Air Force Research Lab Works on Next-Gen Hypersonic Weapons for 2040
Nov 13
By Kris Osborn - Warrior Maven
(Washington D.C.) - The Air Force Research Laboratory is immersed in early work on a new-generation of hypersonic weapons designed to come after the currently emerging arsenal, expanding hypersonic mission options in new directions and introducing new air vehicle configurations.
The Pentagon and military services have been massively fast-tracking hypersonic weapons development, given the far-reaching warfare implications associated with firing weapons able to travel at five-times the speed of sound; numerous programs have been underway, and the most current estimation is that an initial set of hypersonic weapons will be operational by the early 2020s. Earlier this year, the Air Force conducted its first prototype hypersonic missile flight test; the service launched a sensor-only prototype of the AGM-183A Air Launched Rapid Response Weapon from a B-52.
https://defensemaven.io/warriormaven/future-weapons/air-force-research-lab-works-on-next-gen-hypersonic-weapons-for-2040-t1-mFrt3vUKFf3w-Sn0SiA/?mc_cid=b90788eb14&mc_eid=ba816b4660
