demonstrated the full release sequence including GPS acquisition, umbilical disconnect and power transfer from the aircraft to the missile. The missile also demonstrated fin operation and de-confliction maneuvers which ensures a safe operation for the aircrew.
Afterward, the rocket booster was supposed to ignite, accelerating the missile to Mach 5 speeds, but it failed to do so. The missile presumably fell into the Pacific Ocean.
Still, program officials have been unable to identify what went wrong during the test or how to fix it.
Not all is lost, and the US Air Forces hopes to push through the issues and conclude flight testing and begin production of the new, cutting-edge weapon by the end of fiscal 2022.
Additionally, the Air Force still needs to successfully complete flight testing of the ARRW booster and all-up round before the service awards a contract to manufacturer Lockheed Martin and begins production of the weapon, which is currently targeted for FY22, Collins said.
Any lengthy redesign of the missile could lead to delays.
In the Fiscal Year 2022 budget, the Air Force requested $161 million to procure the first 12 AGM-183As, which would become the military’s first hypersonic weapon available for operations.
However, these failures and the justifiably low expectations have resulted in the House Appropriations Committee decreasing spending on the program by $44 million. The purpose is so that the weapon isn’t rushed before all technical issues are fixed.
It appears that lessons from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program have been learned.
Any rapid prototyping effort of a new hypersonic weapon would be a “risky program” by nature, but the ARRW effort is making progress on resolving technical problems, according to US official claims.
The AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) is a conventional hypersonic weapon. Generally, they’re designed to catch fleeting targets, like a missile launcher or a surface-to-air missile radar, before they safely redeploy.
Hypersonic weapons can also overwhelm air defenses by traveling faster and higher than existing defenses can intercept.
The US Air Force envisions the ARRW as an incredibly powerful “checkmate” weapon. A single B-1B bomber can carry as many as 31 ARRWs, targeting enemy air bases, radar sites, and air defense missiles. So, an air strike involving just a third of the Air Force’s 45 B-1B bombers could theoretically deliver as many as 465 hypersonic weapons at once.
If only they could make just one single missile hit its target, first.
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Good stuff, they seem to be on their way. While the Russians are making their hypersonic weapons better.
While the Russians are a couple decades ahead.
The Americunts are cheats, cokeheads who stole technology from others and all their scientists are now Chinese origin and with rising anti-Asian racism they are under suspicion and some are working for CCP anyway. The Jews have really fukedup the redneck dopers.
Well even basic Russian weapons like the T-34, Kalashnikov and legendary 122mm Katyushas were way ahead of their time. The Americunt M-16 to M1 tanks proved to be absolute junk. The stupid cokehead losers were using the AK-47 and MI-17 helicopters in Afghanistan as their own junk failed in the field. Their whole facade is based on Hollywood Jew fantasies, even that has worn out LOL
Good point. hollywood perverted CGI is cheaper than the real product. The zionist scum even ran off to the west coast to escape patent rights in the US.
The Zionist sh1theads managed to steal the F-16 blueprints and tried to turn it into Lavi, but failed and then the bastards sold it to China for $50 million. The Chinese at Chengdu quickly turned it into J-10 which is far superior to the F-16. The Jews are all hype and typical cheats. Nothing they claim to have produced is original. The only original thing that the scum produced is land theft, mass murder of civilians, ponzi scams and organ harvesting of poor children.
It makes sense. The zionist degenerates are in service to older orders. This why they are all perverted, brainwashed imbeciles.
“God’s chosen people” is simply satanic doublespeak for idiots who sold their souls to the devil for $$$.
Jews also introduced usury and organized prostitution historically. Even Shakespeare overtly writes about it in Merchant of Venice and the Shylock scum who wants a pound of gentile child’s flesh for unpaid interest. Jews are chosen evil criminals for sure, no question about it.
“who wants a pound of gentile child’s flesh for unpaid interest”
Did you actually ever even read The Merchant Of Venice? And, before you ask, I acted in it.
USA junk. Propulsion failed.
At least it did not explode before clean separation. Congratulations yankee tards. Thanks to your parasitic wall street owners you should get it right by 2050.
The Russians have taken a giant lead and are perfecting their 1 generation hypersonic weapons. China has at least 1hypersonic weapon in service.
The dumbass Americunts are frauds hooked on coke, even their basic rockets were stolen NAZI technology of Von Braun. Most of the morons weapons are junk and have lost every war.
Point Mugu? Mugu is what 419 scammers call their prospective marks. Since the Amerikastani military industrial complex is one huge scam, selecting a place called Point Mugu is apposite.
If it has any range, launching 31 from a single platform from high altitude would make it formidable. I wonder what the range is post launch. If the B52 or B1-B has to get close, it would be easy for a world class military to take them down.
This is going to work as well as the F-35. In video games they will be awesome, unlimited range, faster in the world, never misses and can’t be shot down, in real life lol!
We are Building Back doing it Better, while Russia is Building forward doing it worse in an amateurish and unprofessional way. We won!
Ask the Russians for advice 😅
Seems the US is trying to buy secrets of the lead Russian hypersonic weapons Expert.How desperate are the US ?