By Jim Morris, Warrior Vice President, News
(Washington DC) The US Navy has taken another step toward fielding the nation’s first sea-based hypersonic weapon.
On May 2, the Navy announced it had conducted a successful end-to-end flight test of a conventional hypersonic missile, the first launch of the service’s Conventional Prompt Strike capability. The missile was launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, and marked the first time the Navy used the cold-gas approach that will be used at sea.
“The speed, range and survivability of hypersonic weapons are key to integrated deterrence for America,” said Navy Secretary John Phelan. “When fielded, Conventional Prompt Strike will deliver unmatched capabilities to our warfighters.”
The US has been playing catch-up with China and Russia when it comes to hypersonic weapons. However, in December the US successfully test-fired a hypersonic missile from Cape Canaveral.
It was the first live-fire event for the Long-Range Hypersonic weapon (known as Dark Eagle). The missile is said to travel at speeds over 3,800 miles per hour (faster than Mach 5) and has a range of 1,725.
That test – and the one last week – is part of the All Up Round (AUR) that the Army and Navy are jointly developing. In December’s test, the missile was fired from a trailer-based launcher. Eventually, the Navy plans to deploy the missile on Zumwalt-class destroyers and Block V Virginia-class submarines.
Last year, Ingalls Shipbuilding removed the USS Zumwalt’s twin cannon turrets to make room for the hypersonic missiles. Tubess were installed to allow the Zumwalt to carry as many as a dozen of the missiles. Another Zumwalt-class ship, the USS Michael Monsoor, is also being converted.
Meanwhile, the cold-gas launch was a crucial part of last week’s test.
“The cold-gas approach allows the Navy to eject the missile from the platform and achieve a safe distance above the ship prior to first stage ignition,” said Vice Admiral Johnny R. Wolfe Jr., the director of the Navy’s Strategic Systems Programs (SSP). “This technical achievement brings SSP one step closer to fulfilling our role of providing a safe and reliable hypersonic capability to our Navy.”
A report by the Russian news agency Sputnik in February indicated that the Kremlin may be preparing to deploy a new generation of hypersonic, nuclear-capable Iskander 100 ballistic missiles.
According to the report, the new weapon has a range of up to 625 miles – more than twice that of an older version of the Iskander – and is “set to be deployed in Ukraine in the near future.” Still, it’s not clear if the report is accurate.
